[Source: Reuters]

The night before long-time 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 told Reuters.

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.

Details of the online meeting between military top brass and the message to Hasina that she had lost their backing have not previously been reported.

They help to explain how Hasina’s 15-year rule, during which she brooked little dissent, came to such a chaotic and sudden end on Monday, when she fled from Bangladesh to India.

The nationwide curfew had been imposed after at least 91 people were killed and hundreds injured in nationwide clashes on Sunday, the deadliest day since student-led protests against Hasina began in July.

Army spokesman Lt. Col. Sami Ud Dowla Chowdhury confirmed the Sunday evening discussions, which he described as a regular meeting to take updates after any disturbance. He did not provide details when presented with additional questions about decision-making at that meeting.

Hasina could not be reached and her son and advisor, Sajeeb Wazed, did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

Reuters spoke to ten people familiar with the events of the past week, including four serving army officers and two other informed sources in Bangladesh, to piece together the final 48 hours of Hasina’s reign. Many of them spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter.