Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus to lead Bangladesh interim government

by Rehan Qamar

Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has been named Bangladesh’s interim leader a day after the country’s prime minister Sheikh Hasina was ousted. Seikh Hasina was ousted on Monday following months of deadly protests.

The decision to name Prof Yunus as chief adviser of the interim government followed a meeting between President Mohammed Shahabuddin, military leaders and student leaders, BBC reported.

“When the students who sacrificed so much are requesting me to step in at this difficult juncture, how can I refuse?” Prof Yunus said.

He is returning to Dhaka from Paris where he is undergoing a minor medical procedure, his spokesperson told the BBC.

The protests in Bangladesh began in early July with demands from university students to abolish quotas in civil service jobs, they became a larger movement against the government when it abused its power against the peaceful demonstrations.