Eleven-party alliance coordinator and Jamaat-e-Islami assistant secretary general Hamidur Rahman Azad said a Dhaka-Chattogram long march will begin at 7am on September 5 with a gathering of more than 100,000 people at Shapla Chattar in the capital. He made the announcement after a preparatory meeting at the party’s central office in Moghbazar on Thursday.

The march is scheduled to travel through Madanpur in Narayanganj, Padua Bazar Bishwaroad in Cumilla and Mirsarai in Chattogram, where roadside meetings will be held before the programme concludes in Chattogram. Azad said local residents would welcome the procession at different points and join it after receptions at the relevant upazila level.

The meeting discussed organisational preparations, responsibilities and measures to make the programme successful. Azad described the march as part of a national series of programmes aimed at implementing the referendum verdict and building a discrimination-free Bangladesh. He alleged that the government seeks to erase the events of July and criticised the BNP. He also said farmers were not receiving fertiliser and that six of seven fertiliser factories were closed, while power shortages were disrupting industrial production.

Tamanna Chowdhury Priyanka, convener of Mymensingh metropolitan Jubo Mohila League, has drawn attention after applying to file a case against former interim government chief adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus and 26 others. The application alleges vandalism and arson at the Dhanmondi 32 residence of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in the capital. The report was published on August 21, 2026.

Priyanka has been active in local Awami League politics for a long time and became more visible locally when she contested for a women’s councillor post in the 2019 Mymensingh City Corporation election. Her legal initiative seeks action against those allegedly involved in the Dhanmondi 32 incident, according to the report.

The report says Awami League and affiliated organisations’ political activities were banned after the 2024 political change, while many leaders and activists went into hiding, left the country or were arrested in different cases. Some observers have raised concerns about whether her public activity could create law-and-order complications, though no statement from law-enforcement agencies or relevant authorities was reported. Priyanka’s name has also been discussed locally in connection with the killing of Redwan Hossain Sagar in Mymensingh on July 19, 2024.

Qawmi-linked Sammilito Ulema Mashayekh Bangladesh has demanded that lawmaker Shamim Kaysar Lincoln not be appointed state minister for religious affairs. The group made the call at a press briefing on Thursday at Jamia Islamia Makhzanul Ulum in Khilgaon, Dhaka, according to the report published on August 21, 2026. It urged the government to appoint a qualified, experienced and acceptable person after consulting religious scholars.

Maulana Muhiuddin Rabbani, secretary general of International Majlis-e-Tahaffuz-e-Khatme Nabuwat Bangladesh, read the written statement. He said news of Lincoln’s nomination was contrary to the expectations of religious scholars and ordinary Tawhidi people. Rabbani alleged that Lincoln’s religious views did not align with those of Bangladesh’s majority Muslim population.

The speakers said the views of the country’s religious scholars should be given importance in selecting a state minister for religious affairs. They warned that ignoring the demand could create distance and weaken mutual trust between the government and religious scholars. Leaders from Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam and Qawmi madrasas attended the briefing.

Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU) held its fifth executive meeting at its meeting room at 5pm on Thursday, according to the report published on August 20, 2026. Chaired by Vice-Chancellor and DUCSU president Professor Dr A B M Obaidul Islam, the meeting adopted a broad set of decisions on student rights, welfare, infrastructure, security and administrative transparency.

DUCSU leaders urged the vice-chancellor to announce the schedule for the next DUCSU election by September 12. The vice-chancellor said an initial cell had been formed and that the schedule would be announced soon. The meeting also formed an audit committee led by treasurer Professor Dr H M Mosharraf Hossain, called for action over alleged attacks at Shahbagh police station, and pressed for disciplinary measures related to attacks on students during the July movement.

Other proposals covered food safety, harassment prevention, campus policing, solar panels, lift repairs, hall-seat allocation rules, disability support and student health insurance. The meeting approved a proposed ONE DU APP covering hall, department and administrative services, and decided to introduce a student-voted Best Teacher Award. It also sought residential halls’ inclusion in the first phase of development projects worth about Tk 2,841 crore.

M Abdullah, former managing director of the Bangladesh Journalists Welfare Trust and former president of the Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists, said the freedom to speak openly and without fear is among the mass uprising’s major achievements. He made the remarks on Thursday afternoon at a Tongi Press Club discussion marking the uprising’s second anniversary in Tongi, Gazipur.

As the event’s chief discussant, Abdullah said journalists had previously faced pressure and interference over what could be published and who could appear on television talk shows. He claimed journalists can now criticize the government without threats or pressure. He called for an environment of independent journalism and for professional journalists to be valued and supported to counter what he described as improper journalism.

