State Department warns Americans to avoid travel to Bangladesh amid violent unrest

The U.S. State Department is urging Americans to avoid traveling to Bangladesh due to escalating civil unrest, crime and terrorism after the South Asian country’s prime minister fled the country in a helicopter as a mob of protesters breached the palace.

The State Department updated its travel advisory on Monday, which also ordered all non-emergency U.S. government employees and their families to leave the country.

“Travelers should not travel to Bangladesh due to ongoing civil unrest in Dhaka,” the State Department wrote in the advisory. “Violent clashes have occurred in the city of Dhaka, its neighboring areas, and throughout Bangladesh, and the Bangladeshi Army is deployed nationwide.”

The State Department said that Dhaka’s Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport temporarily paused operations on Monday, urging travelers to check their airlines to confirm the status of future flights.

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The advisory warned that due to these travel restrictions, along with a lack of infrastructure and support from the Bangladeshi government, the U.S. government’s ability to provide emergency services to U.S. citizens may be limited.

A garment store was reportedly set ablaze by an unidentified group in Dhaka on Sunday. (ABU SUFIAN JEWEL/AFP via Getty Images)

This directive follows the resignation of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday, which ended her 15-year tenure.

Hasina’s departure was spurred after thousands of protesters stormed her residence, leading her to escape by military helicopter to neighboring India.

Protestors wave Bangladesh’s national flag as they storm Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s palace in Dhaka on Monday. (K M ASAD/AFP via Getty Images)

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The violent protests, which have resulted in nearly 300 deaths, began as a movement against job quotas in government positions and evolved into a campaign to oust Hasina.

In the wake of Hasina fleeing the country, Bangladesh’s military has taken control and says it will soon form an interim government.

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On Tuesday, Bangladesh’s president dissolved parliament and cleared the way for elections to find a new prime minister.