Trending Now
We have updated our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use for Eurasia Group and its affiliates, including GZERO Media, to clarify the types of data we collect, how we collect it, how we use data and with whom we share data. By using our website you consent to our Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy, including the transfer of your personal data to the United States from your country of residence, and our use of cookies described in our Cookie Policy.
{{ subpage.title }}
People walk against strong wind in Kagoshima on Aug. 29, 2024, as Typhoon Shanshan made landfall on Japan's southwestern main island of Kyushu.
Hard Numbers: Typhoon pummels Japan, Germany deports Afghans, Press freedoms attacked in Hong Kong, Israel and Hamas pause for vaccinations, Hundreds lost eyesight in Bangladesh violence
5.2 million: At least three people have been killed by Typhoon Shanshan in Japan, and on Thursday, evacuation notices were issued for over 5.2 million people as the storm pummeled the southwest part of the island, bringing torrential rain and 112 mph wind gusts. More than 200,000 households lost power, and authorities have warned it could be one of the strongest storms ever to hit the area.
28: For the first time since August 2021, Germany has dispatched a deportation flight to Afghanistan. Authorities said the 28 deportees were all Afghan nationals and convicted offenders “who had no right to stay in Germany.” The German government had stopped sending Afghans back to their native country after the Taliban regained power owing to human rights concerns. The flight departed early Friday and was the culmination of two months of secret negotiations aided by mediator Qatar.
2: Two former editors of the pro-democracy publication Stand News — Chung Pui-kuen and Patrick Lam — were convicted of sedition in Hong Kong on Thursday, in yet another sign of the deterioration of freedoms in the city as Beijing continues to tighten its grip in a territory that was once mostly autonomous. They face up to two years in prison and a fine of roughly $640. This was the first trial involving media in Hong Kong since the handover of the city from Britain to China in 1997.
640,000: It’s far from a cease-fire deal, but Israel and Hamas have agreed to zoned three-day pauses in fighting so polio vaccines can be administered to approximately 640,000 children, a World Health Organization official said Thursday. This process will begin on Sunday in central Gaza, followed by the southern part of the enclave and then the north. The agreement leaves room for the pauses to be extended to a fourth day if necessary. This announcement comes less than a week after the WHO confirmed a baby in Gaza had been paralyzed by polio.
1,000: Over 1,000 people were killed by violence in Bangladesh that broke out last month amid anti-government protests, the country’s interim health ministry chief said Thursday, adding that more than 400 students lost their eyesight. The health ministry also noted that many people had their legs amputated. The protests ultimately saw Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina flee the country in early August. Bangladesh now has an interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus.Handout file photo dated July 3, 2024 shows Boeing's Starliner spacecraft that launched NASA's Crew Flight Test astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to the International Space Station is pictured docked to the Harmony module's forward port.
Hard Numbers: Stranded in space, Mexico’s shenanigans, Harris’ big haul, Rohingya remember their roots, Deadly ID checks
8: American astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita “Suni” Williams were expecting to spend just 8 days in space when they blasted off in July — but they’ll now be stuck aboard the International Space Station for 8 months thanks to severe problems with Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. Starliner will return to Earth uncrewed, and Wilmore and Williams will have to catch a ride home on the next SpaceX rocket, which will arrive in February.
73: Mexico’s governing coalition is set to receive 73% of the seats in Mexico’s lower house, the Chamber of Deputies, despite receiving just 60% of the vote at the ballot box in June. Mexico’s proportional representation system has historically served to give smaller parties a voice in Congress. But outgoing President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador worked the system to his advantage by “lending” delegates from his Morena Party to smaller members of his coalition, thereby qualifying to take some of the proportional representation seats.
540 million: Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign has raised over $540 million since she replaced President Joe Biden at the top of the Democratic ticket in July, with a third of donations coming from first-time contributors — and two-thirds from women. The Trump campaign has not yet released fundraising figures for August, but Harris outraised him by a 4:1 ratio in July and currently leads by 3 percentage points in the New York Times’ national polling average.
