Shoot-on-sight orders in Bangladesh as army patrols Dhaka streets

Police imposed a strict curfew with a “shoot-on-sight” order across Bangladesh as military forces patrolled parts of the capital after scores were killed and hundreds injured in clashes over the allocation of civil service jobs.

The curfew began at midnight and was relaxed from noon for people to run essential errands, and is expected to last until Sunday morning, allowing officers to fire on mobs in extreme cases, said lawmaker Obaidul Quader, the general secretary of the ruling Awami League party.

The demonstrations called for mainly by student groups started weeks ago to protest a quota system that reserves up to 30 percent of government jobs for relatives of veterans who fought in Bangladesh’s War of Independence in 1971.

Violence erupted Tuesday, with the Daily Prothom Alo newspaper reporting the death of at least 103 people.

According to AFP count, this week's violence has killed at least 115 people so far.

The United States Embassy in Dhaka said Friday that reports indicated “hundreds to possibly thousands” were injured across Bangladesh. It said the situation was “extremely volatile.”

Bangladeshi authorities haven't shared any official numbers of those killed and injured.

Authorities blocked online communications by banning mobile and internet services. Several television news channels also went off the air, and the websites of most local newspapers were down.

Meanwhile, some key government websites, including Bangladesh’s central bank and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s office, appeared to have been hacked and defaced.

'Chaos highlights cracks'

Local media also reported that some 800 inmates fled from a prison in Narsingdi, a district north of the capital after protesters stormed the facility and set it on fire Friday.

The chaos highlights cracks in Bangladesh’s economy and the frustration of youths who lack good jobs upon graduation. It also represents the biggest public unrest to the government since Hasina won a fourth consecutive term in office after January’s elections, boycotted by the main opposition groups.

Protesters argue the quota system is discriminatory and benefits supporters of Hasina, whose Awami League party led the independence movement, saying it should be replaced with a merit-based system. Hasina has defended the quota system.

The main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has backed the protests, vowing to organise its demonstrations as many of its supporters joined the students’ protests. However, BNP said in a statement its followers were not responsible for the violence and denied the ruling party's accusations of using the protests for political gains.