Bangladesh’s presidential election will be held on Thursday between ruling BNP candidate Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and Oli Ahmed, candidate of the Jamaat-led 11-party alliance. Neither contender withdrew their nomination by the Tuesday 4 p.m. deadline, so voting will proceed under the announced schedule, according to Election Commission Secretariat Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed.

Voting is scheduled from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the parliamentary chamber of the Jatiya Sangsad. On the day, election official and Chief Election Commissioner A M M Nasir Uddin will explain the voting procedure to member of parliament voters. Ballot papers will be prepared on Tuesday, and will carry black print on white paper.

The ballot will have a counterfoil and ballot section. MPs will sign with their full names to receive a ballot and will vote by signing in the blank space beside a candidate’s name, which will be arranged by Bangla alphabetical initials. Of parliament’s 350 members, 349 are eligible voters after BNP’s Aslam Chowdhury lost his membership by court order. Ballots will be counted in the chamber after 5 p.m., where the result will be announced before a gazette is published.

National Citizen Party member secretary and lawmaker Akhtar Hossain said the government had repealed earlier ordinances on the Human Rights Commission and prevention of enforced disappearances while promising better laws, but the current drafts would limit independent investigations. Speaking on August 18 at an NCP reform implementation committee roundtable at the Dhaka Reporters Unity, he said disappearance investigations could be assigned to forces that may themselves face such allegations.

Hossain said a proposed five-year punishment for families making false complaints could intimidate victims’ relatives. He called for laws based on public views rather than only those of bureaucrats and security forces. Photographer and rights activist Shahidul Alam urged retention of the NHRC’s independent investigative authority, an independent commissioner-selection process and correction of weaknesses in the disappearance law.

Other speakers, including Professor Dilara Chowdhury, Dr Sharif Bhuiyan and Barrister Tanim Hossain Shawon, argued that independent institutions were necessary to hold governments accountable. Dr Nabila Idris said recent legal changes were curbing independent investigations into security forces and proposed special safeguards and a separate legal framework rather than removing investigative powers.

Water Resources Minister Md Shahiduddin Chowdhury Anee MP said Bangladesh will give the highest priority to water rights, agriculture, food security, environmental protection and biodiversity in renewing the Farakka water-sharing treaty. He said the agreement would be renewed with water security and national interests in mind amid changing realities. The minister made the remarks on Tuesday, August 18, at a seminar titled “Ganges Water Treaty: Renewal” in Dhanmondi, Dhaka, organized by the Bangladesh Institute of Law and International Affairs.

The minister said the Farakka agreement concluded in 1977 during the time of martyred President Ziaur Rahman was the best agreement because it contained a guarantee clause for receiving water. He said the guarantee clause was removed from the 1996 agreement. Addressing renewal challenges, he said work was under way with Bangladesh’s interests as the priority.

State Minister Azad said Bangladesh and India share 54 transboundary rivers, most of which lack navigability. He said Prime Minister Tarique Rahman had planned excavation of 20,000 kilometres of rivers, canals and water bodies over five years. He also mentioned an initiative to strengthen the Joint Rivers Commission through suitable individuals. Former adviser Dr Asif Nazrul presented the keynote paper at the seminar.

Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal’s central parliament has dissolved the committee of its Noakhali Science and Technology University unit following a clash-related incident. The decision was announced in a press release sent by the central body on Tuesday, according to a report published on August 18, 2026.

The release said the existing committee of the Noakhali Science and Technology University branch was dissolved in accordance with a decision of the central parliament. It did not provide further details about the clash, including the people involved or the circumstances surrounding the incident.

The decision was approved by central Chhatra Dal president Rakibul Islam Rakib and general secretary Nasir Uddin Nasir, the release said. The information was confirmed in the statement signed by Md Jahangir Alam, the central office secretary with vice-president status. A new committee for the university unit will be announced very soon, according to the release.

Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis Ameer Maulana Mamunul Haque called for broad participation by Islamists and honest, qualified people in local government elections, warning that corrupt candidates could become representatives if they remain inactive. He made the remarks on Tuesday, August 18, 2026, at 4 pm during a grassroots candidate selection committee meeting in Mohammadpur, Dhaka, organized by the party’s election management committee at the Amire Majlis political office.

Haque said people devoted to public welfare should enter electoral contests to make local government more citizen-friendly and free of corruption. He called on the Election Commission to play an effective role in reducing the dominance of money and influential groups. According to him, the commission’s indifference and inactivity can prevent genuinely public-minded, honest and acceptable candidates from emerging properly in electoral competition.