7: Tens of thousands of Rohingya refugees attended a ceremony in the pouring rain in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, on Sunday, marking the seventh anniversary of their exodus from Myanmar. Having fled genocide, roughly 700,000 Rohingya, a visible Muslim minority in overwhelmingly Buddhist Myanmar, are currently sheltering in Bangladesh, where they are not particularly welcome. Recently ousted Bangladeshi PM Sheikh Hasina tried twice to force the refugees’ repatriation, despite the ongoing civil war in Myanmar and the enduring threat to their lives.
22: The militant Baloch Liberation Army has claimed responsibility for the deaths of at least 22 people at a vehicle checkpoint in southwest Pakistan — part of a wave of militant separatist attacks over the weekend. Armed men stopped cars on a highway in Balochistan province, where security forces have been fighting the separatists, demanded identification, and singled out those from Punjab to be shot.
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina holds a press conference at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo
Hasina faces murder investigation, issues plea for accountability from exile
Her statement from self-exile in India came just hours after Bangladeshi police launched a murder investigation against her related to the civil unrest. It will likely be the first of several cases accusing Hasina and other government officials of wrongdoing.
Hasina stepped down and fled Bangladesh on Aug. 5 after student protests, which began as demonstrations against a quota system for government jobs, morphed into a movement against Hasina’s administration. She is accused of being responsible for much of the deadly violence – more than 300 people were killed – that ensued.
According to her son, Hasina plans to return to Bangladesh when the caretaker government, led by Nobel-winning microfinance guru Muhammad Yunus, holds elections. But that could change if the results of the investigations leave her facing jail time if she returns.Nobel peace laureate Muhammad Yunus during the inauguration of the Muhammad Yunus place in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, on July 22, 2024.
Bangladesh taps Nobel laureate as interim leader
Bangladesh’s Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus will lead the country’s interim government, student protest leader Nahid Islam announced Tuesday. The news came a day after the student-led uprising against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina led to herfleeing the country. At a meeting with the military and other political stakeholders, student protest leaders proposed that Yunus should take the helm.
Who is Yunus? He’s a longtime critic of Hasina and called her resignation the country’s “second liberation day.” The 84-year-old was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for pioneering the use of microfinance to help impoverished people, particularly women.
In 2007, he announced he would form a political party when the country was run by a military-backed government but abandoned the idea. He has faced investigations and allegations of embezzlement ever since, which hissupporters say are politically motivated because he challenged Hasina.
The challenge ahead: Yunus must reassure fellow Bangladeshis and restore order to the 170-million-strong population that’s been rattled by violent protests in recent weeks. Beyond that, he will need to shape the interim government and push for elections to choose the country’s next leader.
“I am honored by the trust of the protesters who wish for me to lead the interim government," he said in a statement. “If action is needed in Bangladesh, for my country, and for the courage of my people, then I will take it.”
People waves Bangladeshi flags on top the Ganabhaban, the Prime Minister's residence, as they celebrate the resignation of PM Sheikh Hasina in Dhaka, Bangladesh, August 5, 2024.
How can calm be restored in Bangladesh?
Bangladesh faces an uncertain future after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday resigned and fled the country amid deadly mass protests. The demonstrations came as Hasina increasingly faced allegations of authoritarianism and sharp criticism from top human rights groups.
She referred to the protesters as “terrorists,” and the demonstrations were met with deadly force by security forces. The student-led protests began over quotas for government jobs but morphed into a broader movement against Hasina, who won a fourth term in January in an election that was boycotted by the opposition.
What happens next? Army Chief Gen. Waker-Uz-Zaman, who announced Hasina’s resignation, says an interim government will be formed in the days to come.
Zaman is calling for calm. “I promise you all, we will bring justice to all the murders and injustice. We request you to have faith in the army of the country,” he said in a message to the public. “Please don't go back to the path of violence and please return to non-violent and peaceful ways.”
US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer applauded the “brave protestors” in a tweet on Monday and called for elections to be held soon. “It’s critical to establish a balanced interim government that respects the rights of all & sets up democratic elections swiftly,” Schumer wrote. The White House also emphasized the need for the formation of a “democratic and inclusive” interim government. We’ll be watching to see if the interim government, once formed, takes steps toward new elections.
Protest leaders say they will not accept a military-led government, and on Tuesday, one of their key demands was met when the country’s parliament was dissolved, paving a path for an interim government.
