The well-marked low-pressure area located in the Bay of Bengal has intensified into a depression before moving northwest and crossing the coast in India’s south Odisha. Under its influence, a steep pressure gradient is persisting over the north bay. The north bay, Bangladesh’s adjoining coastal areas, and its maritime posts may see gusty or squally weather. The maritime ports of Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, Mongla, and Payra have been instructed to keep local cautionary signal No. All fishing boats and trawlers in the north bay have been advised to stay close to the coast and proceed with caution.

The "Selim Al Deen 76th Birth Anniversary Theatre Festival" concluded on Monday (August 18) with an award ceremony and the staging of the play "Nimojjon" at the Nilima Ibrahim Auditorium of Bangladesh Mahila Samity. This year, the Selim Al Deen Medal was awarded to playwright Asadullah Farazi. The medals were handed over to the recipients on the final day of the festival, jointly organised by Dhaka Theatre and Bangladesh Gram Theatre to mark the eminent playwright's birth anniversary. Playwright Asadullah Farazi shared, "Had I not met Selim Al Deen and Nasiruddin Yousuff in the 1980s, perhaps I would not have done theatre. Following the award ceremony, Selim Al Deen's play "Nimojjon" was staged under the direction of Nasiruddin Yousuff.

The deadline for collecting nomination forms in the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU) elections has been extended by a day, following allegations that Chhatra Dal activists were obstructed from collecting forms. On Monday, the Chief Returning Officer Prof Mohammad Jasim Uddin announced that students would be able to collect forms until 5pm on Tuesday and submit them by 5pm on Wednesday. The notice said this year’s DUCSU polls had garnered “immense enthusiasm among students”. The group claimed that their candidates were unable to collect forms despite the presence of the hall’s “security officers”. They demanded action against those involved in the obstruction and called on authorities to ensure the safety of all students.

The long-anticipated second Teesta Bridge is set to open on Aug 20, bringing a major boost to road connectivity between Gaibandha and Kurigram and reducing the distance on the Dhaka-Kurigram route by 135 kilometres. With financing from the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD), the 1,490m long, 9.6m wide PC girder bridge cost Tk 9.25 billion to build. The bridge was constructed at Haripurghat in Sundarganj Upazila, about 28km from Gaibandha town, linking to Chilmarighat in Kurigram. Once opened, the bridge and its link roads will shorten the Dhaka-Kurigram travel time by three to three-and-a-half hours, easing travel for several other northern districts. The opening was initially scheduled for Aug 2, and later shifted to Aug 25.

The government has named new heads for the Directorate of Madrasa Education and the Directorate of Technical Education. Two government officials of the rank of additional secretary have been assigned to lead these directorates under the Technical and Madrasa Education Division of the education ministry. The Ministry of Public Administration on Sunday announced the appointments of Md Habibur Rahman, a member of the Chattogram Port Authority, as the director general of the Directorate of Madrasa Education, and Chief Electric Inspector Abul Khair Md Akkas Ali as DG of the Directorate of Technical Education.

US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky meet at the Oval Office of the White House, amid negotiations to end the Russian war in Ukraine, in Washington, DC, US, Aug 18, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin LamarqueUS President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky meet at the Oval Office of the White House, amid negotiations to end the Russian war in Ukraine, in Washington, DC, US, Aug 18, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin LamarqueUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday said he was open to holding an election in his country, if the war with Russia comes to an end and it was safe to do so. Asked about his willingness to hold an election, an issue raised several times by Trump, Zelensky said, "Yes, of course, we are open to election, yes. Zelensky added that a truce in the war was needed to make it possible for Ukrainians to engage in a democratic, open and legal election.

The Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU) election commission has formed an investigation committee over the allegation of creating a "mob" to obstruct the nomination paper collection at the university’s Fazilatunnesa Mujib Hall. The other members of the committee are Professor SM Arif Mahmud, assistant proctors Professor AKM Nur Alam Siddiki and Atia Shanjida Shormi. Earlier, Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal held a briefing alleging that a "mob" was created to obstruct the collection of nomination forms at the hall. The group claimed that their candidates were unable to collect forms despite the presence of the hall’s “security officers”. Following this, the DUCSU election commission extended the deadline for candidates to collect and submit nomination forms by a day.

Language Movement veteran Ahmad Rafique has been taken to hospital after his health deteriorated.He was admitted to Labaid Hospital in Dhaka shortly before midnight on Sunday.Dr Faruq Ahmed, director of Labaid Cardiac Hospital, said Rafique had been admitted to the Coronary Care Unit (CCU). "His blood pressure and heart rate are slightly elevated. The body is very weak, and his level of consciousness appears somewhat reduced, which may be due to age or low electrolytes. "He is undergoing medical tests and is under the care of Prof Dr Nur Mohammad and Prof Dr Sohrab Uz Zaman," he added. �"bdnews24.com

The Dhaka-bound Intercity Mohanagar Express from Chattogram has lost five coaches near Ashuganj station in Brahmanbaria before its engine also broke down. Assistant Station Master Sakir Jahan told bdnews24.com at 7:30pm that the train had left Brahmanbaria Railway Station at 5:15pm. He said since the station was nearby, passengers from the detached coaches boarded the rest of the coaches that stayed put, and the train continued towards Dhaka. However, the engine eventually broke down on Meghna Bridge in Bhairab. Later, the locomotive of the Karnaphuli Express, which was at the other end of the bridge, came to tow the Intercity Mohanagar Express.

NBR suspends nine senior officers in a day over protestThe National Board of Revenue has suspended five more senior officers for allegedly playing an “organisational role” in protests against the ordinance that split the agency into two divisions. The five officers suspended in the latest phase include two additional tax commissioners, two joint tax commissioners and one director of the Central Intelligence Cell. The suspended tax cadre officers are: Additional Tax Commissioner Sehela Siddiqa, Additional Tax Commissioner Sultana Habib, Joint Tax Commissioner Mesbah Uddin Khan, Joint Tax Commissioner Mamun Mia, and CIC Director Chand Sultana Chowdhurani. On Jun 28, NBR staff declared a “complete shutdown”, halting revenue operations nationwide. Since then, the NBR has steadily moved against agitators, including forcing senior officers into retirement and suspending protest organisers one by one.

Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on Monday discussed border peace, trade issues and bilateral exchanges, aiming to strengthen cooperation between the two countries. "We had productive conversations on our economic and trade issues, pilgrimages, people-to-people contacts, river data sharing, border trade, connectivity and bilateral exchanges," Jaishankar said. He added that the discussions would contribute to building a stable, cooperative and forward-looking relationship between India and China. Earlier in the day, Jaishankar had said that discussing border issues was very important because the basis for any positive momentum in India-China ties was the ability to jointly maintain peace in border areas. This requires a candid and constructive approach from both sides," Jaishankar told Wang in his opening remarks.

A Dhaka court has issued arrest warrants for Bashundhara Group Chairman Ahmed Akbar Sobhan, Managing Director Sayem Sobhan Anvir and two media executives in a cheque dishonour case filed by a former journalist. Warrants were also issued against East West Media Group director Naem Nizam and former editor of daily Kaler Kantho Shahed Muhammad Ali. The case was lodged on May 26 by Rahenur Islam, a former senior sub-editor at Kaler Kantho and now a reporter at Sokal Sondha. After sending legal notices on Apr 8 to the four accused without receiving payment, Rahenur filed the case. Neither Bashundhara Group nor East West Media Group has commented on the warrants.

President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russia of unleashing "cynical" attacks on Ukrainian civilians that he said were designed to undermine his talks with US President Donald Trump in Washington later on Monday. "This was a demonstrative and cynical Russian strike," Zelensky wrote on X. "The Russian war machine continues to destroy lives despite everything," he added. But Trump put the burden on Zelensky to end the war that Russia began with its full-scale invasion in Feb 2022. Zelensky "can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight," Trump said on Truth Social.

A Dhaka court has sent Shohidul Islam Babul, secretary general of the BNP-affiliated Jatiyatabadi Krishak Dal, to prison over his conviction in a case dating back six years. Babul surrendered before a Dhaka magistrate’s court on Monday and sought bail pending appeal. Following the hearing, Babul’s lawyer Sadekul Islam Bhuiyan said they would lodge an appeal with the High Court. “We are hopeful the court will grant him bail.”The case, filed during the previous Awami League government, charged Babul with “obstructing government work and holding an illegal rally”. The case was filed then by then sub-inspector Mohammad Ibrahim Khalil of Paltan Model Police Station, with the chargesheet submitted in July 2019.

Eighteen police officials, including former Dhaka Metropolitan Police Detective Branch chief Harunor Rashid and former Dhaka Range deputy inspector general (DIG) Syed Nurul Islam, have been temporarily suspended over allegations of failing to report for duty at their workplaces. Three of the officials are DIGs, six are additional DIGs, four are superintendents of police, four are additional superintendents of police, and one is an assistant superintendent of police. The notice said that the officials had been suspended from duty from the date mentioned next to their names as they had been accused of punishable offences under the Government Employees (Discipline and Appeal) Rules. The police officials have not been going to their workplaces since the fall of the Awami League government in August 2024. Several dozen police officials had previously been suspended for failure to appear at their workplaces, but it has taken over a year since the political changeover for action to be taken against Harunor, who made headlines for his actions during the July Uprising.