REUTERS/Thomas PeterA woman reacts at the site of a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in central Kyiv, Ukraine, Dec 20, 2024. REUTERS/Thomas PeterMore than 12,300 civilians have been killed in the Ukraine war since Russia invaded nearly three years ago, a UN official told a UN meeting on Wednesday, noting a spike in casualties due to the use of drones, long-range missiles and glide bombs. These examples of increasing gross violations of international human rights law may represent war crimes, Al-Nashif told the Council. Moscow has denied committing atrocities or targeting civilians in Ukraine since the war began in February 2022. UN human rights monitors do not tally casualties from Russia due to lack of access to the country and limited publicly available information.

Canadian police have recovered the body of a Bangladeshi-born teenager who went missing a month ago in Toronto. The local newspaper The London Free Press reported that the remains were discovered on a beach in Port Bruce on Saturday. She was the daughter of Samina Nasrin Chowdhury, a Bangladeshi writer and presenter residing in Canada. According to the local daily, she was reported missing from the London area of Ontario on Dec 4. The Ontario Provincial Police identified the body on Tuesday, which was discovered by a citizen on Saturday at Waneeta Beach.

Trump has pledged tougher border controls and immigration enforcement and to launch a mass deportation operation on his first day as president. The CBP One mobile phone app allows migrants seeking asylum to book an appointment and petition for asylum before they reach the United States. While securing an appointment does not guarantee entry, many see it as the best option to enter the United States legally. Ahmed, a 45-year-old financial manager from Jordan, has spent about $20,000 trying to reach the United States since June. The United States is a big economy, and they need the labour," said Ahmed, who hopes to find a job in finance.

The number of patients hospitalised with the disease this year has risen to 469. The total number of deaths from the illness now stands at three. In 2024, a total of 101,214 patients were hospitalised due to dengue nationwide, with 575 fatalities reported. The DGHS has been keeping records of dengue hospitalisations and fatalities since 2000. Since then, a record 321,179 dengue hospitalisations were logged in 2023.

Family members of BDR personnel hold a protest rally at Dhaka’s Central Shaheed Minar on Wednesday, Jan 8, 2025, to demand a fair trial over the Pilkhana massacre, the release of “innocent” BDR personnel and the reinstatement and compensation of BDR personnel who lost their jobs through “no fault of their own”. Photo: Mahmud Zaman Ovi

Mokbul Hossain, public relations officer of Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC), was attacked by a miscreant on Tuesday night. He is currently receiving treatment at Dhaka’s United Hospital, according to a bdnews24.com report. When contacted, the duty manager at the hospital said that, "Mokbul Hossain was brought to the hospital around 9:00 pm. The DNCC plans to demolish the old office and construct a new building on the vacant plot, which currently serves as a makeshift badminton court for DNCC officials. "We rushed him to United Hospital in an injured state," he said.

The move came against the backdrop of growing calls in Bangladesh for her extradition, according to the report published on Wednesday. Hasina, 77, fled to India after stepping down in the face of a nationwide mass movement. Hasina’s visa was recently extended to facilitate her stay in the country, sources familiar with the situation said on condition of anonymity. “As far as former prime minister Sheikh Hasina is concerned, we don’t have an update on her plans. It is for her to take things forward,” ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told a media briefing last year.

By BenarNewsChina has reported a rise in human metapneumovirus (HMPV) cases in its northern region in recent weeks, raising concerns on social media that there could be another outbreak like COVID-19. A common respiratory virus, HMPV is known to spike every winter and spring, health officials said. MALAYSIAMalaysian health officials said HMPV cases were not new and that they were monitoring the developments. BANGLADESHBangladesh has not yet recorded any HMPV cases at present, news outlets quoted local health officials as saying. But the virus has always been present in the country, public health expert Mushtuq Husain told news portal bdnews24.com.

