A physician named Al Amin was killed in a knife attack by unidentified assailants on Thursday night in Baripota village of Sharsha upazila, Jashore. The incident occurred around 9:30 p.m. when Al Amin was returning home after offering prayers. Locals found him critically injured and took him to a hospital, where doctors declared him dead.

Police arrived at the scene, collected evidence, and began an investigation. The motive behind the killing was not immediately known, though locals suspected it might be linked to a prior dispute or personal enmity. Al Amin, a resident of Navaran and son of Rafiqul Islam, had been providing medical services in the area for a long time and was well known among residents.

Sharsha police officials confirmed that a case is being processed and efforts are underway to identify and arrest those involved. The murder has cast a shadow of grief over the community, with locals demanding swift justice. Police stated that further details on the investigation will be shared later.

Four people were killed in a security operation conducted in Lakki Marwat district of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, according to a report published on Thursday, February 19, 2026, by Samaa TV. The operation was carried out based on intelligence information about the presence of an armed group in the area.

The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the media wing of the Pakistan Army, stated that the operation took place during the night between February 18 and 19 after receiving credible information about militant activity. During intense gunfire, four members of a group known as “Fitna al-Khawarij” were killed. Weapons and ammunition were recovered from the site, and the deceased were alleged to have been involved in multiple violent incidents in the region.

Security forces have launched a sweeping search operation across the area to capture any remaining armed individuals. Authorities reaffirmed their commitment to continuing counterterrorism operations to maintain peace and stability.

New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez announced on Thursday that the state has reopened its investigation into possible illegal activity at Jeffrey Epstein’s former Zorro Ranch near Stanley. The decision follows the release of more than three and a half million government files by the U.S. Department of Justice on January 30, which included previously sealed FBI documents. Torrez’s office said the new revelations warranted further examination of the earlier state probe, which was halted in 2019 at the request of federal prosecutors in New York, the same year Epstein was arrested on sex trafficking charges.

The renewed investigation coincides with the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, a former UK royal, on suspicion of misconduct in public office linked to allegations of sharing confidential documents with Epstein. The Epstein scandal has triggered political fallout in the UK but not in the U.S., where critics have accused the Justice Department of lacking transparency. In New Mexico, lawmakers have formed a truth commission to investigate Epstein’s ties to the state and why he was not registered as a sex offender there after his 2008 conviction.

Torrez’s office said it will cooperate with the commission and seek full access to unredacted federal case files to determine whether further legal action is warranted.

Emails released in newly published United States Department of Justice files reveal that Jeffrey Epstein, the late convicted sex offender, was offered the chance in 2016 to buy into a large building complex tied to the Department of Defense. The 84,710-square-metre site, located about one mile from the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, was described as a mission-critical property capable of meeting the Defense Department’s infrastructure needs. The proposed $116 million deal would have made Epstein a co-owner and landlord to the U.S. government, though there is no evidence the transaction occurred.

The documents also show Epstein’s extensive ties to Israel, including a decade-long relationship with former Prime Minister Ehud Barak and financial support for Israeli organizations such as Friends of the Israeli Army and the Jewish National Fund. An FBI informant memo described Epstein as a “Mossad agent.”

The Pentagon-linked offer was forwarded by businessman David Stern, who also proposed a separate 2015 investment in FBI field offices and courthouses. Both property proposals were originated by real estate investor Jonathan D Fascitelli.

A Dhaka court has postponed the date for submitting the reinvestigation report in the murder case of Inkilab Moncho spokesperson Shahid Sharif Osman Hadi. On Thursday, February 19, 2026, Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Md. Sefatullah set February 26 as the new date after the investigating officer, CID Assistant Superintendent of Police Abdul Kadir Bhuiyan, failed to present the report.

According to case details, Hadi was shot by assailants on a motorcycle in the Box Culvert area of Paltan on December 12 after completing election campaigning in Motijheel. He was taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital, later transferred to Evercare, and then to Singapore for advanced treatment, where he died on December 18. The case was subsequently reclassified as a murder case.

Earlier, on January 6, the Detective Branch submitted a charge sheet against 17 individuals, including former ward councillor Taizul Islam Chowdhury Bappi and Faisal Karim Masud. However, Inkilab Moncho’s member secretary Abdullah Al Jaber filed a petition expressing dissatisfaction with the DB report, leading the court to order further investigation by the CID.

The Road Safety Foundation reported that 487 people were killed and 1,194 injured in 559 road accidents across Bangladesh in January 2026. The organization also recorded six deaths and seven injuries in four waterway accidents, and 32 deaths with 17 injuries in 41 railway accidents. The data was released on Thursday morning through a press statement.

According to the foundation, motorcycle accidents were the most frequent, accounting for 208 incidents and 196 deaths, representing 40.24 percent of total fatalities. Regionally, Dhaka Division saw the highest number of accidents, with 143 incidents causing 119 deaths, or 25.58 percent of total accidents and 24.43 percent of deaths. Sylhet Division recorded the fewest, with 24 accidents and 18 deaths, representing 4.29 percent of total accidents and 3.59 percent of fatalities.

The report was compiled using information from nine national dailies, seven online news portals, various electronic media, and the foundation’s own data sources.

Six police officers were injured when a group of locals attacked them during an arrest operation in Rasulpur area of Satgram Union, Araihazar upazila of Narayanganj. The incident occurred late Wednesday night as police attempted to arrest Asma Begum, 45, a woman wanted in a CR case. Five people, including three women, were detained following the attack, according to police.

Police sources said officers from Araihazar Police Station launched the operation around 1 a.m. to apprehend Asma Begum, wife of Julhas Mia. Family members and some locals obstructed the officers, leading to an altercation that escalated into physical assault. The injured officers—SI Ajit, ASI Arif, ASI Faruk, ASI Sharif, ASI Saiful, and ASI Nizam—received primary medical treatment.

Investigating officer Ripon Kumar Sarkar stated that Asma pretended to be ill after her arrest, prompting relatives and neighbors to surround the police for about an hour until reinforcements arrived. The suspect was later taken away by her relatives, who claimed she was hospitalized in Madhabdi. Police have filed a case and are continuing efforts to identify and arrest others involved.

An internal investigation has confirmed multiple allegations against Chattogram Metropolitan Police’s Chawkbazar Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Babul Azad. The probe, conducted following a report by the newspaper Amar Desh, found evidence of bribery, extortion, and abuse of power. A senior CMP official has submitted the investigation report to the Police Headquarters, which is expected to take action soon.

According to the report, eleven categories of allegations were proven, including taking money for releasing detainees, filing multiple cases when payments were refused, collecting money from drug dealers and gambling operators, and harassing opposition activists by labeling them as ruling party members. The Police Internal Oversight (PIO) unit initially compiled a five-page report based on complaints from Azad’s tenure at Double Mooring Police Station, which was later investigated by CMP’s Additional Commissioner Humayun Kabir.

The report also detailed instances of extortion, unlawful arrests, and torture in custody. Several officers were identified as his collaborators. Police Headquarters is expected to decide on disciplinary measures against Azad based on the findings.

At least ten people were killed and twelve others injured when part of a three‑storey residential building collapsed following a gas leak explosion in Karachi’s Soldier Bazaar No. 3 area on Wednesday night. The blast occurred on the building’s ground floor, causing a large section to cave in. Rescue teams immediately launched operations, pulling several victims—both alive and dead—from the debris using all available equipment.

Police said initial findings suggest the explosion may have been triggered by gas leaking from a cylinder or suction machine. Among the confirmed dead are ten‑year‑old Nazia and sixty‑year‑old Mohammad Riaz, while the body of one woman has been recovered and another victim’s identity is being verified. Several of the injured are children, including a fourteen‑year‑old girl in critical condition, all of whom were taken to hospital.

Officials fear at least two people remain trapped under the rubble. Narrow surrounding streets have slowed rescue efforts. Police have cordoned off the area, tightened security, and continued the rescue operation.

Police in Ramu, Cox’s Bazar, arrested a woman named Ayesha Begum with 70,000 yaba pills during a raid on February 18 in the Khuniapalong Union’s Chadirkata area. The operation was conducted based on information that a fugitive accused, Abdullah, had stored a large quantity of yaba with the help of his sister for sale. The raid took place at the residence of Ziaur Rahman in the same area.

According to Additional Superintendent of Police (Media) Alok Biswas, officers recovered 50,000 pills from a chicken coop on the north side of the house and another 20,000 pills from under dry bamboo leaves on the south side. Ayesha Begum, a resident of Ward 5 in Khuniapalong Union, was detained at the scene.

Ramu Police Station Officer-in-Charge Monirul Islam Bhuiya stated that legal proceedings under the Narcotics Control Act are underway in connection with the seizure.

A Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) activist, Mohammad Delwar Hossain Chowdhury, 60, was hacked to death by unidentified assailants in Barishal Sadar upazila’s Raypasha-Karapura union on Wednesday night. His body was found in a roadside ditch near Shibpasha Badamtala Bridge. Police from Barishal Metropolitan Airport Station recovered the body and sent it to Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital morgue for autopsy.

Local residents said they discovered an abandoned bicycle and scarf on the road, prompting a search for the owner. Shortly afterward, they found a body floating in the nearby ditch and informed police. According to local BNP leaders, Delwar was an active party worker who had disputes with several individuals in the area. They suspect the killing may have stemmed from those conflicts.

Officer-in-Charge Mohammad Mizanur Rahman stated that Delwar was struck on the left side of his head with a sharp weapon and that a murder case is being prepared as part of an ongoing investigation.

The trial of the murder case of lawyer Saiful Islam Alif in Chattogram again drew attention for its slow progress after the plaintiff, Jamal Uddin, father of the slain lawyer, fell ill during cross-examination. Despite his illness, the 76-year-old continued to answer questions while seated in the courtroom. The hearing took place on Wednesday at the Chattogram Divisional Speedy Trial Tribunal, which set the next hearing date for March 9.

According to court sources, the day had been scheduled for cross-examination by the defense. Defense lawyers for several accused sought additional time, which the court granted. One accused, Rajib Bhattacharya, who had previously confessed, cross-examined the plaintiff himself with court permission. The court also allowed time requests from other defense lawyers. Strict security was maintained at the court premises, and one accused, Chinmoy Krishna Das, appeared virtually from jail.

The prosecution’s lawyer, Assistant Public Prosecutor Raihanul Wazed Chowdhury, said repeated time petitions from the defense were delaying proceedings. The testimony phase began on February 2, with 50 witnesses listed in the charge sheet.

Four electric transformers were stolen in a single night in Tarash upazila of Sirajganj, causing widespread concern among local electricity users. The thefts occurred on Monday night in Dobila village of Magurabinod Union, where three transformers were taken from poles on the land of Abu Yusuf Master and another from a nearby field belonging to Abdul Majid. The incidents left residents without power and forced them to bear heavy costs for replacement transformers.

According to the Tarash Palli Bidyut Samiti, customers must pay the full price of stolen transformers under existing rules, which has become a major burden for poorer households. Locals have begun chaining transformers to poles to deter thefts and have sought police help to identify the culprits. Abu Yusuf Master said the theft has severely affected irrigation for Boro rice cultivation.

Tarash Palli Bidyut Samiti’s DGM Azizul Haque urged public awareness to prevent further thefts and advised victims to file police cases. He noted that thieves typically remove valuable copper wires, leaving behind the metal casing and oil, and suggested monitoring scrap shops to catch the culprits.

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has filed a case against Bashundhara Group Chairman Ahmed Akbar Sobhan and 25 others for alleged loan fraud, embezzlement, and money laundering involving about Tk 1,325 crore. The case was announced at a press briefing at the ACC headquarters in Segunbagicha, Dhaka, on Wednesday afternoon by ACC Director General (Prevention) Md Akhter Hossain. According to the ACC, the accused colluded to violate banking rules and credit risk management guidelines to approve and disburse loans under the name of Bashundhara Multi Food Products Limited.

The complaint states that loans were approved without proper collateral, stock reports, or verification of repayment capacity. Of the Tk 575 crore funded loan, Tk 503.12 crore was allegedly transferred to various Bashundhara Group accounts and used for purposes including salary payments at East West Property Development (Pvt) Ltd. The transactions were allegedly intended to conceal the illegal origin and ownership of the funds.

The case was filed under sections of the Penal Code, the Prevention of Corruption Act, and the Money Laundering Prevention Act. A joint investigation team led by ACC Deputy Director Md Jahangir Alam includes officials from the ACC, CID, Customs, VAT, and the National Board of Revenue.

RAB-12 in Bogura has arrested three suspected drug traffickers and seized a large quantity of narcotics from a passenger bus on the Rangpur-Dhaka highway. The operation, conducted Tuesday night near the Nabil Highway Restaurant in Sonka area of Sherpur upazila, led to the recovery of 60 bottles of Phairdeal, 2 bottles of Eskaf, and 29 kilograms of cannabis. The detainees were handed over to Sherpur police station.

According to RAB-12 company commander Firoz Ahmed ATC, the first suspect, Mamunur Rashid, was traveling from Dinajpur to Dhaka with the drugs when he was apprehended. In a separate operation Wednesday morning near a filling station in Hamchapur village, two others—Sumon Mia from Cumilla and Saiful Islam from Nilphamari—were caught transporting 29 kilograms of cannabis from Cumilla to Thakurgaon. Cases have been filed against all three under the Narcotics Control Act.

RAB stated that both operations were based on secret intelligence and aimed at curbing drug trafficking along the Rangpur-Dhaka highway corridor.