The night before longtime leader Sheikh Hasina abruptly fled Bangladesh amid deadly protests, her army chief held a meeting with his generals and decided that troops would not open fire on civilians to enforce a curfew, two serving army officers with knowledge of the discussions said.
Gen. Waker-Uz-Zaman then reached out to Hasina's office, conveying to the prime minister that his soldiers would be unable to implement the lockdown she had called for, according to an Indian official briefed on the matter.
The message was clear, the official said: Hasina no longer had the army's support.