Bhutan’s King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck made a stopover at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka early Wednesday, where he was welcomed by President Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir. During an approximately one-hour stay, the two leaders held a courtesy meeting in the VVIP lounge and discussed matters of mutual interest.

The president invited the Bhutanese king and members of the royal family to make a state visit to Bangladesh at a convenient time. The king invited Bangladesh’s president and prime minister to visit Bhutan. He also congratulated Alamgir on assuming the presidency, while both sides exchanged greetings and good wishes for their respective peoples and governments.

Alamgir described Bangladesh-Bhutan ties as deep and historic, noting Bhutan was the first country to recognise Bangladesh on December 6, 1971. The king stressed expanding cooperation in education, trade and investment, and outlined Bhutan’s Gelephu Mindfulness City project, seeking Bangladesh’s participation. The president praised the initiative and said Bangladesh was ready to work closely with Bhutan on regional development and sustainable prosperity.

US Senator Chris Van Hollen has alleged that President Donald Trump is personally benefiting from the Iran war. Citing a report by Democrats on the US Congressional Joint Economic Committee, Van Hollen said Trump could have earned as much as $15.5 million this year from assets in the oil and gas sector.

In an interview with MSNBC, the Democratic senator said it was clear that Trump was profiting from what he described as an illegal war launched alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Van Hollen characterized the conflict as meaningless and accused Trump of exploiting it for personal financial gain.

Van Hollen also alleged that Trump had turned the White House into a venue for private profit. He further claimed that Trump had taken in more than $1 billion since returning to power. The source presents these statements as allegations by Van Hollen and attributes the energy-income estimate to the Democratic report.

Global fuel oil prices continued to decline on Wednesday morning in international markets. Benchmark Brent crude fell by $1.78, or 2.0%, to $86.80 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude dropped by $1.49, or 1.8%, to $80.87 per barrel.

The decline followed reports that Iran said it would restart discussions with neighbouring Oman on opening the Strait of Hormuz. The prospect of the waterway being reopened created renewed expectations in the market and was cited as the factor behind the latest fall in oil prices.

Both major crude benchmarks had already declined by more than 3% on Tuesday. The report did not provide further details about the planned discussions, a timetable for the Strait of Hormuz, or additional market developments.

London-based businessman Zia Bin Russell, originally from Raozan in Chattogram, has bought a bar in east London and transformed it into a full mosque and Muslim community centre. The source says he invested substantial funds to convert the building, though it does not specify the purchase date, cost, or the centre’s opening date.

The report describes the conversion as part of Zia Bin Russell’s longer humanitarian work in Bangladesh and internationally. Through the Hafezzi Charitable Society of Bangladesh in Nabinagar, Savar, he is involved in financing and planning specialised skills-development training for people with disabilities and special needs, aimed at supporting longer-term self-reliance.

His initiatives also include distributing sewing machines, cash and income-generating materials to disadvantaged women in remote areas of Bangladesh. He regularly supports maktabs and madrasas in difficult-to-reach areas, while funding education for orphaned and poor students; the report says several completed Quran memorisation. His aid has also reached Gaza in Palestine and Sudan, and he has supported people during disasters in Bangladesh.

Ship-to-ship oil transfers have increased in the Gulf of Oman as vessels seek alternative ways to move fuel while avoiding the Strait of Hormuz. TankerTrackers.com, a ship-monitoring firm, said it recorded at least 20 such transfers in the area, making it one of the busiest days for ship-to-ship, or STS, activity there.

STS transfers involve moving oil or fuel products directly from one vessel to another at sea. The method can be used to conceal a cargo’s origin, avoid sanctions, or transport goods without calling at risky ports. TankerTrackers.com said in a post on X that it had identified the movement of about 25 million barrels of crude oil, along with various refined fuel products.

The firm said the cargoes initially came from nearly every country in the region except Iran. It later identified five additional STS transfers, including one involving Iranian liquefied petroleum gas. Rising tension around the Strait of Hormuz is making the Gulf of Oman an important hub for such transfers as vessels try to reduce reliance on the strait.

The third session of the thirteenth parliament is scheduled to begin at 3pm on Thursday. Although expected to be brief, the session may see debate over electricity, gas and fertiliser shortages, worsening law and order, relations with a neighbouring country and rising prices of essential goods. The advisory committee will meet at 2pm before the sitting to determine the session’s duration, agenda, bills, questions and other matters.

The National Human Rights Commission Bill, the Prevention and Remedy of Enforced Disappearance Bill and an amendment to the Property Transfer Act have been submitted to the parliamentary secretariat. A Bank Resolution amendment and the Special Response Battalion Bill, intended to create a new specialised police force after abolishing RAB, may also be submitted soon. Sources said several bills could be passed during this session.

