Bangladesh protests demand Sheikh Hasina’s resignation, army stands ‘by the people’

Mass protests in Dhaka demand Prime Minister's resignation, with army involvement and nationwide civil disobedience campaign.

Thousands of Bangladeshi protesters, many wielding sticks, crowded into a central Dhaka square on August 4 for mass protests demanding Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resign following a deadly police crackdown.

Asif Mahmud, one of the key protest leaders in a nationwide civil disobedience campaign, asked supporters to be ready to fight.

Also Read | Bangladesh PM calls emergency meeting with varsity heads as student leaders refuse call for dialogue

"Prepare bamboo sticks and liberate Bangladesh," he wrote on Facebook on Sunday.

While the army stepped in to help restore order in the wake of earlier protests, some former military officers have since joined the student movement, and ex-army chief General Ikbal Karim Bhuiyan turned his Facebook profile picture red in a show of support.

Current army chief Waker-uz-Zaman spoke to officers at military headquarters in Dhaka on Saturday, telling them the "Bangladesh Army is the symbol of trust of the people".

"It always stood by the people and will do so for the sake of people and in any need of the state," he said, according to an army statement issued late Saturday.