Bangladesh protests: Army out in force as police fire on demonstrators

Bangladeshi cities under military patrol amid violent protests, with over 100 dead, challenging Prime Minister's rule.

Soldiers were patrolling Bangladeshi cities on July 20 to quell growing civil unrest sparked by student demonstrations, with riot police firing on protesters who defied a government curfew.

This week’s violence has killed at least 123 people so far, according to an AFP count of victims reported by police and hospitals, and poses a monumental challenge to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s autocratic government after 15 years in office.

A government curfew went into effect at midnight and the premier’s office asked the military to deploy troops after police again failed to subdue widespread mayhem.

“The Army has been deployed nationwide to control the law and order situation,” armed forces spokesman Shahdat Hossain told AFP.

The curfew will remain in effect until at least 10:00 a.m. (0400 GMT) on July 21, private broadcaster Channel 24 reported.

Streets in the capital Dhaka were almost deserted at daybreak, with troops on foot and in armoured personnel carriers patrolling the sprawling megacity of 20 million.

But thousands returned to the streets later in the day in the residential neighbourhood of Rampura, with police firing at the crowd and wounding at least one person.