United News of Bangladesh

A Naogaon court on Tuesday sentenced a man to life imprisonment for killing a woman with a drill machine while attempting to steal her gold ornaments. The convict was identified as Sohel Rana alias Hanif, son of Mofizul Haque of the Nayanandan Darogabari area under Tongibari Police Station in Munshiganj. He had been living in a rented house in the Pargati area of Naogaon town. The court also fined him Tk 5 lakh, in default of which he will have to serve two more years in prison. Judge of the Naogaon Additional District and Sessions Judge Court-2 and Special Tribunal-3 Raju Ahmed pronounced the verdict in the afternoon. According to the prosecution, Kohinoor, wife of Israil Sheikh of the Parghati area, was alone at home on September 11, 2019. Sohel, who was previously acquainted with the family and used to visit their house regularly, entered the house taking advantage of the situation. At one point, he attacked Kohinoor in the head with a drill machine, leaving her critically injured, and fled with cash and gold ornaments. Later, locals rescued Kohinoor in critical condition and took her to a hospital, where doctors declared her dead.

Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Dinesh Trivedi on Tuesday met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi, which is seen as further consultations amid efforts from both sides to take forward relations in a positive and constructive way. Quoting diplomatic sources in New Delhi, BBC Bangla reported that his visit was intended to convey Dhaka's current stance regarding Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s potential visit to India. However, there has been no official statement regarding this visit from the Indian High Commission in Bangladesh, India's Ministry of External Affairs, or Prime Minister Modi's office. State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir on Monday said the visit of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to India will take place at a conducive time. "I am hopeful about it. Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has never said that he will not visit India. The Indian High Commissioner is making efforts, and hopefully, Delhi will be receptive to his views," Kobir said. High Commissioner Dinesh Trivedi, while talking to reporters in Dhaka recently, laid emphasis on proper preparations by both sides before the meeting between Prime Minister Tarique Rahman and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, noting that there is no benefit in rushing. "We have to make sure that proper preparations are made because many issues will have to be discussed - trade, commerce, water - many issues. We are very positive about the future," he said in response to a question. After a courtesy meeting with Liberation War Affairs Minister Ahmed Azam Khan on Wednesday, the High Commissioner said they have to give both Prime Ministers a convenient time. "As far as the Prime Minister's visit is concerned, the atmosphere is absolutely positive," said the Indian envoy, noting that no discussion had been held about the timing or month, but the visit would definitely take place. He said there would be no issues for which a solution could not be found if the two leaders met and sat together. "See, challenges will be there. If we think there are no challenges, that would be wrong."

Russian forces struck Ukraine's Parkovyi, Ukrtelecom, Giga and Podolskyi data centers to reduce the country's communications capabilities and disrupt military logistics and troop control, the Russian Defense Ministry said Tuesday. The ministry said Russian forces also struck several targets in the Odesa region, including a missile and artillery weapons depot, a dry cargo vessel delivering military supplies, and berthing infrastructure facilities used for unloading and storing military cargo. Early Tuesday, Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said that 650 drones were intercepted on the way to the Russian capital overnight. According to the TASS news agency, the attack was one of the largest Ukrainian drone strikes on the Moscow area in nearly two years. Moscow Region Governor Andrei Vorobyov said two people were killed and several others injured in the region.

A cashier of Barishal Government Women’s College died allegedly after jumping from the Barishal Chief Judicial Magistrate Court building on Tuesday afternoon. The deceased was identified as Md Nazmul Haq, 35. He jumped from the 6th floor of the 10-storey court building around 4:00pm, said Monirul Islam, officer-in-charge of Kotwali Model Police Station. He was rescued in critical condition and taken to Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital, where an emergency department physician declared him dead. Court Police Inspector Tarak Biswas said police went to the spot after receiving information that someone fell from the court building and found Nazmul there. However, it could not be known immediately why Nazmul went to the court building and reason behind the fall. Police were investigating the incident, the OC said.

President Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Tuesday urged Canada to boost its investment in Bangladesh and expand cooperation in various sectors. He made the call when Canadian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Ajit Singh paid a courtesy call on him at Bangabhaban. During the meeting, the Canadian envoy handed over a congratulatory message from Governor General of Canada Louise Arbour to the President. In reply, Mirza Fakhrul thanked her for the message. The President praised Canada's long tradition of democratic practices and sought its cooperation in institutionalising democracy in Bangladesh. He said the current government is facing challenges due to the prolonged absence of democratic practices and parliamentary traditions and has initiated necessary reforms to institutionalise democracy. Ajit said bilateral trade between Bangladesh and Canada has exceeded 4 billion Canadian dollars annually, noting that there is further scope to expand trade between the two countries. He also informed the President of the upcoming visit of a Canadian minister dealing with foreign affairs to Bangladesh. The President called for greater Canadian cooperation in agriculture, food security, fertiliser, IT, outsourcing and other sectors. He also sought increased Canadian cooperation in education, particularly in technical education, technology, nursing and medical fields. On the Rohingya issue, High Commissioner Ajit highlighted Canada's support, saying the Canadian government has so far provided around 600 million Canadian dollars in assistance. Mirza Fakhrul thanked the Canadian government for its continued support and urged Canada to play an effective role in mounting international pressure for the voluntary and safe return of the Rohingyas to Myanmar. He further said more than 100,000 Bangladeshis are contributing to the development of Canada. The President's secretaries and senior officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were present at the meeting. Political Counsellor of the Canadian High Commission Marcus Devies was also present.  

Injured July warriors and representatives of families of martyrs of the July uprising on Tuesday called for constitutional recognition of the mass uprising, legal protection for July fighters and proper treatment and rehabilitation for those injured during the movement. The demands were placed at the sixth meeting of the Special Committee on Constitutional Amendment, held at the Cabinet Room of the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban with committee Chairman and Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed in the chair. More than 60 representatives of families of martyrs and injured July warriors took part in the meeting and presented their views and proposals on various issues. They proposed incorporating the July Declaration and the spirit of the July mass uprising into an appropriate part of the Constitution, granting immunity to July warriors, resolving legal complications they face, and expediting the trials of genocide and crimes against humanity committed during the July mass uprising.  

Former head of Germany’s foreign intelligence service August Hanning was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of passing state secrets to a foreign intelligence service, the federal prosecutor’s office said. Hanning, 80, who headed the Federal Intelligence Service (BND) from 1998 to 2005, is strongly suspected of treasonous espionage, spying out state secrets, attempted treason and espionage, prosecutors said. He was arrested in Bad Toelz-Wolfratshausen in southern Germany. A former aide, identified as Manfred D., was also arrested in Steinfurt in western Germany and charged with aiding and abetting attempted treason and treasonous espionage. Federal prosecutor’s office spokesperson Ines Peterson told German broadcaster RTL that Hanning is suspected in one instance of using classified information to prepare an analysis for an employee of a foreign intelligence service. In another case, he allegedly passed on information following an extensive exchange with an employee of another intelligence service. Authorities did not disclose which foreign intelligence services the two men allegedly worked with or which countries were involved. Properties belonging to both suspects were searched Tuesday. Prosecutors said Manfred D. served as Hanning’s chief of staff and later held the same position for several BND presidents between 2012 and 2026. His position gave him access to confidential information. According to prosecutors, the two men allegedly agreed in 2010 that Manfred D. would continuously provide Hanning with valuable BND intelligence in return for payment. Investigators believe Manfred D. supplied Hanning with about 2,000 documents over the years, many of which contained classified information intended solely for internal BND use, particularly executive intelligence briefings. Peterson said Hanning used the information for private consulting work, while Manfred D. continued providing classified material until June 2022. The investigation leading to Tuesday’s arrests emerged from a separate probe into the January 2024 abduction of the children of Hamburg businesswoman Christina Block from their father in Denmark amid a long-running custody dispute. Evidence uncovered during a search of Hanning’s home in connection with that case led to the current proceedings, prosecutors said. Hanning and a retired official of the Hamburg State Criminal Police Office were suspected of accepting a contract from Block in 2022 to abduct her children while working as executives of a security company, German news agency dpa reported, citing prosecutors’ announcement in late 2025. The Block family is prominent in Hamburg and is best known for the nationwide Block House steakhouse chain. The custody dispute has drawn considerable media attention in Germany. A request for comment from the BND was not immediately answered. Konstantin von Notz, a lawmaker from the opposition Greens party and a member of the parliamentary committee overseeing Germany’s intelligence services, called for a swift investigation. He described the allegations against Hanning as “hard-hitting and deeply troubling” and said authorities should conduct a thorough probe. Von Notz also renewed calls for restrictions on former senior officials with high-level security clearances taking up private consulting work after leaving government service.

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief has sought information on the country’s preparedness to deal with earthquakes, particularly in Dhaka and other cities. The committee made the request at its first meeting held at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban on Tuesday, with committee Chairman Munshi Rafiqul Alam in the chair. It also recommended taking effective measures to ensure the rapid dissemination of early warnings to people in disaster-prone areas. The committee asked the ministry to prepare and present district-wise lists of shelters and volunteers at its next meeting and send the lists to local MPs. It stressed that project officials must discharge their responsibilities with honesty, dedication and accountability. The panel also recommended ensuring proper distribution of relief, assistance and allocations, and keeping shelters clean and fit for use. It called for close monitoring of construction work to prevent contractors from using substandard construction materials. A presentation on the activities of the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief and its subordinate departments and agencies was made at the meeting. The committee was also briefed on various activities undertaken by the ministry during the past six months.

ICT Minister Faqir Mahbub Anam on Tuesday has stressed the need for trust, capacity-building and international cooperation to ensure responsible and inclusive use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the public sector. “The key question is not simply how quickly we adopt AI, but how wisely, responsibly and inclusively we govern and regulate it,” he said, according to a press release. He made these remarks while addressing the inaugural session of an interregional conference titled “AI Governance in Practice: Practical Use Cases, Institutional Capacity, Innovation at Scale and Global Cooperation” in Istanbul. The two-day conference, being jointly arranged by Korea, Türkiye, the Astana Civil Service Hub and UNDP, brings together ministers and senior officials from countries across the Caucasus, Central Asia and the Asia-Pacific region, along with representatives of UNDP and international development partners. The Minister said AI is no longer merely a technology of the future, as it is already transforming government decision-making, public services and development processes. He identified trust, capacity-building and international cooperation as three fundamental principles for effective AI governance. Referring to Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s remarks at the UN General Assembly, he said AI should not create new forms of inequality but should instead help address existing disparities. “Let us ensure that today’s digital divide does not become tomorrow’s AI divide,” he added. He also called for greater technology transfer, skills development and affordable access to modern technologies to ensure that the benefits of AI are shared more broadly. The Minister expressed hope that the conference would create a platform for innovation, trust and inclusive technology where no country is left behind. He reaffirmed Bangladesh’s strong commitment and support for the initiative