Malaysia evacuates 123 citizens from violence-hit Bangladesh
Malaysia evacuated 123 of its citizens from Bangladesh on Tuesday, amid violent unrest that has killed dozens of people
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Malaysia evacuated 123 of its citizens from Bangladesh on Tuesday, amid violent unrest that has killed dozens of people.
Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution greeted the evacuees, including 80 students, at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport after they landed on a chartered AirAsia plane. More than 50 Malaysians opted to stay in the country due to work or study, officials said.
A controversial system for allocating government jobs has triggered violent protests in Bangladesh, with clashes between police and mainly student protesters killing more than 100 people, according to local media.
There was apparent calm after Bangladesh top court scaled back the quota in a ruling issued Sunday.
The protests have posed the most serious challenge to Bangladesh’s government since Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina won a fourth consecutive term in January elections that the main opposition groups boycotted. Universities have been closed, the internet has been shut off and the government imposed a national curfew, and deployed military forces to maintain order.
Saifuddin said the Internet and communication outage in Bangladesh had hindered Malaysia's ability to reach its citizens. He said the Malaysian High Commission in Dhaka helped to facilitate the safe return of 19 students before Tuesday's evacuation flight.
He said at least 40 Malaysian students decided to remain as they are in their final year of studies. Officials said five Malaysian army officials and 10 pilots also chose to stay in Bangladesh.
Cassandra David, a student at the Dhaka Medical College, said she has remained in her hostel since the curfew was imposed and didn't witness any violence. Despite the Internet being down, she said she was well-informed of the situation by her family, the Malaysian High Commission and her college principal.
She said she was escorted to the High Commission earlier Tuesday under tight control and saw tankers and armed police and army officers patrolling the streets.