Hello and welcome to the details of Crowds gather in Dhaka for Bangladesh’s ex-PM Khaleda Zia’s state funeral and now with the details
Nevin Al Sukari - Sana'a - People gather behind barbed wires outside the Evercare hospital in Dhaka on December 30, 2025, following the death of Bangladesh's former prime minister Khaleda Zia at age 80. — AFP pic
DHAKA, Dec 31 — Bangladesh bids farewell on Wednesday to former prime minister Khaleda Zia with a state funeral expected to draw vast crowds, mourning a towering leader whose career defined politics for decades.
Zia, the first woman to serve as prime minister in the South Asian nation of 170 million people, died on Tuesday aged 80.
“Khaleda Zia has been an inspiration,” homemaker Sharmina Siraj told AFP, adding that “it is difficult to imagine women in leadership positions anytime soon”.
The 40-year-old mother of two said stipends introduced by Zia to support girls’ education “had a huge impact on the lives of our girls. To me, this is her biggest contribution”.
Despite years of ill health and imprisonment, Zia had vowed to campaign in elections set for February 12 -- the first vote since a mass uprising toppled her arch-rival Sheikh Hasina last year.
Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) is widely seen as a frontrunner, and her son Tarique Rahman, 60, who returned only last week after 17 years in exile, is seen as a potential prime minister if they win a majority.
The interim government, led by Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus, declared three days of national mourning, with an elaborate state funeral beginning with prayers outside parliament around 2:00 pm (0800 GMT).
Flags will be flown at half-mast, and a large deployment of security forces is expected across the capital, Dhaka.
Supporters of Bangladesh’s late former prime minister Khaleda Zia hold posters with her portrait as they mourn her death outside the Evercare hospital in Dhaka on December 30, 2025. — AFP pic
Yunus said Bangladesh had “lost a great guardian”.
“Through her uncompromising leadership, the nation was repeatedly freed from undemocratic conditions and inspired to regain liberty,” he said in a statement.
Zia’s body will be interred alongside her late husband, Ziaur Rahman, who was assassinated in 1981 during his time as president.
‘Unbreakable’
Rahman said in a statement that “the country mourns the loss of a guiding presence that shaped its democratic aspirations”.
His mother, he added, “endured repeated arrests, denial of medical care, and relentless persecution”, but “never stopped sheltering her family with courage and compassion”.
“Her resilience... was unbreakable.”
Suffering from a raft of health issues, Zia was rushed to hospital in late November, where her condition had gradually deteriorated despite treatment.
Many in Bangladesh believed that former prime minister Khaleda Zia would sweep elections next year to lead her country once again before her death on December 30, 2025 at age 80. — AFP pic
Nevertheless, hours before her death, party workers had on Monday submitted nomination papers on her behalf for three constituencies for next year’s polls.
Zia was “an uncompromising leader for all the people”, said activist ABM Abdul Fattah, who joined mourners on Tuesday outside the Dhaka hospital where the former leader died.
“She always wanted to restore democracy by staying in this country and by safeguarding the people,” he told AFP.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he hoped Zia’s “vision and legacy will continue to guide our partnership”, a warm message despite the strained relations between New Delhi and Dhaka since Hasina’s fall.
Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar is due to attend the funeral, New Delhi said, the most senior visit by an Indian official since the overthrow of Hasina.
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar will also attend, Islamabad’s High Commission in Dhaka said.
Hasina, 78, sentenced to death in absentia in November for crimes against humanity, remains in hiding in her old ally India.
Three-time prime minister Zia was jailed for corruption in 2018 under Hasina’s government, which also blocked her from travelling abroad for medical treatment.
Zia was released last year, shortly after Hasina was forced from power.
“I pray for the eternal peace and forgiveness of Begum Khaleda Zia’s soul,” Hasina said, in a statement shared on social media by her now-banned Awami League party. — AFP
These were the details of the news Crowds gather in Dhaka for Bangladesh’s ex-PM Khaleda Zia’s state funeral for this day. We hope that we have succeeded by giving you the full details and information. To follow all our news, you can subscribe to the alerts system or to one of our different systems to provide you with all that is new.
It is also worth noting that the original news has been published and is available at Malay Mail and the editorial team at AlKhaleej Today has confirmed it and it has been modified, and it may have been completely transferred or quoted from it and you can read and follow this news from its main source.
