Khaleda Zia, the first female prime minister of Bangladesh and chairperson of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), passed away at the age of 80 on Tuesday, December 30, 2025.
She breathed her last at approximately 6:00 a.m. local time, shortly after the Fajr (dawn) prayer, at Evercare Hospital in Dhaka.
Her death followed a prolonged battle with multiple health complications, including advanced liver cirrhosis, arthritis, diabetes, and infections in her heart and lungs.
She had been in “extremely critical” condition and on life support leading up to her passing.
Her death occurred just days after her son, Tarique Rahman, returned to Bangladesh from a 17-year self-imposed exile in London.
Zia was the first woman to be elected Prime Minister of Bangladesh, serving two full terms (1991–1996 and 2001–2006).
The “Battling Begums”
Her three-decade-long rivalry with Sheikh Hasina defined Bangladeshi politics, a period often referred to as the era of the “battling begums”.
She spent much of the last decade under house arrest or in prison due to corruption convictions, which she and her party maintained were politically motivated. She was acquitted in her final corruption case in January 2025, which would have allowed her to participate in the upcoming general elections.
