Bangladeshi opposition leader Sheikh Hasina has been freed from detention to receive medical treatment abroad.
The former prime minister - who is being held on corruption charges - has been allowed out on parole for eight weeks, officials say.
She is expected to leave on a flight for the United States on Thursday.
Sheikh Hasina is among scores of politicians detained for alleged corruption by the army-backed government in Bangladesh.
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'Worsening ailments'
Sheikh Hasina, the leader of the Awami League, has now left her special jail on the grounds of parliament for her home in central Dhaka.
A senior Awami League member told the BBC that her ailments had all worsened considerably since she was jailed nearly a year ago.
Her doctors insist that she cannot receive the right medical treatment in Bangladesh.
The BBC's Mark Dummett in Dhaka says that it is not clear how serious her condition is, how long the treatment will take or whether she will come back to Bangladesh before elections are held in December.
Last April, the military-backed interim government tried to block her return to the country when she was away on a personal visit.
It was forced to back down and allow her back, although she was arrested soon after she returned.
The government also tried to force the other main opposition leader, Khaleda Zia of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, into exile.
But that plan also failed and she too was jailed.
Khaleda Zia has also been given the chance to go abroad for medical treatment but she has refused the government's offer.
Our correspondent says the government believes its plans to reform Bangladesh's political institutions will not work as long as the two veteran leaders are still on the scene.
Both women deny all charges against them.
(BBC)
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