He said political parties and Islamist organizations must also act responsibly rather than relying solely on the Election Commission. Haque emphasized organizational work from the grassroots to develop qualified leadership in every union, municipality and local government institution. He also urged party workers to strengthen organizational capacity, increase public engagement and build acceptable, people-friendly local leadership. Party leaders and members of election management and candidate selection committees attended the meeting.

Bangladesh does not agree with Myanmar’s statement describing Rohingyas who came from Myanmar as Bengali, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaid said on Tuesday. Speaking at a briefing in Dhaka after talks with Myanmar’s ambassador, she said Rohingyas have their own identity and would return to Myanmar with that identity. She also said Bangladesh is seeking international pressure on Myanmar’s government and the Arakan Army to enable Rohingya repatriation.

Obaid said Bangladesh remains in communication with Myanmar’s government because it wants to begin repatriation. She described the discussion with the ambassador as taking place in a positive environment and said he assured her that he would speak with his government and work to expedite the matter. Bangladesh had provided shelter to Rohingyas in 2017 on humanitarian and human-rights grounds, she added.

The state minister said Bangladesh consistently raises the need for international pressure on both Myanmar’s government and the Arakan Army. She said China had also firmly assured Bangladesh during the prime minister’s China visit that it would exert substantial pressure on Myanmar. Asked why Dhaka had not publicly protested Myanmar’s call for a bilateral solution, she said public announcements of protest do not necessarily bring a solution.

Public Service Commission (PSC) Chairman Professor Mobashwer Monem has resigned, according to commission sources cited by Amar Desh. He submitted his resignation letter to the PSC Secretariat at 4pm on Tuesday. The reason for his resignation was not immediately known.

A commission source said the chairman's resignation letter was being taken to the Office of the President. The report did not cite any statement from Monem or the PSC explaining the decision or indicating how the resignation would be handled.

Monem was appointed PSC chairman on October 9, 2024, one day after former chairman Sohrab Hossain and other commission members resigned. Their resignations came after a change in the political situation following the July mass uprising. Monem is a professor in the Department of Public Administration at the University of Dhaka.

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami said the BNP-led government had not shown any clear success matching public expectations during its first six months in office. At an August 18 press conference at Al-Falah Hall in Moghbazar, Dhaka, Secretary General Mia Golam Parwar cited alleged shortcomings in implementing the referendum verdict and July Charter, law and order, energy security, price control and banking-sector reform.

Parwar said 47,225,980 votes were cast in favour of constitutional reforms under the July National Charter in the February 12 referendum, but the proposed constitutional reform council had not become operational. He said daily gas demand is about 3,800 million cubic feet, against supply of 2,700 to 2,800 million cubic feet. He also alleged partisan appointments in public institutions and criticised crime, inflation and defaulted loans.

Jamaat issued eight demands, including a time-bound roadmap for reforms, an integrated energy-security strategy, depoliticised administration and visible improvements in law and order. It also called for a comprehensive foreign-policy framework, action against market irregularities, recovery of defaulted loans and an end to political intervention in banking.

Abdul El Sayed has secured the Democratic nomination in Michigan and will seek to become the first Muslim senator in United States history. The 41-year-old former public health official confirmed the nomination in early August and is due to face Republican Mike Rogers in Michigan's Senate contest during the November midterm election. In his victory speech, El Sayed described how his Egyptian immigrant father came to Detroit, allowing him to identify as American.

His campaign has focused on removing money from politics, putting money back in people's pockets and expanding access to healthcare. El Sayed has criticized President Trump's policies and opposed US funding for the militaries of any country, including Israel. He called assistance to Israel's military the worst use of US tax dollars. Analysts cited his political commitments, anti-Israel stance and demand to end American military funding abroad as important to his rise.

Although he did not receive support from Democratic Party central leaders, El Sayed has been backed by Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. He previously won more than 30 percent of the vote in Michigan's 2018 gubernatorial election. As Detroit's public health director from 2015, he pursued measures including reducing child mortality, providing free eyeglasses to students and testing lead levels at more than 100 schools.

Dhaka University Central Students’ Union, or DUCSU, demanded the resignation of Fazlul Huq Muslim Hall Provost Professor Ilyas Al-Mamun over allegations that a student was abused and CCTV footage of the incident was concealed. The demand was made at a human chain outside the university vice-chancellor’s office at 3pm on Tuesday, where DUCSU office-bearers, members and leaders of various hall unions participated.

Protesters chanted slogans calling for the provost to step down and criticizing the university administration. DUCSU Vice-President Sadiq Kayem alleged that the administration was trying to make the CCTV footage disappear and called for the provost to face legal action over alleged physical and mental abuse of a student. He said students would continue their movement until justice was delivered.

