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23h ago

Bangladesh Holds State Funeral for Khaleda Zia After Death at 80

Her death focuses attention on BNP leadership ahead of the February 12 election.

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Khaleda Zia became Bangladesh's first female prime minister in 1991.
FILE - Bangladesh's main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party chief and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia looks upwards as she attends a rally of her supporters outside their party headquarters in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Monday, March 12, 2012. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi, File)

Overview

  • Khaleda Zia died early December 30 in Dhaka after a prolonged illness, with doctors citing advanced liver cirrhosis and other chronic conditions following weeks of hospitalization.
  • The interim government declared three days of national mourning, with funeral prayers at Parliament’s South Plaza on Wednesday and burial beside Ziaur Rahman at Zia Udyan with full state honors.
  • India will send External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar to the ceremony after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s condolences, while Pakistan’s foreign minister is also set to attend.
  • Tarique Rahman returned to Bangladesh last week after nearly 17 years in exile and is expected to lead the BNP into the February 12, 2026 parliamentary elections.
  • Zia, Bangladesh’s first female prime minister, served two terms and was released in 2024 before a Supreme Court acquittal in January 2025 cleared remaining corruption cases.