The session may run for 11 working days, according to parliamentary secretariat sources. Of 50 parliamentary committees, only 15 have been formed, leaving 35 to be completed in this session. Police have banned gatherings, marches, protests and the carrying of weapons, explosives and harmful materials around the parliament complex and surrounding areas from midnight Wednesday.

More than 200 hotels and guest houses near Kolkata’s New Market have been sealed or ordered closed within 48 hours after a deadly fire at the Shikha Inn residential hotel on Mirza Ghalib Street. The fire reportedly killed nine people, including seven Bangladeshis. The crackdown by the Kolkata municipal authority, fire service and police has left thousands of Bangladeshi visitors, many seeking medical treatment, facing an acute accommodation shortage.

The New Market hotel district, including Sudder Street, Marquis Street, Lindsay Street and Mirza Ghalib Street, is popular with Bangladeshi middle- and lower-middle-income travellers because of relatively affordable lodging and nearby services. Visitors and local residents alleged widespread illegal hotel operations, inadequate fire safety, narrow exits, absent emergency escape routes and unsafe electrical wiring. One Bangladeshi tourist said fire service personnel rescued him after he sheltered in a hotel bathroom.

Officials have formed a committee to investigate the fire and begun examining the legal status of hotels and guest houses. Visitors said remaining rooms are being offered at two to three times previous rates, while many are shortening their trips and seeking return bus tickets. A senior police officer said life safety would take priority, while police would monitor against harassment of tourists with valid documents.

Bangladesh will launch a pilot of its “Probashi Card” for expatriate Bangladeshis in mid-August next month, following a decision at a Saturday meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office chaired by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. The government says the card is intended to raise expatriates’ social standing, empower them, provide financial incentives, and enable international payments and banking through a dual-currency card.

Officials said cardholders will receive at least 10 special services, including airport lounge access, dedicated immigration booths, meet-and-greet services, travel discounts, vehicle booking, health-service support, repatriation of remains after death, rehabilitation and insurance support. The card will also offer priority in land registration, utility connections, licensing, foreign investment, identity, passport, consular and banking services.

In the first phase, state-owned Janata Bank will issue expatriate debit cards. The target is to distribute 50,000 cards by December 2026 and 200,000 by June next year. In the second phase, Probashi Kallyan Bank will manage all card-related activities. The prime minister also directed authorities to ensure Bangladeshis living worldwide can be brought under the scheme.

Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka has become a major route for gold smuggling, with customs authorities seizing nearly 2,000 kilograms of gold in more than 100 operations between 2021 and 2026. Dhaka Customs House estimated the seized gold’s market value at about Tk5,000 crore. Smugglers have used aircraft cargo holds, toilets, fruit crates and passenger belongings, while individual consignments have reached 15 to 20 kilograms.

Seizures peaked at 697 kilograms in fiscal year 2021-22, followed by 554 kilograms in 2022-23 and 417 kilograms in 2023-24. Airport police registered 541 gold-smuggling cases over five years. Intelligence sources alleged that more than 50 techniques are used and that some aviation, customs, security, police and Ansar personnel have been named as alleged facilitators, while key syndicate operators remain beyond reach.

Three large consignments were recovered this year, including 17.901 kilograms from a Biman flight on March 28, 18.720 kilograms on July 2, and 16 kilograms from fruit crates on a Cathay Pacific cargo flight on July 19. Airport and customs officials said surveillance and operations would continue, while police said they were working to identify the main operators, particularly on the Dubai route.

President Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said the teachings of Prophet Muhammad’s farewell pilgrimage sermon remain highly relevant for all humanity. He made the remarks on Tuesday evening while opening a fortnight-long Eid-e-Milad-un-Nabi 1448 Hijri observance at the Baitul Mukarram National Mosque. The event was jointly organised by the Ministry of Religious Affairs and the Islamic Foundation.

He said the sermon’s lessons on human dignity, equality, fraternity, justice and mutual rights are especially important amid violence, conflict, intolerance, inequality, extremism, falsehood and moral decline. The president called for unity to protect democracy, justice, good governance and fundamental rights, saying division, vengeance and retaliation do not strengthen a nation.

He said the government has begun providing monthly honoraria to imams, muezzins and khadems, and has also started work on honoraria for workers at other religious places of worship. He expressed hope that, before 2030, all mosques and other religious institutions would be covered. The president also unveiled a Seerat commemorative publication marking Eid-e-Milad-un-Nabi 1448 Hijri.

