Bangladesh’s first female Prime Minister Khaleda Zia dies at 80

Khaleda Zia, the first female Prime Minister of Bangladesh, passed away at the age of 80 due to a long illness.

“Our favorite leader is no longer with us. She left us at 6am this morning,” Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) announced on Facebook.

Doctors said Monday night that Zia’s condition was “extremely critical.” She was put on life support, but given her age and overall poor health, it was not possible to provide multiple treatments at the same time, they said.

In 1991, Zia led the Bangladesh National Party to victory in the country’s first democratic election in 20 years, becoming the first female head of government in Bangladesh.

Zia returned to the post of prime minister in 2001 and resigned before the October 2006 elections.

Her political career has been marred by corruption allegations and a long-running political rivalry with Awami League leader Sheikh Hasina, who was ousted as prime minister last year.

Zia is the wife of late Bangladeshi President Zia Rahman Sentenced to five years in prison in 2018 due to corruption issues.