Author: Desk Report

Chittagong Port Authority (CPA), the country’s premier seaport, has already handled a record 31.72 lakh TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) container till June 15 of the fiscal year 2024-25 (FY25), which is 4.63 percent higher than the previous fiscal. The authority handled around 31.69 lakh TEUs in the fiscal year 2023-24, while 30.07 lakh TEUs in the fiscal year 2022-23, said a press release. The port authority expected that Chittagong Port will touch a new milestone in container handling by June 30, 2025. This is a positive indicator that businesses have overcome the challenges faced throughout the year.…

The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has directed the authorities concerned to publish a notification in two newspapers, ordering fugitive former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal to appear before the court within seven days. A three-member bench, headed by Chairman of the tribunal, Justice Md Golam Mortuza Majumder, passed the order after hearing a petition in this regard on Monday, said the ICT’s Chief Prosecutor Advocate Tajul Islam. He said the court ordered the authorities concerned to issue the notification to be published in a Bengali and an English newspaper. UNB adds:…

Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus on Monday directed the authorities concerned to immediately form a committee to investigate the role of former Chief Election Commissioners, Election Commissioners and Secretaries of the Election Commission (EC) Secretariat involved in organising three controversial national elections. He came up with the directives at a meeting of the National Consensus Commission at the State Guest House Jamuna in Dhaka. Vice-Chairman of the National Consensus Commission Professor Ali Riaz, its members Badiul Alam Majumder, Iftekharuzzaman, Safar Raj Hossain and Mohammad Ayub Miah were present at the meeting. Among others, Principal Secretary to the…

Israeli defence minister warns that ‘Tehran will burn’, it has attacked more than 150 targets Iran has not yet flatly turned down Sunday talks with US in Oman Iran and Israel traded missiles and airstrikes on Saturday, the day after Israel launched a sweeping air offensive against its old enemy, killing commanders and scientists and bombing nuclear sites in a stated bid to stop it building an atomic weapon. In Tehran, Iranian state TV reported that around 60 people, including 20 children, had been killed in an attack on a housing complex, with more strikes reported across the country. Israel…

The interim government hired lawyers to try to recover any allegedly stolen funds from the UK, and the British government was “extremely supportive” of this effort, Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus has said. “I have a lot of admiration for the promptness with which they’re treating the whole subject,” Yunus told BBC in an interview during his recent visit to the United Kingdom. The BBC report says it understands the International Anti-Corruption Coordination Centre (IACCC) is exploring opportunities to assist Bangladesh’s interim government and its law enforcement agencies in their efforts to investigate allegations of corruption under Sheikh…

The government expects the Election Commission (EC) to soon announce the date for holding the next general elections, said National Security Adviser Khalilur Rahman at a press briefing on Friday. “We see no problems with the election date. Both the government and BNP have issued a joint statement in this regard,” added Khalilur, also a high representative of the Chief Adviser, at the briefing. The briefing was held to reveal the outcomes of the pivotal meeting between Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus and BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman in London earlier in the day. Since the 5…

A high-stake political meeting between Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus and BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman has officially begun in London, amid hopes for a breakthrough in the ongoing political crisis ahead of the general election. The meeting began at The Dorchester hotel on Park Lane around 2pm (Bangladesh time) on Friday, said Chief Adviser’s Deputy Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad Majumder. Earlier, the BNP leader reached the hotel to attend the meeting with Prof Yunus, who is visiting the UK. Tarique is accompanied by BNP Standing Committee member Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury and BNP Acting Chairman’s…

The next general election is likely to be held on 12 February next year as Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus and BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman reached a consensus during a meeting in London on Friday. The outcome came in a joint statement following a meeting held between the chief adviser and the BNP acting chairman in London on Friday. Khalilur Rahman, the high representative to the chief adviser, read out the joint statement during a press conference held at The Dorchester hotel on Park Lane. “Their meeting was held in a very cordial atmosphere. Tarique Rahman…

In one of India’s worst aviation tragedies, an Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad airport on Thursday, with 241 people feared dead. The London-bound aircraft was carrying 242 passengers and of whom 10 were crew members, 169 Indian nationals, 53 British nationals, one Canadian and seven Portuguese. Meanwhile, the authorities confirmed that one passenger miraculously survived and he is identified as Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, a British national. Ahmedabad Police Commissioner GS Malik said the survivor, seated in 11A, is currently receiving treatment at a local hospital. He was seen limping near the…

Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus today received the prestigious ”King Charles III Harmony Award 2025’ from King Charles III. King Charles conferred the Harmony Award on Prof Yunus at a ceremony at St James’s Palace in London, Chief Adviser’s Deputy Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad Majumder told BSS. In a significant recognition of his global contributions, Prof Yunus was nominated by King Charles III for the ‘King Charles III Harmony Award 2025’, honouring his lifelong work to promote peace, sustainability and harmony between people and the environment. In June 2024, King Charles launched a new set of…