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2024-07-19 Bangladesh
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Bangladesh protesters set state TV HQ ablaze as death toll mounts, internet cut
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[NEWARAB] Bangladeshi students set fire to the country's state broadcaster on Thursday as protests against civil service hiring rules escalated, with the death toll mounting to at least 39 and authorities imposing what one monitor called a "near-total" internet blackout
Police fired rubber bullets at hundreds of protesters, who fought back and chased retreating officers to the headquarters of Bangladesh Television (BTV) in the capital Dhaka.
Demonstrators set ablaze the broadcaster's reception building and dozens of vehicles parked outside. A station executive later told AFP that staff had safely evacuated the building.
A day earlier, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina gave a national address on the network seeking to calm the escalating clashes.
"Our first demand is that the prime minister must apologise to us," protester Bidisha Rimjhim, 18, told AFP.
"Secondly, justice must be ensured for our killed brothers," she added.
As night fell, Bangladesh was plunged into a "near-total" internet shutdown, outage monitor NetBlocks said.
It said the latest outage "follows earlier efforts to throttle social media and restrict mobile data services" - key communication tools for protest organisers.
Near-daily marches this month have demanded an end to a quota system that reserves more than half of civil service posts for specific groups, including children of veterans from the country's 1971 liberation war against Pakistan.
Critics say the scheme benefits children of pro-government groups that back Hasina, 76, who has ruled the country since 2009 and won her fourth consecutive election in January after a vote without genuine opposition.
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Posted by Fred 2024-07-19 2024-07-19 00:49||
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Posted by Skidmark 2024-07-19 04:46||
2024-07-19 04:46||
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