Police in Sitakunda, Chattogram, have launched an anti-drug operation, arresting three members of the same family from Kolabaria Adarsha village in Baraiahdala Union. The detainees are Mehedi Hasan Hridoy, 24, his father Bahar Uddin, 55, and mother Bibi Mariam alias Kohinur Akter, 45. Acting on a tip-off, police conducted a special raid on the night of February 17 and recovered 52 pieces of yaba from Hridoy, who was known locally as a top drug dealer. The family allegedly ran the operation under CCTV surveillance for a long time.

Sitakunda Police Station Officer-in-Charge Mohinul Islam said initial information suggests the entire family was involved in drug trading and that Hridoy faces multiple criminal cases, including murder, robbery, and narcotics charges. Legal action is underway, and police have pledged to continue the anti-drug drive under a zero-tolerance policy.

Local residents, who had previously organized human chains demanding tougher action, expressed relief at the arrests and hope that continued enforcement and community awareness will help make the area permanently drug-free.

A Jamaat supporter named Abbas Uddin, aged 55, died on Tuesday afternoon while undergoing treatment at the National Burn and Plastic Surgery Unit in Dhaka, five days after being severely burned in an arson attack at his fish farm in Lakshmipur. The incident occurred last Wednesday night at Jitu Agro Fish Farm in Char Ramani Mohan Union of Sadar upazila, where unidentified assailants allegedly set fire to the house on the farm. Abbas’s wife and other family members escaped, but he was trapped inside and sustained serious burns before being taken to Dhaka for advanced treatment.

According to his son, Elahi Prince, Abbas was a member of Jamaat in Lakshmipur Municipality’s Ward 6, while his wife, Sultana Razia Lucky, serves as the local women’s wing president. Prince claimed his father was targeted for his political affiliation and described him as a martyr. Lakshmipur Jamaat city leader Abul Farah Nishan said the attack occurred on the eve of the election and confirmed Abbas’s political involvement. Police said they were aware of the incident but had not yet received a formal complaint.

Authorities stated that legal action would follow once a written complaint is filed.

French-inspired artisan bakery and café brand La Delicia has launched a new outlet in Dhaka’s Aftabnagar. The opening ceremony took place on Tuesday with the participation of the company’s Chief Executive Director Mannujan Nargis, representatives from the marketing and sales departments, invited guests, loyal customers, and media personnel.

According to Mannujan Nargis, customers in the Aftabnagar area had long requested a local outlet, prompting the company to open this new branch to strengthen its connection with the community. The outlet will offer La Delicia’s signature products, including classic and customized cakes, fresh pastries, handcrafted donuts, artisan cookies, premium desserts, and a variety of savory items.

To mark the opening, the Aftabnagar outlet is offering a 10 percent savings promotion on February 17 and 18. Customers can shop directly at the outlet or place online orders through the brand’s website and Facebook page for home delivery of cakes and other baked goods.

Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology (RUET) has expelled one student permanently and imposed varying punishments on eight others for sexually harassing a female student on social media. The decision was announced on Tuesday, January 17, following a meeting of the university’s disciplinary committee. The main accused, Suman Majumder of the Computer Engineering and Technology Department (2024–25 session), was expelled for life.

According to university sources, the disciplinary actions were based on the findings of a sexual harassment investigation committee under Section 6 of the RUET Disciplinary Ordinance. Three students were expelled for three academic years for assisting the main accused, while five others were expelled for one academic year for incitement. Additionally, eight of the accused were permanently expelled from university dormitories, and none will receive a character certificate.

RUET’s Director of Student Welfare, Professor Dr. Robiul Islam Sarkar, stated that the university prioritizes the safety and dignity of all students and took prompt action based on the investigation report. He emphasized that RUET maintains a zero-tolerance stance toward harassment on campus.

Mongla Port, Bangladesh’s second-largest seaport, has achieved record container handling in the first seven months of the 2025–26 fiscal year. Between July 2025 and January 2026, the port handled 21,651 TEUs of containers through 31 foreign container ships, marking a 79.19% increase compared to the entire previous fiscal year. During the same period, 515 foreign commercial vessels arrived, 6,404 reconditioned cars were imported, and cargo handling reached 8.266 million metric tons, up 25.03% from the same period last year.

According to Deputy Director Md. Makruzzaman, the port authority congratulated the newly elected BNP-led alliance government formed after the 13th national election. He expressed optimism that under the new administration, ship arrivals and trade through Mongla Port would continue to grow, strengthening the national economy.

To improve operational capacity, three new anchor berths—HP-1, HP-2, and HP-3—have been declared operational at Hiron Point. Sixteen commercial ships with a 9.00-meter draft have already completed trial operations there, allowing vessels up to 200 meters in length to conduct cargo operations at these berths.

