DHAKA: Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina ruled out yesterday any last-minute cancellation of weekend elections boycotted by the opposition, accusing her rivals of holding the country hostage.
In a final address to the nation ahead of Sunday’s polls, Hasina accused opposition leader Khaleda Zia of shunning dialogue and rejecting an offer to share power in an interim administration.
“We have tried our best to bring the BNP (Bangladesh Nationalist Party) into the elections,” Hasina, who is the leader of the ruling Awami League, said in a 40-minute televised address.
“She (Zia) spurned my offer for dialogue and instead chose the path of confrontation.
“The January 5 polls will be held in accordance with the constitution,” she added.
More than 140 people have been killed in violence in the last two months.
Chinese carrier back from drill
BEIJING: Beijing’s first aircraft carrier has returned from a training mission in the South China Sea, state media said, completing a 37-day deployment carried out amid mounting regional tensions.
The newly-commissioned Liaoning returned to its home port of Qingdao after carrying out a series of trials with “aircraft, naval vessels and submarines”, the official news agency Xinhua reported.
“China’s first aircraft carrier successfully completed 37 days testing and training in the South China Sea,” said the report, which the defence ministry posted on its website.
During the training mission Washington issued a formal protest after military officials said a US warship was forced to manoeuvre to avoid a collision with a Chinese naval vessel -- reportedly part of the group escorting the Liaoning -- that had “posed a threat” in the South China Sea.
Agencies
