(Adnkronos) – Less than two weeks before the parliamentary elections and the February 12 referendum in Bangladesh, the United States urges its citizens in the country to exercise caution due to fears of violence in the days leading up to and following the vote, the first since the end of the Sheikh Hasina era, who was sentenced to capital punishment for crimes against humanity.
“During the election period, incidents of political violence or extremist attacks targeting demonstrations, polling stations, and places of worship may occur,” reads the security alert published on the US embassy website in Dhaka ahead of the consultations and the referendum on reforms, the so-called ‘July Charter’. For Muhammad Yunus, Nobel Peace Prize laureate in 2006, leading the country’s interim administration, it will be the beginning of a “new Bangladesh”.
US citizens are advised to exercise “caution” and remember that “peaceful demonstrations or processions can turn confrontational and escalate into violence.” The exhortation is to “avoid demonstrations and be careful near large gatherings.”