Police in Companiganj, Sylhet, arrested two individuals early Tuesday during a raid in Nobagi village, seizing a Noah microbus loaded with 1,225 bottles of Indian liquor of various brands. The seized liquor and vehicle are valued at approximately half a crore taka, according to police sources. The operation was conducted based on a tip-off after officers noticed a suspicious black Noah vehicle moving near the border area late at night.

The raid was led by Sub-Inspectors Kamrul Alam and Amirul Islam, along with Assistant Sub-Inspectors Mohammad Ali and Abul Kalam. The suspects, identified as Rakibul Islam Rubel from Kishoreganj and Sagar Molla from Manikganj, were detained from a dirt road in front of a house in Nobagi village. Police said the liquor was being transported illegally from the border area for distribution across the country.

Companiganj Police Station’s Officer-in-Charge Shafiqul Islam Khan stated that regular checkpoints and raids are being carried out based on intelligence reports. The detainees have been charged under the Narcotics Control Act and sent to court.

A house belonging to Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD) leader Yasin Ali Sujon was set on fire after being locked from the outside in Noakhali’s Hatiya upazila early Monday night. The incident occurred around 3:30 a.m. in Nalarchar village of Chanandi Union, where Sujon’s father, Belal Mia, usually resides. Local sources said a group of miscreants locked the door from outside before setting the house ablaze, destroying furniture and valuables completely. No casualties were reported as Sujon’s father was not home at the time.

Sujon alleged that the attack was retaliation for his public statement dismissing a rape allegation related to voting at Prokolpo Bazar as false. Former Hatiya BNP president Alauddin condemned the incident, saying post-election violence was destabilizing the area and that arson terrorism was unacceptable. Hatiya Jatiya Nagorik Party convener Shamsul Tibriz said he had just learned of the matter and would gather more details.

Hatiya Police Station Officer-in-Charge Saiful Alam confirmed that police visited the scene and said legal action would follow upon receiving a written complaint from the affected family.

In Chandpur’s Faridganj municipality, grocery shop owner Shah Alam from Madhya Charkumira village has decided to sell eight essential food items at their purchase price during the holy month of Ramadan. The items include chickpeas, khesari lentils, gram flour, puffed rice, flattened rice, sugar, dates, and soybean oil. He has displayed a price list in his shop, and customers have been buying with satisfaction. Shah Alam previously sold these items with only one taka profit but has now continued his cost-price initiative for the second consecutive year.

Local residents have praised Shah Alam’s generosity, noting that while many traders across Bangladesh raise prices during Ramadan, he has chosen to support fasting and low-income families. The initiative has drawn commendation from the National Consumer Rights Protection Directorate’s Chandpur office, whose assistant director Abdullah Al Imran said other traders could learn from this example.

Shah Alam explained that he usually keeps his profit margins low throughout the year to attract more customers and that his Ramadan initiative aims to ease the burden on poor and working-class people affected by price hikes.

A Dhaka court has sentenced domestic worker Survi Akter Nahid to death for the murder of Afroza Begum and her housemaid Diti in Dhanmondi seven years ago. The verdict was delivered on Tuesday, February 17, 2026, by Judge Tawhida Akter of the Seventh Additional Metropolitan Sessions Court. Another accused, house staff member Bachchu Mia, was acquitted due to lack of evidence, according to state prosecutor Jamal Uddin.

The case stems from the discovery of the bloodied bodies of Afroza Begum, mother-in-law of Kazi Monir Uddin Tarim, and her maid Diti on November 1, 2019, at a fifth-floor apartment in Dhanmondi’s Lobelia House. Both victims had their throats slit. Afroza’s daughter, Dilruba Sultana Ruba, filed the murder case two days later. The investigation was transferred from local police to the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI), which submitted charges against two suspects in February 2022.

The court began trial in October 2022, hearing testimony from 25 of 32 witnesses before reaching the verdict. The ruling concludes a high-profile case that drew significant public attention in Dhaka.

A Sirajganj court has sentenced three accused to life imprisonment for the murder of seven-year-old schoolboy Tamim Hossain in Ullapara, following a dispute over local dominance. Each of the three convicts was also fined 20,000 taka. Another accused, Mannan Akand, received a two-year prison term, a fine of 5,000 taka, and an additional three months of imprisonment in default of payment. The verdict was delivered on Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. by District and Sessions Judge Md. Iqbal Hossain.

According to the case details presented by the public prosecutor, Tamim had been living at his maternal grandfather’s home in Narsinghapara village for his studies. He went missing on February 10, 2017, and his body was found the next morning in a mustard field with rope marks around his neck and injuries on the back of his head. His father, Soleman Fakir, filed a case with Ullapara Model Police Station against unidentified persons. Police later arrested three suspects who confessed under Section 164 that the killing stemmed from a rivalry over local influence.