Not only do these guides increase the cost of education borne by parents, many in the field believe that they hamper the actual purpose of education. Commenting that guides “disrupt the main goal of education”, Reazul told bdnews24.com: “We have zero tolerance for note compilations and guides. The district and Upazila administrations have already been asked to conduct a campaign against note guides. Campaigns are already being conducted in some places.”Textbook content will be restructured and question papers for different exams will expand past traditional formats to prevent the “oppression” of guides, Reazul said. The “Education Watch Report 2022” said that 79 percent of primary and 82.5 percent of secondary students followed such guides.

A task force formed to reform the banking sector in Bangladesh has initiated a financial investigation into six banks entangled in loan scandals. The banks under scrutiny are First Security Islami Bank, EXIM Bank, Global Islami Bank, Social Islami Bank Limited, ICB Islamic Bank, and Union Bank Limited, as per a bdnews24.com report. He added that members of two international audit firms would soon join the six-strong task force team. According to a senior official at Bangladesh Bank, the task force started its audit in the banks on Monday. The official added that the central bank’s inspection teams would uncover irregularities in loan disbursement, and their reports would be coordinated with the task force.

The anti-corruption minister spoke at an event organised by the “propaganda” arm of her aunt’s authoritarian regime. Tulip Siddiq is under increasing scrutiny over her relationship to the former Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who was ousted in August 2024 amid accusations of human rights abuses and violent suppression of dissent and the media. Investigators in Dhaka have ordered financial institutions in the country to provide them with transaction details for Siddiq and other members of Hasina’s family as part of a probe into the former ruler. Siddiq spoke at an event organised by the Centre for Research and Information months after being elected in 2015On Monday Siddiq, who retains the full confidence of the prime minister, referred herself to the independent adviser on ministerial standards following revelations she had been given property by supporters of her aunt’s regime. She has repeatedly insisted

From regular citizens to BNP leaders at all levels, everyone seems to be reflecting on these same crucial queries. Although BNP leaders are demanding the announcement of an election roadmap, the government has not yet engaged in such discussions. Rezaul Karim Shawon, a student of the chemistry department at Jahangirnagar University, told bdnews24.com: “Tarique Rahman is an icon for BNP's youth. Tarique's lawyer Barrister Kaiser Kamal, said: "Tarique Rahman is a very important figure in Bangladesh's politics. "We expatriates do not want Tarique Rahman to face any peril by returning to the country with risk factors present.

The banks under scrutiny are First Security Islami Bank, EXIM Bank, Global Islami Bank, Social Islami Bank Limited, ICB Islamic Bank, and Union Bank Limited. Md Abdul Mannan, chairman of First Security Islami Bank, told bdnews24.com: "The task force has held meetings with the banks one by one, and its investigation is under way." He added that members of two international audit firms would soon join the six-strong task force team. According to a senior official at Bangladesh Bank, the task force started its audit in the banks on Monday. The official added that the central bank’s inspection teams would uncover irregularities in loan disbursement, and their reports would be coordinated with the task force.

China has reported a rise in human metapneumovirus (HMPV) cases in its northern region in recent weeks, raising concerns on social media that there could be another outbreak like COVID-19. A common respiratory virus, HMPV is known to spike every winter and spring, health officials said. MALAYSIAMalaysian health officials said HMPV cases were not new and that they were monitoring the developments. BANGLADESHBangladesh has not yet recorded any HMPV cases at present, news outlets quoted local health officials as saying. But the virus has always been present in the country, public health expert Mushtuq Husain told news portal bdnews24.com.

DEBBIE HILL/Pool via REUTERSIsrael said on Tuesday pressure groups were pushing foreign courts to take action against Israelis over alleged war crimes in Gaza but described the actions as "propaganda activity" and said no warrants had been issued. The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, as well as a Hamas leader, Ibrahim Al-Masri, over alleged war crimes in Gaza. The warrants sparked outrage in Israel but also drew fears that similar warrants could be issued against Israelis who served in the military in Gaza. The case in Brazil attracted wide attention in Israel, underscoring fears that individuals beyond the government and military leadership could be drawn into the war crimes issue, particularly through social media posts. The Israeli military has warned reservists that they could face arrest abroad over alleged war crimes in Gaza, according to documents published by Israeli media.