Ahmed Rafiq will be forever remembered for his role in Language Movement, says FakhrulBNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has said Ahmed Rafiq will be remembered by the people of Bangladesh for his lifelong contribution to protecting the dignity of the mother tongue. In a condolence message on Friday, Fakhrul described him as one of the brave soldiers of the historic Language Movement who made important contributions to both the recognition of Bangla and the development of literature and culture. He described Rafiq as a man of many talents, a physician by profession, who left a lasting impact across different sectors through his cultural and intellectual pursuits. Fakhrul said Rafiq’s life of purpose would always serve as a source of inspiration for the people of the country. The Language Movement activist and researcher died at BIRDEM Hospital in Dhaka on Thursday night at the age of 96.

The Bangladesh Navy and Coast Guard have rescued 39 people, including women and children, from the deep hills of Teknaf in Cox’s Bazar, where they had been gathered for smuggling to Malaysia. Lt Commander M Mohaieminul Haque Mahim, contingent commander of the Navy, said the operation was carried out at Kachhapia hills in the early hours of Friday. Among those rescued were 18 Rohingya women, 11 Rohingya men, eight Rohingya children and two Bengali nationals. “At dawn, a commando unit from the Navy’s specialised force, supported by Coast Guard members, moved in on the site. Citing accounts from those rescued, Mahim said: “The organised traffickers lured them with false assurances, abducted them at gunpoint and kept them confined in the hills.

At least 20 people have been injured in a clash between leaders and activists of the BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami in Chandpur’s Hajiganj Upazila, triggered by a Facebook post containing “distorted” images of BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman and party leader Rumin Farhana. Hajiganj Police Station chief Md Mohiuddin Faruk said the incident occurred on Friday morning in Palishara village of the Upazila, reports bdnews24.com. The injured are receiving treatment at Hajiganj Upazila Health Complex and Chandpur General Hospital, he added. The clash erupted after Jamaat leader Ilias Hossain shared a photo of BNP leaders Tarique and Rumin on Facebook. Although the post was later deleted and an apology issued, tensions escalated when BNP activists confronted him the next morning, leading to a violent clash.

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File PhotoThree cabinet colleagues of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi are promoting use of apps by domestic rivals to Google Maps, WhatsApp and Microsoft, in the strongest backing yet for "Made in India" products amid trade tension with the United States. While many industry executives have made public calls to support Indian products, Modi made a direct appeal last month for Indians to scrap daily use of foreign goods. "The map is from MapmyIndia, not Google Maps," the minister said with a smile, referring to an Indian provider. In 2021, Indian ministers promoted X-like social media platform Koo amid compliance-related disagreements with the American platform. "Only state patronage will not be enough," warned Dilip Cherian, a co-founder of Indian public relations firm Perfect Relations.

Criminologists say people in crisis, when denied support by family, community or the state, sometimes choose to kill loved ones before themselves. Investigators believe Rubel Ahmed, 35, strangled his wife Sonia Akter, 28, and 6-year-old daughter "Jamila" before hanging himself amid “family conflict”. Whether the family member who committed the act had a prior mental health issue should also be taken into consideration. HOW EXPERTS VIEW THE TRENDAachol Foundation, which works on suicide prevention, has no statistics on family-wide suicides or killings followed by suicide. Prof Salahuddin Qusar of BSMMU conceded that most suicides stem from mental illness, but treatment access at the grassroots is scarce.

A BNP leader has been killed in Bagerhat town after assailants arrived on motorcycles and hacked him while he was sitting at a tea stall, police say. The incident occurred around 6:30pm on Friday at the three-road intersection in Uttar Harikhali, Bagerhat Sadar Model Police Station chief Md Mahmud-ul-Hasan said. Officers have claimed the murder may be linked to a previous dispute, but they have not clarified what the dispute was. Officer Mahmud, citing witnesses, said: “Around 6:30pm, Hayat was sitting at the tea stall. Mahmud said investigators are looking into a previous dispute as a possible motive, though a final conclusion will depend on the ongoing investigation.

A hacker group has taken control of the verified Facebook page of Islami Bank amid mounting controversy over a recruitment evaluation test for employees. The bank confirmed the incident, saying its IT team was working to resolve the matter. As of 3pm on Friday, the bank's verified page remained inaccessible. IT experts are working to resolve it," said Nazrul Islam, the bank's head of public relations. During its tenure, tens of thousands of people were hired into the bank, often through verbal orders, without formal tests or vetting.

