With a population of 2.32 million, Bangladesh’s capital Dhaka has become a hotbed for street protests, creating considerable challenges for its residents. Demonstrations take to the streets at various key locations, leading to severe traffic congestion and delays, and making daily life a struggle for residents with no signs of easing. Primary school teachers protest at Shaheed Minar, demand implementation of 10th grade salary scale Movement of commuters has become troublesome as demonstrators occupy even the busy roads whimsically, triggering traffic chaos in many parts of the capital almost every day. Students, office-goers and businesses are experiencing immense hardship and the worst affected are patients who need immediate medical care but have to stay on roads for hours amid clogged traffic. Many are being forced to walk long distances home after work. Protests have become a regular phenomenon amid the absence of the interim government’s visible efforts to prevent them. Since the formation of the interim government, the capital has witnessed a surge in protests. At a time when the Dr. Yunus-led interim government is grappling with major  reforms and other mounting pressures, many including students of seven Dhaka University-affiliated colleges, Titumir College, railway and police staff took to the streets to press home various demands. Talking to UNB, some pedestrians, including Mohammad Ali, Mojammel and Faijur Rahman, said these multi-faceted demonstrations are not just a concern for the government but have also become a daily suffering for Dhaka’s residents. Titumir College students block roads at Mohakhali On Sunday alone, at least five to six demonstrations were held while over the past week, nearly 20 to 25 rallies, human chains, and siege programmes took place. Students of Government Titumir College began protests demanding recognition of the college as a university. They blocked the main road in front of their college at around 11 am, halting traffic from Mohakhali to Gulshan. Passengers were seen engaged in heated arguments with the protesters but the students remained firm in their demand, refusing to clear the road until their demands are met. Education and Planning Adviser Dr Wahiduddin Mahmud said universities cannot be established based on ultimatums. Speaking at the NEC conference room at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar, he said, "We are here for governance and reform, not for fulfilling  such demands. The government will not set up a university under pressure." Following his remarks, Titumir College students staged another protest march in the evening.  Later, they blocked the Dhaka-Mymensingh Highway, bringing traffic to a standstill. They announced a fresh blockade for 11 hours from 11 am to 10 pm on Monday. Earlier, on Sunday noon, former police personnel who lost their jobs under the Awami League government gathered near the High Court Mazar, demanding job reinstatement. Meanwhile, the Inquilab Mancha planned a siege of the Ministry of Home Affairs at 2 pm on Sunday to protest the alleged safe exit of those responsible for the July massacre and to demand the resignation of the home affairs adviser. Later, the Secretariat’s main gate was briefly closed as part of the demonstration. Besides, injured victims of the July uprising blocked roads near the National Institute of Traumatology and Orthopedic Rehabilitation (NITOR), the National Institute of Ophthalmology, and Agargaon’s revenue building, demanding rehabilitation and their better medical treatment. Only ambulances and patients were allowed to pass, causing severe traffic congestion in the area. The injured also staged a protest near Shishumela Road, reiterating their demand for medical care and compensation. Regarding the ongoing protests, Liberation War Affairs Adviser Faruk-e-Azam told UNB that the government is working to assist the injured and the families of those killed in the uprising.  Some of them might be making excessive monetary demands and external influences could be fueling the demonstrations, he said. “The government is forming the July Uprising Directorate under which a framework will be laid out to provide compensation and support. It may take some time, which has led to concerns among the injured. But the interim government is fully committed to helping them,” he assured.