Gazipur City Corporation Administrator Md Shawkat Hossain Sarkar outlined initiatives on traffic congestion, road safety, foot overbridges, playgrounds, waste management and urban infrastructure. He said fencing is being installed on road dividers, incomplete BRT foot overbridges are to be activated, and one of four proposed new foot overbridges has already been tendered.

Pakistan’s Supreme Court has ordered the transfer of former prime minister Imran Khan, 73, to Shifa International Hospital for medical treatment, according to the source published on August 20, 2026. The court also said Khan’s personal physician should be included on a medical board and that he should be allowed regular contact with his family. The report frames the ruling as significant in a context where basic prisoner rights are presented as exceptional concessions.

The source says the government attempted to challenge part of the ruling. It argues that Khan’s imprisonment, alongside political cases and restrictions on his political activity, was intended to diminish him and weaken his party. Instead, the article contends that detention has increased his symbolic political importance and created a difficult situation for Pakistan’s power structure.

The article says Khan’s release could return him to public politics with greater symbolic strength, while his death in custody could create a broader political crisis. It also criticizes the roles of the Sharif and Bhutto-Zardari families in the political system, presenting the court order as an intervention concerning medical care and family access.

Rajshahi University Central Students’ Union vice president Mostakur Rahman Jahid has rejected media allegations that RAKSU withdrew Tk 12.9 million for 42 programmes and failed to submit vouchers for Tk 6.1 million. In a Facebook post published after the report, he said RAKSU’s accounts had not yet been formally closed and accused critics of trying to make the student union controversial using incomplete information.

Jahid called the reported Tk 12.9 million withdrawal figure false. He said every withdrawal requires signatures at several stages, including from the RAKSU president and treasurer, and said documents containing those signatures were available. He also said elected RAKSU representatives receive no personal remuneration and work voluntarily.

He said a government audit would be conducted after the student union’s term and its report would be presented to students and journalists. Jahid said any spending found by the audit to be outside RAKSU’s authority would have to be repaid. He added that his Tk 500,000 office-expense allocation resulted in withdrawals of Tk 350,000, while no RAKSU funds were used for a Tk 1.2 million iftar programme.

Abhijit Dipke, founder of the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), demanded the resignation of Maharashtra School Education Minister Dada Bhuse, alleging that government school students lack basic facilities. Speaking after visiting a school under the party’s “Fix Schools” campaign, which began last week, Dipke said many schools lack adequate classrooms, benches, toilets and safe access roads.

Dipke said students were being denied essential services and claimed that ministers’ dogs received better facilities. He urged political leaders to address school problems before seeking votes and called on people to prioritise their children’s education over political, caste and community identities. He also criticised politics centred on religion, saying children’s education and future require greater attention.

He said ministers and legislators should send their own children to government schools to understand their actual condition. Dipke alleged that students still study under leaking tin roofs and without enough benches, while some walk several kilometres to school without safe transport. He also cited alleged snake-bite deaths and waste behind a visited school as signs of unsafe conditions. Dipke claimed some authorities began work after CJP visits and warned of wider village-level protests if conditions do not improve.

Bangladesh Army Chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman said the prolonged Rohingya crisis is placing significant pressure on the country’s environment, law-and-order situation and economy. He made the remarks on Thursday at the closing ceremony of a three-week Capstone Course at the National Defence College in Mirpur Cantonment. He said the long-term presence of Rohingyas has effects extending beyond the humanitarian sphere.

The army chief said there are risks that a section of the Rohingya population could become involved in environmentally destructive activities, drug smuggling and other crimes. He said Bangladesh’s long-standing provision of shelter has also created major economic pressure, while the crisis has implications for environmental conditions and security.

NDC Commandant Lieutenant General Md Faizur Rahman delivered the welcome address and said the course aimed to expand knowledge-sharing and leadership capacity on important national and international issues. Thirty-seven participants from military, academic, medical, government, private-sector, diplomatic, media and corporate backgrounds attended. Experts discussed national security, geopolitics, the Rohingya issue, the Chittagong Hill Tracts, energy, investment, education, health, justice and media, while participants presented research papers.

Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed congratulated the opposition after it took part in the presidential election through the constitutional process, he told journalists on Thursday night. The remarks were published on August 20, 2026, in an article by Amar Desh Online. He said the opposition’s participation carried constitutional significance under the existing framework.

Ahmed said that if the opposition participated while accepting the continued existence of Article 70, it had acknowledged that its members’ oath as members of the constitutional reform council was not constitutionally valid under the current constitution. He said this was why he again congratulated and thanked the opposition.

The minister said the opposition’s participation effectively gave constitutional recognition to the process under the existing constitution. He added that constitutional amendments would come in the future, including changes to Article 70, in line with agreement on the July National Charter. However, he said the constitution has not yet been amended, and future presidential elections after such changes would follow the amended Article 70.

BNP candidate Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir won Bangladesh’s 23rd presidential election with 255 votes, defeating Jamaat alliance candidate Oli Ahmad, who received 88. Voting was held on Thursday in the National Parliament session chamber, and Chief Election Commissioner A M M Nasir Uddin announced the result after the ballot concluded.

The chief election commissioner said 349 ballot papers had been printed for the election. Of those, 343 ballots were cast and all were deemed valid. The figures indicate that six of the 349 eligible voters did not cast ballots.

The absent lawmakers were BNP MPs Mirza Abbas, Mostafa Kamal Pasha and Osman Faruk; independent MP Rumin Farhana; Khelafat Majlis member Abul Hasan; and expelled Jamaat MP Gazi Nazrul Islam. Mirza Abbas and Mostafa Kamal Pasha were receiving medical treatment abroad, while Abul Hasan was reported to be abroad.

Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis Ameer Allama Mamunul Hossain congratulated veteran politician Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on his election as president and said he expects the new head of state to act above partisan politics. In a statement sent to the media on Thursday, Mamunul said Fakhrul should protect public rights, justice and balance within the state.

Mamunul said the long anti-fascist movement had created expectations not merely for a change of individuals or government, but for fundamental change in the structure of power. He expressed disappointment that constitutional reform had not yet taken place and that the presidential election was held while older arrangements, including the disputed Article 70, remained in force.

He said the July Charter includes proposals for a secret-ballot presidential election by members of a bicameral parliament, a balance of power in key state appointments, consideration of victims' or families' views in pardon applications, and checks and balances between presidential and prime ministerial powers. Mamunul nevertheless said he remained hopeful about Fakhrul and wished him good health and success.

US President Donald Trump said on August 20, 2026, that he plans to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un later this year, seeking to revive the relationship developed during his first term. Speaking to reporters at the White House while inspecting a new helipad, Trump answered “yes” when asked whether he intended to hold a meeting by the end of 2026.

Trump said maintaining a good relationship with Kim was important and claimed North Korea now possesses 57 “very powerful” nuclear weapons. He said such a situation should never have been allowed, while adding that he knows Kim very well and believes he will be fine. Trump also linked his position to his stated aim of preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear bomb amid the war against Iran.

The report said Trump is considering meeting Kim while travelling to Shenzhen, China, for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in November. Kim’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, said she was completely unaware of recent reports from Washington regarding contact between the North Korean and US leaders. She nevertheless said her brother still has good memories and feelings toward Trump, describing the leaders’ relationship as excellent.

Voting for Bangladesh’s 23rd presidential election began at 2 pm on Thursday at the National Parliament. Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed and Deputy Speaker Kaiser Kamal were the first to vote, followed by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, BNP presidential candidate Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and Opposition Leader Shafiqur Rahman. Members of parliament were casting ballots in sequence and placing them in designated ballot boxes.

Before polling started, Chief Election Commissioner A M M Nasir Uddin briefed lawmakers on voting procedures and election rules. He said the election was being conducted under the Presidential Election Act, 1991, and the Presidential Election Rules, 1991. He identified Oli Ahmed as candidate number one and Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir as candidate number two.

Election officials were to deliver ballot papers to voters, who were instructed to verify that their names appeared on the ballot cover. Candidates’ names were listed in Bangla alphabetical order, and voters had to write their full names in the designated space beside their preferred candidate. Polling was scheduled to end at 5 pm, followed by counting. The candidate receiving the highest number of valid votes would be provisionally declared elected before publication of results in an official gazette.

Sarjis Alam, chief organizer for the southern region of the National Citizen Party (NCP), congratulated veteran politician Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir after his election as Bangladesh’s 23rd president. The message was posted on Facebook on Thursday, according to a report published by Amardesh Online on August 20, 2026.

In his statement, Sarjis said he was offering sincere congratulations on behalf of the NCP. He expressed hope that Mirza Fakhrul, as head of state in the coming days, would make his utmost effort to establish justice, uphold democracy, and protect the country’s independence and sovereignty.

The statement also conveyed prayers and best wishes for the newly elected president. The source did not provide further details about the presidential election, the election process, or any response from Mirza Fakhrul.