After a lengthy trial and examination of evidence, the court found four individuals guilty, sentencing three to life imprisonment and one to a shorter term.

The Bangladesh Coast Guard rescued nine fishermen who were stranded in the deep sea near Saint Martin after their fishing boat’s engine failed. The rescue took place on Tuesday, February 17, 2026, as confirmed by Coast Guard media officer Lieutenant Commander Siam-ul-Haq. The incident occurred the previous day, about 10 nautical miles from Saint Martin, when the boat became adrift. The Coast Guard was alerted through the emergency service number 16111.

Following the alert, the Coast Guard vessel ‘Joy Bangla’ launched a special rescue operation in the area. All nine fishermen were found alive and brought to safety along with their boat. They were provided with food and medical assistance before being handed over to the boat’s owner.

Lieutenant Commander Siam-ul-Haq stated that the Coast Guard will continue similar rescue operations in the future to ensure the safety of fishermen at sea.

A court in Karnataka, India, has sentenced three men to death for the gang rape of two women, including an Israeli tourist, and the murder of a local youth. The verdict was delivered on Monday, February 16, 2026. The case stemmed from an incident in March of the previous year in Koppal district, where five tourists were attacked. The victims included two Indian nationals from Maharashtra and Odisha, an American tourist, an Israeli tourist, and the owner of a local homestay.

According to reports, the homestay owner had taken the tourists sightseeing when the accused—Mallesha (Handimalla), Saikumar, and Sharanbasavaraj—blocked their path on motorcycles, citing a financial dispute. The confrontation escalated into violence. The attackers allegedly threw three male members of the group into a canal and raped the two women. One man was killed on the spot after being hit with stones, while another drowned.

The court found the accused guilty of gang rape, murder, attempted murder, robbery, and extortion. Judge Sadananda Nagappa Naik imposed the death penalty under Section 103 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and ordered life imprisonment for the rape convictions.

Law enforcement authorities have arrested Hedayet Ali Shah Fakir, chairman of Itakhola Union Parishad in Nilphamari Sadar upazila, who recently joined the BNP. He was a former vice president of the district Krishak League and had been wanted in multiple murder and sabotage cases. Police detained him from his home in Itakhola village on Tuesday afternoon under the leadership of Officer-in-Charge Zillur Rahman.

According to local sources and case records, Fakir was known as a close associate of former cultural affairs minister Asaduzzaman Noor during the previous autocratic regime. He was accused of attacking opposition agents during the 2018 national election, embezzling money from locals with false job promises, and aiding in the persecution of opposition activists. He was also named in the 2013 Ramganj Tragedy murder case and several cases related to violence and arson during the July 2024 mass uprising.

Police stated that Fakir is being interrogated for information on other violent incidents, and legal proceedings will follow through the court.

Police in Dhamoirhat upazila of Naogaon have arrested butcher Md. Entajul, 55, for allegedly slaughtering a dog and attempting to sell its meat as goat meat. Local residents detained him in the Nanai area on Monday night and handed him over to police. Another accused butcher, Dulu Mia, 57, remains at large. The incident occurred early Sunday when the two men reportedly slaughtered a dog in a potato field in the Mangalbari area and tried to sell about 25 kilograms of the meat at the local market.

According to eyewitnesses and police, locals discovered the act and the accused fled, leaving behind the meat. Police later recovered a dog’s head, skin, and the meat from the scene. A case was filed under the Safe Food Act against both suspects for attempting to sell dog meat as goat meat. Entajul was sent to court custody on Tuesday afternoon, while efforts to arrest the other suspect are ongoing.

Authorities said the investigation continues to locate the fugitive accused and ensure legal action under food safety laws.

A human chain was held on Tuesday, February 17, 2026, in front of Parerhat Rajlaxmi Secondary School and College in Indurkani upazila of Pirojpur district. The protest was organized by teachers and students demanding justice for the knife attack on Mahiyuddin Mallik Nasir, the governing body president of the institution and former convener of BNP’s Pirojpur Sadar upazila unit, and his nephew Riaz Uddin Mallik Nipu.

Acting principal Mostafa Talukder called for the immediate arrest and exemplary punishment of those involved, noting that the attackers had not yet been identified by authorities. The participants urged law enforcement to bring the perpetrators under legal action without delay.

According to the report, the attack occurred late Sunday night, February 15, near Parerhat bus stand, leaving both victims seriously injured. They were rescued by locals and admitted to Pirojpur District Hospital. The incident has caused tension in the area, with residents demanding swift justice.