Bangladesh's Nobel Peace Prize-winning economist Muhammad Yunus took the oath as the head of the country's caretaker government on Thursday, following the forced resignation and departure of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina due to violent protests.
Yunus, aged 84, was endorsed for this position by student protesters and arrived in Dhaka from Paris, where he had been receiving medical treatment. At the airport, an emotional Yunus expressed, "The country has the potential to transform into a remarkably beautiful nation. We will follow the path indicated by our students."
As the chief adviser in the interim government, Yunus is responsible for organizing new elections in the South Asian nation, home to 170 million people. The student-led uprising that led to Hasina's removal began as protests against government job quotas in July, escalating into a violent confrontation that attracted international condemnation, despite the government's denial of excessive force.
The protests were further exacerbated by severe economic hardships and political oppression within the country.
