About 1,500 people were killed in protests that toppled the former prime minister of Bangladesh.

(CLO) About 1,500 people were killed in protests that toppled former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, according to interim Prime Minister Muhammad Yunus on November 17.

"Every day, new names are added to the list of martyrs," Mr Yunus said in a national address marking 100 days of the interim government , pledging to prosecute those responsible for the violence.

The estimate by Mr Yunus, an economist and Nobel Peace Prize winner, is higher than the previous official figure of around 1,000 people killed in the student-led protests.

Students take part in a protest marking one month since the government was overthrown at Dhaka University, September 5. Photo: Reuters

The protests, which began in July as student-led protests against public sector job quotas, escalated into one of the deadliest riots since Bangladesh's independence in 1971, forcing Ms Hasina to flee to India.

Mr Yunus said an investigative committee had found information on 1,600 disappearances as of October, but the total number could exceed 3,500.

He also reaffirmed the caretaker government’s commitment to seeking Ms Hasina’s extradition from India, adding that the caretaker government had begun efforts to bring those responsible for the disappearances, killings and violence in July and August to international courts.

He said the roadmap for the next general election in the country of 170 million people would be announced after electoral reforms were completed. Political parties including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), led by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, have been pressuring the caretaker government to hold national elections as soon as possible.

Ngoc Anh (according to Reuters)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/khoang-1500-nguoi-thiet-mang-trong-cac-cuoc-bieu-tinh-lat-do-cuu-thu-tuong-bangladesh-post321814.html