Health and Family Welfare Minister Sardar Md. Sakhawat Hossain said young people fought heroically in the anti-autocracy movement and provided strength and courage during the 2024 mass uprising. He made the remarks on Tuesday afternoon at the Secretariat during a prayer and discussion meeting seeking forgiveness for Nasib Hasan Riyan, described as a martyr of the July mass uprising.

The minister said the youth demonstrated on “36 July” a courage that the country had not shown in 53 years of independence. He said young people have made major sacrifices in Bangladesh’s movements and struggles, and that their contribution will help the country move forward.

Remembering Nasib Hasan, Sakhawat Hossain said his premature martyrdom was difficult to accept and expressed sympathy for his parents. The meeting was chaired by Md. Abdul Khaleq, president of the Bangladesh Secretariat Service Association and a deputy secretary of the Health Services Division. Several officials, including Bijan Kanti Sarkar, ABM Abdus Sattar, and secretaries from relevant ministries, attended.

The High Court Division’s judicial branch issued a circular on Monday barring members of the Bangladesh Judicial Service from participating, directly or indirectly, in commercially operated coaching activities conducted in person or through digital platforms. The restriction also covers the use or approval of a member’s name, designation, photograph or identity in coaching-related promotional materials for commercial purposes.

The circular says the measure is intended to preserve professional discipline, impartiality and the dignity of Judicial Service members, while maintaining strong public confidence in the judiciary. Members are prohibited from disclosing, providing or using confidential, unpublished or official information obtained through their judicial duties in coaching activities, whether conducted directly or online.

Judicial Service members are also prohibited from preparing, editing, publishing or supplying educational materials for commercially run coaching programmes on physical or digital platforms. The circular states that any member who violates its provisions will face appropriate action under applicable disciplinary laws and rules.

Bangladesh’s Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has approved three separate cases against Aramit Cement PLC, owned by former land minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury, over allegations of embezzling Tk141.20 crore through forged bills and vouchers. Saifuzzaman, his wife Rukmila Zaman and a total of 29 people will be accused in the cases, the ACC said at a Tuesday press conference at its Segunbagicha headquarters in Dhaka.

The commission alleged that the funds were withdrawn through 27 transactions without any actual sale or purchase of goods, then transferred through different accounts and laundered to the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United States and other countries. Investigators said the transactions were presented as purchases and sales of cement raw materials, while Aramit employee and Saifuzzaman’s personal assistant Abdul Aziz was shown as owner and supplier of Imperial Trading.

The three cases concern alleged transactions worth Tk57.60 crore, Tk41.62 crore and Tk42.07 crore between 2018 and 2021. The ACC said the cases will be filed under laws addressing misuse of banking systems, forgery and money laundering. It also cited earlier court orders to freeze or seize Saifuzzaman’s domestic and overseas assets.

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said his government would grant citizenship to Hindu refugees and remove Muslim infiltrators from Bangladesh, describing border security as its first priority. Speaking Tuesday at Zee 24 Ghanta’s Mega Conclave, he said the administration would follow central government directives and would not hesitate to take stringent decisions for border protection.

Adhikari said land had already been provided for border fencing. He listed constitutional responsibilities as another priority, saying BNS was introduced in the state after two years and West Bengal had been linked with central projects. He also said the BJP government had identified 2,000 acres for a new airport and handed over seven roads sought by the Centre to secure the Chicken Neck.

He said land was provided for rail projects in Hili, Lalgarh, Gopiballavpur, Egra, Dantan, Digha, Jaleswar, Karimpur and Tehatta. Adhikari said 14.5 million women receive Annapurna Yojana assistance, with another two to three million to be included after transparency checks. He said the government aims to implement six priorities within 100 days.

Bangladesh national football team head coach Thomas Dooley has announced a 28-member preliminary squad for the FIFA ASEAN Cup, scheduled to begin in Indonesia on September 24. Expatriate players Hamza Dewan Choudhury, Shamit Shome, Fahmidul Islam and Tariq Kazi, who play domestic football abroad, were not included in the initial list.

The Bangladesh Football Federation said the overseas-based footballers will join the main ASEAN Cup squad later despite their absence from the preliminary selection. Mohammedan player Sourav Dewan, who performed strongly last season, has been included as a notable selection.

Mirajul and Al Amin were left out because of FIFA match bans and disciplinary punishment. The federation has abandoned its earlier plan for a residential camp at BKSP because of an accommodation shortage. Players will instead stay at an upscale hotel in Dhaka for the residential camp and training, which will begin the day after tomorrow under Dooley.