Bangladesh's government has brought new corruption charges against detained former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia.
The
country's Anti-Corruption Commission Thursday accused Ms. Zia, her son,
Tarique Rahman and five others of embezzling more than $300,000 (21
million taka) from a trust meant for orphans.
She and her two sons already are being held on other corruption charges.
They
were among 170 politicians and business people arrested last year
during an anti-graft sweep by Bangladesh's military-backed caretaker
government. Former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina also was detained in
the crackdown. She was recently released on parole to receive medical
treatment in the U.S.
Ms. Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party has
vowed to boycott the country's parliamentary elections, set for
December, unless the former prime minister is released from detention.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP.