Former Bangladesh Army Chief General Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan testified before International Crimes Tribunal-1, alleging that officers sent from the army to the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) returned as professional killers. He made the statement on Sunday before a two-member judicial panel led by Justice Md. Golam Mortuza Mojumdar, during testimony against Ziaul Ahsan in a case involving the disappearance and killing of over a hundred people.

In his deposition, Bhuiyan said he was deeply disturbed that professional officers from the army were turning into killers after serving in RAB. He introduced interviews for officers before and after postings to RAB, DGFI, and BGB, and tried to motivate them by emphasizing that killing was a grave sin. He also recounted that after hearing horrifying accounts of killings from returning officers, he became concerned about the army’s future and appealed to the Prime Minister to bring army officers back from RAB. The Prime Minister reportedly acknowledged RAB was worse than the former Rakkhi Bahini but took no further action.

Bhuiyan added that he encouraged officers to contact him directly if ordered to join any killing mission, promising honorable reinstatement in the army.

A joint force operation in Ukhiya upazila of Cox’s Bazar detained 622 Rohingyas, including men, women, and children, for living illegally outside designated refugee camps. The operation, led by Cox’s Bazar Executive Magistrate Monju Bin Afnan, began early Sunday and covered areas such as Palongkhali, Thaingkhali, and Balukhali. Authorities also fined local landlords a total of 157,000 taka in 13 separate cases and sentenced three house owners to jail for renting homes to Rohingyas.

According to the upazila administration, the detainees included 211 men, 196 women, and 200 children who had been living in rented houses across Ukhiya. The arrested individuals will be processed through the Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner (RRRC). Officials said the operation aimed to maintain law and order ahead of the national election and prevent unauthorized settlement outside the camps.

Law enforcement agencies stated that such drives would continue regularly to ensure security and discipline in the area, as illegal Rohingya settlements had previously been linked to deteriorating law and order conditions.

The trial of dismissed army officer Major General Ziaul Ahsan began Sunday at the International Crimes Tribunal-1 in Dhaka, chaired by Justice Golam Mortuza Majumder. Former army chief General Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan appeared before the tribunal to testify against Ziaul. The prosecution opened the proceedings with its introductory statement before the three-member panel, which also includes Justice Shafiul Alam Mahmud and Judge Md Mohitul Haque Enam Chowdhury. The tribunal is scheduled to record the testimony of the first witness today.

Earlier, on January 14, the tribunal rejected Ziaul’s petition for discharge and formally framed charges against him. The case involves allegations of crimes against humanity, including enforced disappearances and killings during the Awami League’s one and a half decades in power. The charges detail three major incidents, including the killing of detainees in Gazipur in 2011, mass executions in Barguna’s coastal areas, and staged “gunfights” in the Sundarbans under operations named Nishankhali, Mora Bhola, and Kotka.

The tribunal proceedings mark the first phase of a high-profile case alleging over a hundred enforced disappearances and killings attributed to Ziaul’s command.

The trial of dismissed army officer Major General Ziaul Ahsan begins today, Sunday, at the International Crimes Tribunal-1 in Dhaka. The three-member tribunal, chaired by Justice Golam Mortuza Mojumdar, will open proceedings with the prosecution’s introductory statement. The other members are Justice Shafiul Alam Mahmud and Judge Md Mohitul Haque Enam Chowdhury. The first witness testimony is also scheduled for recording today. Earlier, on January 14, the tribunal rejected Ziaul’s plea for discharge and formally framed charges against him.

Ziaul Ahsan faces three charges of crimes against humanity, including the killing of detainees in Gazipur in July 2011, mass executions in the coastal areas of Barguna’s Patharghata, and staged “gunfights” in the Sundarbans under the guise of anti-bandit operations. The prosecution alleges that these acts resulted in the deaths of over a hundred people during the Awami League’s one-and-a-half-decade rule.

The tribunal proceedings mark a significant step in addressing allegations of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings attributed to security operations during that period.

A joint force recovered a large quantity of firearms and locally made weapons from a pond near the Kanaipur Sugarcane Center in Faridpur Sadar on Saturday. The special operation, led by Lieutenant Colonel Minhaj, was conducted from noon to afternoon, during which the pond was drained and searched with nets. The recovered items included four pistols with 16 rounds of ammunition, two pipe guns with two rounds, five Chinese axes, 65 small and large chisels, eight spears, six knives, 101 spearheads, one harpoon, and five empty foreign liquor bottles. All seized weapons and ammunition were taken to the joint forces’ camp.

According to the joint forces, the operation was carried out based on secret intelligence information with assistance from the Fire Service. The weapons were found hidden underwater. No arrests have been made so far, but law enforcement has launched an investigation to identify who stored the weapons and for what purpose.

Faridpur Army Camp sources said similar operations will continue to curb crime and recover illegal arms, with intensified intelligence surveillance to identify those involved.

A Bangladeshi expatriate worker was killed in Malaysia when a spider lift crane overturned and crushed him on Jalan Perak in Kuala Lumpur. The incident occurred around 10:30 p.m. on Friday while he was operating the crane to work on a roadside billboard. According to Kuala Lumpur Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department chief ACP Mohamad Zamzuri Mohamad Isa, the victim himself was driving the crane.

Preliminary investigations found that the crane, which was being operated by remote control, became stuck on the pavement and toppled over. The worker was trapped underneath and died at the scene. The crane’s fall also damaged two nearby cars, though no passengers inside were injured.

Police are now searching for the company that owns the crane and are investigating whether it had proper authorization to operate in Kuala Lumpur.

A police constable was killed in a road accident on Saturday afternoon on the Dhaka Road near the Nabaganga Bridge in Magura town. The deceased was identified as Badsha Morol, 26, a constable stationed at Babukhali Camp under Mohammadpur Upazila in Magura. He was the son of Omar Ali from Ailia village in Satkhira district. The accident occurred when a speeding truck hit his motorcycle from behind while he was returning to his camp from the Magura police lines after collecting ration medicine. Passersby rescued him and took him to Magura Hospital, where the on-duty doctor, Sadia Jhora, declared him dead.

The body has been kept at the temporary morgue of Magura 250-bed District Hospital. Magura Superintendent of Police Md Habibur Rahman visited the scene and described the incident as tragic. He said legal action would be taken following an investigation and that necessary arrangements had been made for an autopsy.

Authorities have initiated the investigation process to determine the cause of the collision and identify those responsible.

Multimedia journalists working in Dhaka held a protest rally on Saturday, February 7, in front of the National Museum, condemning an alleged assault by law enforcement officers on journalists. The demonstration was organized by the Multimedia Reporters Association and journalists based in Dhaka, following what participants described as a planned attack on media workers.

Speakers at the rally said that despite changes in police uniforms, their behavior toward journalists had not changed. They demanded that the police officers involved face justice and alleged that the assault took place in the presence of DC Masud, with his consent. The protesters claimed that police specifically targeted multimedia journalists and vowed to continue their protest programs until justice is served.

Leaders of the Multimedia Reporters Association, including President Fakhrul Islam and General Secretary Akhtaruzzaman, addressed the rally, expressing anger over repeated attacks on journalists covering incidents of violence against civilians.

A group of armed robbers attacked the home of Khan Ashikuzzaman, a local correspondent for Amar Desh in Mongla upazila of Bagerhat, early Friday night. The assailants held the journalist and his wife hostage at gunpoint, looting cash, gold ornaments, important documents, and journalism equipment. The robbers also threatened to kill him if he continued his journalism work and used a chemical spray to render the couple unconscious before fleeing.

According to Ashikuzzaman, the incident occurred around 3 a.m. on February 6 when six to seven armed men broke into his tin-shed house in Sundarban Union. They took about 4,000 taka, one bhori of gold, national ID cards, a Green Television microphone boom, and a Vivo V-29 mobile phone. The couple was later rescued unconscious by neighbors and admitted to Mongla Upazila Health Complex.

Ashikuzzaman filed a written complaint with Mongla Police Station against unidentified robbers. Assistant Superintendent of Police Md. Refatul Islam said police visited the scene and legal action is underway.

Police in Shibganj upazila of Chapainawabganj recovered a foreign-made pistol, two magazines, and two rounds of ammunition from a mango orchard. The operation took place on Friday night in the Kaliganj Khochpara area of Binodpur Union, owned by a local named Al Kesh. The recovery was confirmed on Saturday evening by Shibganj Police Station Officer-in-Charge Humayun Kabir.

According to the officer, the weapons were found inside a yellow and blue tissue shopping bag during a special police operation. He stated that the operation was part of heightened intelligence activities ahead of the upcoming election, as Shibganj is a border area. No one was arrested during the raid.

Police have initiated legal proceedings regarding the recovered firearms, and the matter remains under investigation.

A special team of the army-led joint forces arrested Mehedi Hasan, also known as Dipu, a close associate of top criminal Subrata Bain, from a house in North Badda, Dhaka, on Friday. Police reported that 11 sophisticated foreign firearms, 394 rounds of ammunition, eight magazines, 32 cartridges, a rifle, knives, walkie-talkies, and a laptop were recovered from a flat in Dipu’s three-storey house. The Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Gulshan Zone Deputy Commissioner Rownakul Alam confirmed the arrest and said a court granted five days of remand under the Arms Act.

According to police, Dipu had been evading arrest since Subrata Bain’s capture in May 2025 during a joint forces operation in Kushtia. After Bain’s imprisonment, Dipu allegedly took control of the underworld network, extorting money in Badda, Bhatara, and Gulshan areas through threats and illegal arms trade. Police also linked him to two murders in 2025 and said he managed Bain’s weapons stockpile.

Police added that Dipu had been on the wanted list for years and frequently changed locations to avoid capture. Joint forces are now conducting operations to arrest his remaining associates.

Three individuals, including Molla Shahnewaz Dolon, joint general secretary of the banned Jubo League in Bagerhat, were arrested during a joint forces operation in the Nagerbazar area late Friday night. Police reported seizing eight cans of foreign beer from their possession. The arrests were confirmed Saturday by Masum Khan, officer-in-charge of Bagerhat Sadar Model Police Station.

The other two detainees are Madhusudan Dam, general secretary of the district Puja Celebration Council, aged 49, and Md. Miraj, aged 42, all residents of Nagerbazar. Law enforcement stated that the operation took place at Dam’s residence, and the detainees were later handed over to the Sadar Model Police Station. Both Dolon and Dam have multiple cases pending against them related to alleged attacks on anti-government protesters on August 4 of the previous year.

According to police, the arrests were part of a regular drive against illegal arms and drugs in Bagerhat. The detainees were scheduled to be sent to court on Saturday.

A human chain and road blockade were held in Naogaon on Saturday demanding justice for the killing of Sharif Osman Hadi in Dhaka and protesting attacks on demonstrators seeking that justice. The event began at 11:30 a.m. in front of the Shaheed Minar at Muktir Mor under the banner of the Baisommo Birodhi Chhatra Andolon Naogaon district branch. Protesters blocked one side of the main road, disrupting traffic and causing congestion for about 30 minutes before lifting the blockade.

The demonstration was presided over by district convener Arman Hossain, with several organizers including Mehedi Hasan, Rafiul Bari Rajon, and Naim Hasan addressing the gathering. Speakers alleged police bias and condemned attacks on students during earlier protests in Dhaka. They vowed to continue their movement until justice for Hadi’s killing is ensured.

Arman Hossain called for a United Nations–supervised investigation into the killing and demanded exemplary punishment for those involved, along with accountability for those who attacked protesters.

The Bangladesh Coast Guard detained 34 fishermen and seized two illegal artisanal trawling boats along with about 1,000 kilograms of marine fish during operations in the deep-sea area near Cox’s Bazar. The operations were conducted on Thursday, February 5, at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. by the Coast Guard vessel ‘Joy Bangla’, based on secret intelligence. The seized boats contained 12 trawling nets worth approximately 3.1 million taka.

According to Coast Guard media officer Lieutenant Commander Siam-ul-Haq, the confiscated trawling equipment was later removed in the presence of the Chattogram marine fisheries inspector. The boats were returned to their owners after written undertakings, while the illegal nets were destroyed. The seized fish were sold at auction, and the proceeds were deposited into the government treasury.

The Coast Guard stated that similar operations will continue in the future to protect the country’s marine resources.

The Bangladesh Navy detained two associates of identified criminal Jamal Uddin, known as 'Socket Jamal', during a special operation in Bhola early Saturday. The suspects, Hasan (44) and Selim Kazi (48), were arrested from a tin house near Borkandaj Jame Mosque in Baliakandi village under Dhania Union of Bhola Sadar upazila. Authorities said the two were preparing to carry out election-related violence. They were later handed over to Bhola Sadar Police Station for legal action.

According to a Navy press release, the operation was based on secret intelligence indicating that the suspects were planning violence on behalf of a political group ahead of the national election. Recovered items included a single-barrel pipe gun, a single-barrel shotgun, two local weapons, nine rounds of 7.62 mm police ammunition, three shotgun cartridges, and one rocket parachute flare. The Navy noted that the recovered bullets are typically used by police, raising questions about how they came into the suspects’ possession.

Bhola Model Police Station’s officer-in-charge confirmed the arrests and said legal proceedings are underway. One of the detainees was hospitalized due to illness.