Unidentified assailants have reportedly set fire to a passenger bus in Dhaka's Mirpur. "Around 7:15am, two or three men arrived and asked all passengers to get off the bus. The Alif Paribahan bus had been travelling from Mirpur towards Agargaon. Meanwhile, the fire on the bus was extinguished within 15 minutes of the incident being reported, according to Rashed Bin Khalid, a Fire Service duty officer. “We were informed that a group of young men had set fire to a bus and quickly fled the scene,” he said.

Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS/File PhotoThe UN Security Council Committee has temporarily lifted a travel ban on the Afghan Taliban foreign minister, which would allow him to visit India between Oct 9 and 16, India's foreign ministry said on Friday. Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi is among Afghan Taliban members who are under UN sanctions including a travel ban and asset freeze. Indian and Afghan media have reported that Muttaqi would travel to Russia before visiting New Delhi. Hekmatullah Hekmat, an Afghan political analyst, said the visit to India was highly significant for the Taliban government. India closed its embassy in Kabul in 2021, but a year later opened a technical mission to coordinate humanitarian assistance.

The National Citizen Party (NCP) has again demanded the “Shapla” as its electoral symbol, rejecting the Election Commission’s (EC) stance that the flower cannot be allocated due to its place in the national emblem. In a statement on Friday, NCP Convenor Nahid Islam explained why the party is set on having the Shapla as its symbol. However, on Jul 9 media reports said the EC had taken a policy decision against listing the symbol, citing its status as part of the national emblem. It cited the Constitution, the Bangladesh National Emblem Order 1972, and the Emblem Rules 1972, arguing that only the full emblem design is restricted, not individual components. The party continues to press for the inclusion of the Shapla in the EC’s official symbol list, claiming it has already gained acceptance among supporters nationwide.

Bangladesh slates Israeli interception of Gaza aid flotilla, demands release of all activistsBangladesh has condemned the Israeli forces’ interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla in international waters, which was carrying humanitarian aid for Gaza. It urged Israel to end its illegal occupation of Gaza and the West Bank, respect international humanitarian law, and immediately cease its “genocidal war and humanitarian blockade in Gaza”. The flotilla initiative, supported internationally, aims to break Israel’s naval blockade and deliver humanitarian aid to civilians in Gaza. Over the past two days, Israeli forces have taken control of nearly 40 ships in the flotilla and detained the activists, sending them to prison. Thunberg said in a video message that the Israeli forces had “kidnapped” her.

Language Movement activist Ahmed Rafiq will be taken to the Central Shaheed Minar on Saturday, where people from all walks of life can pay their last respects. A mourning procession will accompany the coffin from the Shaheed Minar to Ibrahim Medical College Hospital for the formal handover. Due to residential issues at Fazlul Haque Hall, however, he transferred to Dhaka Medical College. Rafiq participated in the 1952 Language Movement, working closely with students from different campuses. He was the only student from Dhaka Medical College to have an arrest warrant issued against him in 1954.

India has rejected allegations that it instigated recent unrest in Bangladesh’s Khagrachhari district. Speaking at a press conference in New Delhi on Friday, Indian foreign ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the claims were ‘false and baseless’, according to bdnews24.com. The comments follow remarks made in Dhaka by Home Adviser Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, who suggested that India or “fascist elements” were behind the surge in violence, arson, and land grabs in the region. Randhir Jaiswal claimed that Bangladesh’s interim government is ‘unable’ to maintain law and order and has a ‘habit of shifting blame onto others’. He said that Bangladesh should focus on addressing ‘local extremist violence’ targeting minorities in the Chittagong Hill Tracts.

India has rejected allegations that it instigated recent unrest in Bangladesh’s Khagrachhari district, saying the country’s interim government is “unable” to maintain law and order and has a “habit of shifting blame onto others”. On the night of Sept 23, tension erupted after allegations that a Marma teenage girl had been gang‑raped in Khagrachhari Sadar Upazila. The unrest, however, continued, and on Sept 29, speaking in Dhaka, Advisor Jahangir alleged that the violence had “foreign backing”. These incidents are being carried out at the instigation of India or fascist forces. I don’t want to name the country, but one of my journalist brothers has already mentioned it.”

‘Pakistan must stop backing terror or risk erasure from map’, says Indian Army chiefIndia’s Army chief Gen Upendra Dwivedi has issued a sharp warning to Pakistan, accusing the country of fuelling terrorism and threatening its existence on the map unless it ends state-backed militancy. New Delhi said four suspects were linked to the Pahalgam attack, two of whom were Pakistani nationals. Amid the tensions, on May 7 Indian fighter jets struck targets inside Pakistan, which New Delhi described as “terrorist infrastructure”. In July, India announced that three militants involved in the Pahalgam attack had been killed and insisted it had “detailed proof” of their Pakistani identity. Following the latest clashes, India suspended a key water-sharing treaty, which Pakistan described as an “act of war”.