Dubai: The United Arab Emirates said Saturday it arrested several Bangladeshi expatriates for protesting against their government on UAE soil.

Protests have swept Bangladesh this month against a quota system for civil service jobs that critics say benefits supporters of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s 15 years of rule.

The near-daily marches escalated this week into civil unrest which left more than 120 people dead.

A statement from the UAE’s public prosecutor’s office carried by state news agency WAM did not specify the number of Bangladeshis detained for demonstrating.

It stated that they “gathered in a public place protesting against their home government, rioted, disrupted public facilities, as well as public and private property.”

“The public prosecution has ordered their pre-trial detention pending further investigations,” the statement said.

The Emirati authorities did not specify when or where the alleged protests took place or how many people were suspected of taking part.

The unrest sweeping Bangladesh poses a monumental challenge to its 76-year-old prime minister, who has ruled the country since 2009 and won her fourth consecutive election in January after a vote without genuine opposition.