GZERO’s very own MD Khan, who has family members in Bangladesh who have seen the protests firsthand, says “people are excited but nervous” about what comes next, and there is concern that “what should be a new Bangladesh can quickly turn into mob rule” unless level-headed leaders take charge, unite the people, and put political ambitions aside.
People celebrate the resignation of Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in Dhaka, Bangladesh, August 5, 2024.
PM Hasina resigns, flees Bangladesh amid violence
Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasinaresigned early Monday and reportedly fled the country amid violent mass protests. On Sunday, around 100 people, including at least 13 police officers, were killed in clashes across the country, as security forces struggled to contain some of the worst violence since independence in 1971.
As thousands of people streamed into the heart of the capital Dhaka today, the military announced it would hold a press conference in the late afternoon. By around 3 p.m. local time, Hasina was spotted at the airport, and television stations broadcast video of demonstrators storming Hasina’s official residence and looting it before the clock struck 4 p.m. The army announced her resignation minutes later.
What happens now? BangladeshiChief of Army Staff Gen. Waker-uz-Zaman, announced that the army has consulted with the leaders of major political parties and civil society organs and will request the formation of a caretaker government.
Hasina had been in charge for 20 of the last 28 years. Her legacy, and that of her father, slain independence movement leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, run deep in the corridors of power in Dhaka. It is unclear where Hasina has gone (India is rumored). We’ll be watching to see whether demonstrators are satiated by the caretaker government, and whether Bangladesh’s hard-earned manufacturing success can be sustained through this tumultuous political period.Buses are seen on fire at the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University premises after a clash between students and government supporters during a protest in Dhaka on August 4, 2024.
Violence engulfs Bangladesh, protesters call on PM to resign
At least 90 people, including 13 police officers, were killed Sunday in a major escalation of violent protests by groups demanding the resignation of Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, according to Al Jazeera.
The student-led unrest, sparked last month by the reinstatement of a civil service quota system that favors veterans of the 1971 independence war, has evolved into a broader anti-government movement. Asif Mahmud, coordinator for the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, announced a Monday “March to Dhaka” to intensify pressure, stating, “We urge students and the public to lay siege to the city.”
The students are mobilizinga nationwide disobedience movement, calling on people not to pay taxes or any utility bills and to shut down all factories and public transport. In response, the government has imposedan “indefinite” nationwide curfew andcut internet service.
“Those who are protesting on the streets right now are not students, but terrorists who are out to destabilize the nation,” declared Hasina, following a national security meeting. She urged citizens to “suppress these terrorists with a strong hand.”
There have been over 200 deaths and 10,000 arrests over the last month, and the violence shows no sign of abating. The protests pose the most serious challenge to date for Hasina, who was elected for a fourth consecutive term in a January vote boycotted by Bangladesh’s main opposition parties. She has been PM for 20 of the last 28 years — and we’re watching to see how much longer she lasts.A demonstrator gestures as protesters clash with Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and the police outside the state-owned Bangladesh Television as violence erupts across the country after anti-quota protests by students, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, July 19, 2024.
Bangladeshi high court quashes quotas, but students stand firm
Bangladesh’s Supreme Court on Sunday scrapped most government job quotas after two weeks of nationwide student-led protests left 139 people dead and more than 400 injured.
The back story:For decades, a quota system reserved 56% of government jobs for special groups. Thirty percent went to descendants of those who fought for independence against Pakistan in 1971. The rest were for women, minorities, and poor districts.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina ended that in 2018 in response to protests, but in June the High Court reinstated the fighters’ relatives quota, provoking fresh unrest and a police crackdown. Government jobs are coveted in a country of high youth unemployment, stagnant private-sector employment, and stinging inflation.
The court’s new ruling caps the job quota at 7%.
Hasina has held a tight grip on power since 2009. In January, she won an election that was boycotted by the opposition over concerns that she was rigging it.
Observers say the protests are about more than quotas. “They’re protesting against the repressive nature of the state,” said Mubashar Hasan, a Bangladesh expert at the University of Oslo. “The students are in fact calling [Hasina] a dictator.”
Will the protesters now look to press further against Hasina? Student leaders have already said they’ll stay in the streets until the government releases jailed students and restores internet service.