Bangladesh's ex-Premier Hasina calls for probe into killings during unrest that led to her ouster

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Bangladesh's former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina called on Tuesday from self-exile in India for an investigation into those responsible for the killings of students and others during weeks of violent protests that prompted her ouster.

Hasina, who stepped down and fled Bangladesh on Aug. 5 after student activists led an uprising against her government, is herself accused of responsibility for much of the deadly violence, and activists have demanded that she be put on trial.

In a statement posted on the social media platform X by her son Sajeeb Wazed Joy, Hasina said she wanted an investigation and demanded “punishment for those responsible for the killings and sabotage." It was her first public statement since leaving Bangladesh.

More than 300 people were killed in unrest that started in July with protests against a quota system for government jobs that later morphed into a movement against what was considered Hasina's increasingly autocratic administration. The uprising eventually forced Hasina to leave office and flee to India, ending her 15-year rule.

Some of the violence pitted student activists against pro-government student and youth groups and police, and many of those who died were among the student activists. However, Hasina's statement underlined that police officers, members of her Awami League political party, bystanders and others also were victims of what she described as “terrorist aggression.” She previously has blamed opposition parties for stoking the unrest.

Earlier Tuesday, police launched a murder investigation in what was expected to be the first of several cases accusing Hasina and other government officials of responsibility for deaths during the violence.

Hasina’s statement came as the country’s interim government on Tuesday canceled a public holiday that she had declared for Thursday to mark the death of her father, Bangladesh’s independence leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. He was killed along with most of his family in 1975 in a military coup. Hasina and her younger sister were out of the country at the time.

The cancellation came at the request of at least seven political parties, including the main previous opposition group, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party. After Hasina's downfall last week, demonstrators set fire to her father's house, now a museum, in Dhaka.

Despite all that, Hasina urged people in her statement to observe the holiday “with proper dignity.”

The case launched Tuesday involved the killing of a grocery shop owner in July. S.M. Amir Hamza, described as a “well-wisher” of grocery store owner Abu Sayeed, filed the case at the court of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Rajesh Chowdhury. Hamza said Sayeed was killed on July 19 amid clashes during the uprising, and that he filed the case because Sayeed’s family did not have the capacity to seek justice.

Hasina was named as a suspect in the petition, along with six other people, including former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan, the Awami League party's General Secretary Obaidul Quader and top police officials.

The Dhaka court asked the Mohammadpur Police Station to register the case. Police will now investigate the case and file a report to the court.

On Tuesday, police arrested two former Bangladesh lawmakers and close Hasina associates over the July 16 killing of a 26-year-old college student. The parliament was dissolved following Hasina's ouster.

Former Law Minister Anisul Huq and Hasina's private industry affairs advisor and prominent businessman Salman F. Rahman were arrested at a riverport in the city as they were trying to flee the country, said Mainul Hasan, chief of the Dhaka police.

An interim government is now running the country, with Muhammad Yunus, a Nobel peace laureate, sworn in as interim leader. Sixteen people, including two student protest leaders and others drawn mainly from civil society, have been included in his interim Cabinet.

The new Cabinet members were chosen after talks between student leaders, civil society representatives and the military.

Hasina and her party’s many top leaders have either gone into hiding or have been barred from leaving the country.

Peaceful protests by students began in July against a quota system for government jobs that critics said favored people with connections to Hasina’s party.

Hasina, 76, was elected to a fourth consecutive term in January, but the vote was boycotted by her main opponents, with thousands of opposition activists detained beforehand. The U.S. and U.K. denounced the result as not credible. Hasina’s critics say her administration increasingly was marked by human rights abuses and corruption.

The chaos on Bangladesh’s streets continued after her resignation. Dozens of police officers were killed, prompting police to stop working across the country. Police officers have gradually returned to work.

Students shout slogans during a protest demanding the trial of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajib Dhar)

Indian Hindus shout slogans in Ahmedabad, India, Tuesday Aug. 13, 2024 as they protest against atrocities on Hindus and attacks on religious places of Hindus in Bangladesh. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

Students shout slogans during a protest demanding trial of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajib Dhar)

Students shout slogans during a protest demanding trial of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajib Dhar)

BANGKOK (AP) — World shares were mixed on Tuesday after Wall Street rolled to more records, with Hong Kong's benchmark losing more than 3%.

Oil prices shed more than $3 a barrel.

Germany's DAX gained 0.3% to 19,564.16, while the CAC 40 in Paris dropped 0.7% to 7,547.36. Britain's FTSE 100 lost 0.5% to 8,253.07.

The futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell less than 0.1%.

Chinese shares extended losses after the government reported late Monday that growth in exports fell sharply in September, adding to signs of weakness in the economy.

The Shanghai Composite index lost 2.5% to 3,201.29, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong gave up 3.7% to 20,318.79.

Weaker than expected data on lending and prices have undermined already fragile market sentiment that has wavered as investors await fresh details on the government plans for stimulus to help rev up the economy.

“Market participants continue to seek for clarity around fiscal stimulus support from Chinese authorities, but the lack of commitment remains a source of reservation for risk-taking in Chinese equities,” Yeap Jun Rong of IG said in a commentary.

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index gained 0.8% to 39,910.55, while the Kospi in Seoul gained 0.4% to 2,633.45.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.8% to 8,318.40.

Also early Tuesday, the dollar fell to 148.89 Japanese yen from 149.83 yen. The euro rose to $1.0915 from $1.0911.

U.S. benchmark crude dropped $3.73 to $70.10 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, skidded $3.79 to $73.67 per barrel.

“The oil market is on a wild ride, caught in a whirlwind of geopolitical tension, OPEC+ strategy shifts and a slowdown from its biggest customer, China,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a report. China's usual growth in demand of about 600,000 barrels per day has fallen to 200,000 barrels.

Despite uncertainty over how conflict in the Middle East might affect oil supplies, “the real threat to crude isn't war, it's oversupply,” he said, noting that many oil exporters are committed to ramping up their output.

Besides oil, prices also have been falling for copper and other commodities that a healthy Chinese economy would devour.

On Monday, Wall Street rolled to more all-time highs.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.8% to build on its record set on Friday, closing at 5,859.85. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.5% to 43,065.22, adding 201 points to its own record. The Nasdaq composite gained 0.9% to 18,502.69.

The gains followed relatively quiet trading in Europe, while the U.S. bond market remained closed for the day because of a holiday.

This week will have few top-tier economic reports outside of an update Thursday on sales at U.S. retailers. That leaves the emphasis on corporate earnings reports, which will pick up the pace this week after big banks began the reporting season last week.

Bank of America, Johnson & Johnson and UnitedHealth Group will all report their latest results on Tuesday. Later in the week will come United Airlines, Netflix, American Express and Procter & Gamble.

Analysts expect S&P 500 companies to deliver overall growth of 4.1% in earnings per share for the latest quarter from a year earlier, according to FactSet. If they’re correct, it would be a fifth straight quarter of growth.

Stocks have broadly rallied to records on relief that interest rates are finally heading back down, now that the Federal Reserve has widened its focus to include keeping the economy humming instead of just fighting high inflation.

Recent reports showing the U.S. economy remains stronger than expected have also raised optimism that the Fed can pull off a perfect landing where it gets inflation down to 2% without causing a recession that many had thought would be necessary.

FILE - People pass the entrance for the Wall Street subway station on Sept. 2, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan, File)

FILE -A passerby moves past an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index and stock prices outside a securities building Friday, Oct. 11, 2024 in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Shuji Kajiyama, File)