Dhaka, May 12 -- The interim government has decided to remove lethal weapons from the police force, which has faced an image crisis due to the indiscriminate use of arms during the July-August protests.

The decision came on Monday during the ninth meeting of the Law and Order Advisory Council Committee at the Secretariat, according to Home Advisor Jahangir Alam Chowdhury.

After the meeting, he said: "Police will no longer be allowed to carry any lethal weapons. These must be returned.

But the Armed Police Battalion (APBn) will retain its weapons, he added.

Jahangir noted that the implementation of this decision would take some time.

The meeting also discussed the restructuring of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), the elite anti-crime...