Staff at two leading Bangladeshi newspapers say they were "gasping for air" as protesters, roused by the death of a prominent activist, set their offices alight on Thursday.
Sharif Osman Hadi, who had emerged as a key figure after last year's anti-government protests that ousted former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, was shot in Dhaka last week and died of his injuries on Thursday.
Hundreds of protesters stormed the offices of English newspaper The Daily Star and Bengali daily Prothom Alo on Thursday night and the demonstrations extended into the next day.
"It is one of the darkest days for independent journalism in Bangladesh," the English language Daily Star said in a statement.
For the first time in 35 years, The Daily Star could not publish its print edition on Friday and will be "inoperable for a while", consulting editor Kamal Ahmed told the BBC.