DUCSU Transport Secretary Asif Abdullah said the administration’s delay in showing the footage indicated that the allegations against the provost were true. Law and Human Rights Secretary Sakhawat Zakaria called for punishment over alleged involvement in criminal offences, while Literary and Cultural Secretary Musaddik Ali Ibn Mohammad also criticized the administration’s role.

Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin met Inspector General of Police Md Ali Hossain at the Election Building on Tuesday, August 18, to discuss local elections and the law-and-order situation. The meeting focused on maintaining normal law and order in connection with the upcoming local polls.

Speaking to journalists after the meeting, the police chief said the discussion with the CEC covered efforts to keep the security situation normal during the elections. He said the police force would soon inform the Election Commission of detailed progress on the matter.

The Election Commission is preparing to begin local government elections from October. The report said the local election process may initially start with Union Parishad elections.

Upazila, municipal and college units of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal held a sit-in in Dirai, Sunamganj, demanding the removal of UNO Sanjib Sarkar over alleged irregularities and nepotism in hiring for a family card census. The programme was held on Tuesday at the upazila Shaheed Minar premises, where activists also sought cancellation of appointments made through what they described as a disputed process.

Student leaders alleged that rules were ignored in recruiting data collectors and supervisors for the census and that former Chhatra League activists were given priority. Salman Mia, former convener of Dirai Degree College Chhatra Dal, said transparency and neutrality were needed for such an important activity. He called for a proper investigation into the allegations of irregularities and politicisation, as well as action against those responsible.

During the programme, participants chanted slogans demanding the UNO’s removal and cancellation of the contested appointments. They warned of a tougher movement with general students if their demands were not met. Upazila Chhatra Dal convener Abu Hasan Saju, member secretary Tanbir Chowdhury, Salman Mia and joint convener Rezaul Karim were among those present.

India’s Cockroach Janata Party, or CJP, has launched its “Fix the Schools” campaign to assess conditions in government schools, but the initiative has triggered tensions in West Bengal. On August 13, 26-year-old activist Abdul Hafiz visited a government primary school in Bankura district where he had once studied. He alleged that local BJP workers attacked his home hours later, injuring him and his father, Mohammad Mafik. Mafik, 51, died two days afterward.

CJP has asked supporters to inspect safe drinking water, working toilets, electricity, usable classrooms, school safety, midday meals and teacher attendance. West Bengal BJP leaders denied that the alleged attackers were connected to the party and promised an investigation. Hafiz said the campaign for better education would continue despite his father’s death. CJP founder Abhijit Deep called attacks and deaths over demands for better schools deeply concerning.

The group says Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned in July after a 37-day sit-in and wider youth protests. In Alwar, Rajasthan, local officials said they would accept demands for extra classrooms, clean toilets and drinking water. Rajasthan has imposed restrictions on outsiders entering schools and recording images or videos, citing student privacy; activists view the move as an attempt to obstruct their campaign.

Education Minister A N M Ehsanul Haque said discussions are under way on introducing a separate pay scale for teachers. He made the remarks at an event in the capital on Tuesday, saying teachers’ salaries or pay scales should not be compared with those of any other group.

The minister said the proposed teachers’ pay scale should remain distinct whether it is lower or higher, and should not be assessed against other professions. He specifically said it would not be compared with the pay scale of a secretary or an MLS.

Describing teachers as ornaments who build the nation, Ehsanul Haque said they must be viewed separately. He reiterated his view that teachers should have an independent pay scale. The report did not provide details of a decision, timeline or implementation plan for the proposal.

US President Donald Trump is seeking to revive relations with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un amid a complicated US situation over Iran, according to a report published on August 18. Citing his “very good relationship” with Kim, Trump ordered a significant reduction in joint military exercises with South Korea. The move raises new questions over Washington’s long-standing military relationship with Seoul.

On Sunday, Trump said Kim had responded to his outreach, but he gave no details about the message or whether a new meeting between the two leaders could occur. Trump described the joint drills as costly and as a “sign of hostility” toward North Korea. He also expressed dissatisfaction that South Korea had not supported the US initiative to address Iran’s nuclear programme.

During Trump’s first term, he and Kim held several meetings, but they did not reach a lasting agreement to end North Korea’s nuclear programme. North Korea has since strengthened ties with Russia and China while continuing to expand its military capabilities. Analysts said the renewed diplomatic effort signals a potentially important shift in US foreign policy, though they questioned whether it would succeed while unsettling a close ally such as South Korea.