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Asia

Bangladesh court grants bail to ex-PM Zia in sedition case

Associated Press
Published | Updated
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    Former Bangladeshi Prime Minister and Bangladesh Nationalist Party leader Khaleda Zia, center, arrives for a court hearing in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2016. Zia is being tried for several alleged cases of corruption. (AP Photo) (The Associated Press)

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    Bangladesh's former prime minister and Bangladesh Nationalist Party leader, Khaleda Zia, center, leaves a court after a hearing in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2016. Zia is being tried for several alleged cases of corruption. (AP Photo) (The Associated Press)

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    Bangladesh's former prime minister and Bangladesh Nationalist Party leader, Khaleda Zia, center, waves at her supporters as she leaves a court after a hearing in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2016. Zia is being tried for several alleged cases of corruption. (AP Photo) (The Associated Press)

NEW DELHI – Bangladesh's former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia has been granted bail in 10 cases involving charges of arson and sedition.

The court in metropolitan Dhaka announced the decision Wednesday after Zia appeared in court. She's now free until trial.

Zia, the head of the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party, is the archrival of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Zia has faced several political challenges in her attempts to build an anti-government movement.

The sedition charge is related to Zia's questioning of the number of people killed during the country's 1971 independence war against Pakistan. Bangladesh says about 3 million people died during the nine-month war.

The court granted her bail in the case related to sedition and in other nine cases of arson related to a previous anti-government movement that turned violent.