Ex-Bangladeshi PM Says US Behind Her Ouster to Control Crucial Island

By Al Mayadeen English

Sheikh Hasina claims that had she given sovereignty of Saint Martin Island and allowed the US to hold sway over the Bay of Bengal, she would have remained in power.

Former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has accused the United States of orchestrating her overthrow after she refused to give up sovereignty over the key island of St. Martin.

According to a letter published on Sunday acquired by the Economic Times, Hasina stated, "I could have remained in power if I had surrendered the sovereignty of Saint Martin Island and allowed America to hold sway over the Bay of Bengal."

Last summer, Hasina stated that Bangladesh would not lease the island, without detailing the terms or the interested party. Days later, US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller stated that the US had never discussed intentions to seize control of the island.

Hasina stated that she opted to resign "so that I did not have to see the procession of dead bodies" and asked the South Asian country not to be misled by extremists.

Hasina wrote that had she remained in the country, "more lives would have been lost, more resources would have been destroyed," adding that she "made the extremely difficult decision to exit."

Bangladeshi President Mohammed Shahabuddin dissolved parliament Tuesday after the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled to a safe house outside New Delhi after fleeing the country following violent crackdowns during the student-led anti-quota protests, enabling the formation of an interim government. 

Hasina resigned and left the country on Monday, Reuters reported, after thousands of protesters stormed her official residence amid ongoing violent student-led protests.

At least 356 people have been killed since July.

On Friday, Muhammad Yunus was sworn in to lead Bangladesh's interim government in a ceremony that began with a minute of silence as a tribute to those who were killed during the violent protests that recently swept the country.