BNP standing committee to meet Khaleda Sunday ahead of London trip
BNP Standing Committee members will meet party Chairperson Khaleda Zia on Sunday night, ahead of her scheduled trip to London for medical treatment on Tuesday.
The meeting is scheduled to be held at Khaleda's Gulshan residence at 8pm, said BNP media cell member Sayrul Kabir Khan.
According to sources at BNP, Khaleda Zia is expected to leave Dhaka on 7 January (Tuesday) at 10pm for London, from where she will travel to the United States for further treatment.
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"If no major complications arise, she will leave Dhaka at 10pm on Tuesday via a Qatar Airways air ambulance bound for London," said a BNP leader close to Khaleda.
During her way back home, he said the BNP chief may also perform Umrah in Saudi Arabia.
This will be Khaleda Zia's second overseas medical trip, following her 2017 visit to London for treatment.
This will be her first reunion with her son Tarique Rahman in seven years, and her first overseas visit since she was freed from jail.
Despite her declining health, the Awami League government had repeatedly denied her permission to travel abroad for treatment.
Following the fall of the Awami League government on 5 August, she was fully freed under executive order, paving the way for her abroad treatment.
Khaleda Zia, who has been suffering from liver cirrhosis, requires a liver transplant, which is expected to take at least two months.
After her stay in London, she will continue treatment at Johns Hopkins University Hospital in Maryland, USA.
Earlier on 25 December, Khaleda's personal physician, Prof AZM Zahid Hossain, told UNB, "Madam [Khaleda] may travel to London on 7 January if she remains fit for the air journey."
Her medical team said all arrangements have been made for her treatment at the prestigious Johns Hopkins University Hospital in East Baltimore, Maryland.
Khaleda Zia, 79, has been battling multiple health issues, including liver cirrhosis, diabetes, arthritis, and complications involving her kidneys, lungs, heart, and eyes.
Her doctors have been advocating for her overseas treatment since she was diagnosed with liver cirrhosis in late 2021.
