Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigns, army chief says

DHAKA, Bangladesh — Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled the country Monday afternoon, ending a 15-year rule that has faced violent opposition in recent months.

Hasina’s resignation was officially announced in a televised address by the army chief, Gen. Waker-Uz-Zaman. An interim government will be formed in the coming weeks. Thousands of protesters had flooded Hasina’s official residence earlier in the day, calling for her ouster. Weeks of bloody clashes between protesters and Hasina’s security forces intensified this past weekend, with dozens killed on Sunday.