Bangladesh's Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus stated the "SAARC spirit is alive" as leaders from South Asian nations attended the funeral of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia. Yunus expressed being "deeply moved" by the shared grief and emphasized the need to revive the largely inactive South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). He recalled attempts to gather SAARC leaders and highlighted the funeral as a moment of shared sorrow and cooperation among member states.