Khaleda Zia: Bangladesh's First Female Prime Minister Dies at 80

Passing of a Political Icon

• 💔 Khaleda Zia, Bangladesh's first female prime minister, has passed away at the age of 80 following a prolonged illness.
• 🩺 Her doctor confirmed she suffered from advanced liver cirrhosis and other conditions.

Entry into Politics and Early Career

• 🗳️ Zia entered politics after the assassination of her husband, President Ziaur Rahman, in 1981.
• 🤝 She assumed leadership of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and allied with Sheikh Hasina to dismantle military rule in 1990.
• 👑 In 1991, she made history as Bangladesh's first female prime minister, transforming the presidential system into a parliamentary one, encouraging foreign investment, and implementing free primary education.

Political Rivalry and Later Years

• 🔄 After losing the 1996 election to Sheikh Hasina, the two leaders spent years trading power, marked by intense political rivalry.
• 💥 Her government and its allies were implicated in a fatal grenade attack on a rally addressed by Hasina in 2004.
• ⚖️ Zia's second term ended in 2006, and in 2018, she and her son were convicted of corruption related to foreign donations, though she was later freed and acquitted.