India, Dec. 30 -- Begum Khaleda Zia, the first woman to lead Bangladesh as prime minister, died early on Tuesday at age 80. Her party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), confirmed she passed away at Evercare Hospital in Dhaka around 6 AM shortly after Fajr prayer.

Khaleda Zia had been battling multiple serious health issues for months. Doctors had treated her with intensive care since late November, but her condition worsened, and she could not recover.

Doctors said Khaleda Zia was suffering from several critical health problems. These included:

She had been admitted to the hospital on 23 November and was placed on ventilator support on 11 December, as her breathing and vital organs weakened.

Medical monitors had warned that her ...