Bangladesh's ​former first female prime ‌minister, ​Khaleda Zia, has died after a prolonged illness, her personal physician said on Tuesday. Zia, the country’s first female prime minister and chairperson of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), has passed away at the age of 80, the Dhaka Tribune reported. ADVERTISEMENTHer personal physician Dr AZM Zahid Hossain said she breathed her last early on Tuesday while receiving treatment at Evercare Hospital in Dhaka. Members of her family were present at the hospital at the time of her death, including her elder son Tarique Rahman; his wife Zubaida Rahman; their daughter Zaima Rahman. After 2am, Professor Hossain came before journalists outside the hospital and said Khaleda was going through an “extremely critical” phase.

Source: The Telegraph December 30, 2025 05:53 UTC