Bangladesh's first female prime minister, Khaleda Zia, dies at 80

Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia waves to activists as she arrives for a rally in Dhaka in this file picture taken January 20, 2014. REUTERS/Andrew Biraj/Files

DHAKA, ‌Dec 30 (Reuters) - ‌Bangladesh's first ‌female prime minister, Khaleda Zia, ‍died after ‍a prolonged ‌illness, her opposition ‍Bangladesh ​Nationalist ⁠Party said on Tuesday.

Khaleda, aged ‌80, had ⁠advanced ‍cirrhosis of the ‍liver, arthritis, diabetes, ‌chest and heart problems, her doctors said.

(Reporting by Ruma Paul ‌and Shivani Tanna; Editing ​by YP Rajesh and Clarence Fernandez)