Strike shortened in Bangladesh

Opposition parties in Bangladesh have cut short an anti-government strike to prevent what they called inconvenience to pilgrims and shoppers.

Correspondents in Dhaka say the decision to suspend the strike at midday was prompted by disagreements within the four-party coalition, and the growing numbers of public transport operators who are ignoring strike calls.

Monday's strike was the eighth called by the opposition this year in protest at a court order banning fatwas or religous edicts. Business leaders in Bangladesh say that strikes in the four years that Sheikh Hasina has been Prime Minister have cost the country more than five billion dollars in lost production and exports.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service