Tensions ran high at Iran’s second match at the World Cup on Friday as fans supporting the Iranian government harassed those protesting against it and stadium security seized flags, T-shirts and other items expressing support for the protest movement that has gripped the Islamic Republic. Some fans were stopped by security guards from bringing in Persian pre-revolutionary flags to the match against Wales at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium. Others carrying such flags had them ripped from their hands by pro-government Iran fans, who also shouted insults at fans wearing T-shirts with the slogan of the protest movement gripping the country, “Woman, Life, Freedom.” Unlike in their first match against England, the Iran players sang along to their national anthem before the match as some fans in the stadium wept, whistled and booed. The national team has come under close scrutiny for any statements or gestures about the nationwide protests that have wracked Iran for weeks. Shouting matches erupted in lines outside the stadium between fans screaming “Women, Life, Freedom” and others shouting back “The Islamic Republic!” Mobs of men surrounded three different women giving interviews about the protests to foreign media outside the stadium, disrupting broadcasts as they angrily chanted, “The Islamic Republic of Iran!” Many female fans appeared shaken as Iranian government supporters shouted at them in Farsi and filmed them up close on their phones. After Iran’s 2-0 triumph, crowds of Iranian fans wildly waving national flags streamed out of the stadium. They thronged a group of protesters who held up photos of Mahsa Amini, the 22-year-old whose Sept. 16 death in the custody of the morality police first unleashed the protests, yelling “Victory!” to drown out chants of Amini’s name. Read more: World Cup 2022: Cheshmi’s late goal sends Iran to 2-0 win over Wales One 35-year-old woman named Maryam, who like other Iran fans declined to give her last name for fear of government reprisals, started to cry as shouting men blowing horns encircled her and filmed her face. She had the words “Woman Life Freedom” painted on her face. “I’m not here to fight with anyone, but people have been attacking me and calling me a terrorist,” said Maryam, who lives in London but is originally from Tehran. “All I’m here to say is that football doesn’t matter if people are getting killed in the streets.” Maryam and her friends had worn hats emblazoned with the name of an outspoken Iranian former soccer player Voria Ghafouri, who had criticized Iranian authorities and was arrested in Iran on Thursday on accusations of spreading propaganda against the government. She said Iranian government supporters had taken the hats from their heads. Ghafouri, who is Kurdish, was a star member of Iran’s 2018 World Cup team, but was surprisingly not named in the squad for this year in Qatar. “It’s obvious that the match had become very politicized this week. You can see people from the same country who hate each other,” said Mustafa, a 40-year-old Iran fan who also declined to give his last name. “I think the arrest of Voria has also affected society in Iran a lot.” Furious protesters in Iran have been venting their anger over social and political repression and the state-mandated headscarf, or hijab, for women. The demonstrations have quickly grown into calls for the downfall of the Islamic Republic itself. At least 419 people have been killed since the protests erupted, according to monitoring group Human Rights Activists in Iran. The turmoil has overshadowed the start of Iran’s World Cup campaign, including the opening match against England on Monday. Iran’s players remained silent as their national anthem played before the game and didn’t celebrate their two goals in the 6-2 defeat. On Friday, they sang along to the anthem and celebrated wildly when they scored twice against Wales. Ayeh Shams, an Iranian from the United States, said security guards confiscated her flag because it had the word “women” written on it. “We’re just here to enjoy the games and give a platform for the Iranian people who are fighting against the Islamic regime,” Shams said. Zeinlabda Arwa, a security guard at the stadium, confirmed that authorities had been given orders to confiscate anything but the flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran. “Whether you’re talking about Iran or Qatar or any country, you are only allowed to bring in the normal flag,” she said. An angry group of Iranian government supporters shouted at Elyas Doerr, a 16-year-old Iranian boy living in Arizona who was wearing the Persian flag as a cape, until he took it off and and put it in his bag. Read more: World Cup stunner: Saudi Arabia beat Messi’s Argentina 2-1 “They’re not liking that it’s a political statement,” he said, adding that other Iranian fans had approached him to say they appreciated the gesture. A 32-year-old Iranian woman living in southern Spain, who declined to give her name for fear of reprisals, scrambled after the match to retrieve her hat and flag that had been confiscated by stadium security. She said Qatari police ordered her to scrub off the names of Iranian protesters killed and arrested by security forces that she had written on her arms and chest, at the behest of Iranian government supporters. At the game, just traces of ink remained on her skin that was rubbed raw. “Today’s football experience was the most intimidating I’ve ever been in, before and after the match,” she said. She described dozens of men who surrounded her and tried to smother her face with their Iranian flags, snatching her signs as Qatari security stood by. “I don’t care about the win, to be honest. That’s not my priority.” After the game, Iranian state television broadcast patriotic songs and showed footage of people bursting out into cheers across the country. Even as many Iranians celebrated the victory, protests continued across the country. Videos circulating on social media appeared to show protests and gunfire in the eastern city of Zahedan. The Associated Press was unable to confirm reports that protesters had been wounded there.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet on Thursday said security forces in Myanmar must “halt their vicious crackdown on peaceful protestors,” following another day of deadly violence across the country on Wednesday.