Bangladesh’s High Court has dismissed a writ petition challenging the validity of Article 70 of the Constitution and seeking suspension of the announced presidential election schedule. A bench comprising Justice Khizir Ahmed Chowdhury and Justice A F M Saiful Karim issued the order on Tuesday.

Attorney General Md Ruhul Quddus Kajal represented the state, while Advocate Yunus Ali Akand argued for the petitioner. Akand filed the petition last Thursday. The petition questioned Article 70 and the validity of the election schedule announced on August 6 for the presidential election.

It sought a rule asking why Article 70 should not be declared inconsistent with the Constitution and why the Election Commission’s schedule should not be declared beyond legal authority. Akand said the provision prevents lawmakers from voting independently. The High Court’s dismissal means there is no legal obstacle to the presidential election process under the current schedule.

Indian yoga guru Ramdev said Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan would one day again become part of India, urging Indians to be patient. He made the remarks while speaking to journalists at Swami Vivekananda Airport in Raipur on August 18, 2026. The source describes Ramdev as a controversial yoga guru.

Ramdev alleged that Hindus are being persecuted in Pakistan and Bangladesh. He said the persecution and injustice faced by Hindus in the two countries rank among the harshest incidents in the history of human civilization. He also said that, following religious changes in the country, it should be ensured that no one faces persecution in the future.

Discussing India’s future, Ramdev said freedom of expression in a democracy should remain within constitutional and moral limits. He asserted that no religion—Hindu, Muslim or Christian—is under threat in India, but that India’s honour and dignity are at risk. He said he wanted India to receive equal respect in every country, including the United States, China and Russia.

A Reuters-Ipsos opinion poll found US President Donald Trump’s approval rating has fallen to 33 percent, the lowest level of his current term. The report, published on August 18, 2026, said 64 percent of Americans expressed dissatisfaction with his performance. The online survey was conducted over four days among 1,166 US adults and had a margin of error of 3 percentage points.

The report linked falling support to US involvement in the ongoing war with Iran and higher energy prices. Nearly 80 percent of respondents said they believed the war with Iran could be prolonged, while only about 20 percent said US participation was the right decision. Support for involvement was not complete even among Republican voters, according to the report.

Trump’s approval was 35 percent in an earlier Reuters-Ipsos poll at the beginning of August, meaning it dropped another 2 percentage points in a short period. Pressure on international energy trade and rising US petrol prices have increased concern about living costs. With midterm elections due in November, the report said the decline in support is a concern for Republicans.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the experiences of Iranian fighters are not merely part of war history, but a story of people who endured extreme hardship without surrendering Iran’s dignity. He made the remarks on social media on Monday night, marking the Day of Repatriation of Prisoners of War in Iran.

According to IRIB News Agency, Pezeshkian highlighted the endurance and resolve associated with Iranian fighters. He described their experiences as reflecting the steadfastness of people who faced severe suffering while maintaining the country’s dignity.

Pezeshkian said patience, unity and hope are the key to Iran’s recovery in the face of increasing external pressure and threats. He identified those qualities as central to confronting the pressures and threats cited in his statement.

Jared Kushner, US President Donald Trump’s special envoy and son-in-law, held direct talks with Hamas leaders in Cairo despite Israeli objections, according to a report published on August 18. The meeting was described as an important step toward implementing Trump’s 15-point plan to end the war in Gaza and establish a subsequent political arrangement. Kushner met for more than two hours with a delegation led by Hamas political leader Khalil al-Hayya.

Kushner was joined by Nikolai Mladenov, director-general of Trump’s Board of Peace, and former British prime minister Tony Blair. Although the United States officially designates Hamas as a banned terrorist organization, analysts said Hamas cannot be completely excluded from any lasting settlement over Gaza’s future. The plan calls for a phased halt to military operations, gradual deactivation and storage of Hamas weapons, Israeli troop withdrawal, deployment of an international stabilization force, and a Palestinian technocratic administration.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the plan, saying Israeli forces would not withdraw until Hamas is fully disarmed. Hamas said it was prepared to accept the plan but demanded that Israel first meet ceasefire terms and stop attacks. Saudi Arabia and seven other countries criticized Israel’s rejection in a joint statement. Disputes over the sequence of disarmament, troop withdrawal and ending the war remain unresolved.

Hakainde Hichilema has been elected to a second term as Zambia’s president after receiving 60 percent of the vote, the Electoral Commission announced on Tuesday. The presidential election was held last Thursday in the copper-producing country and was described as largely peaceful. Hichilema, 64, has been in office since 2021 and faced 13 challengers in the contest.

His main rival, former provincial minister Brian Mundubile, received about 38 percent of the vote, according to Electoral Commission chairperson Mwangaala Jaloumis. Results from five of 226 constituencies were still pending, but the commission said they would not significantly alter the overall outcome. Hichilema thanked citizens for their trust and pledged to work for those who had voted for other candidates.

Hundreds of supporters of Hichilema’s United Party for National Development celebrated in Lusaka with singing, dancing and fireworks. Mundubile alleged irregularities in vote counting and document manipulation without providing evidence. Counting was suspended for nearly six hours on Friday after allegations of attacks on polling workers and ballot theft. International observers, including the European Union, warned the suspension could harm confidence in the electoral process and voters’ trust.

US Air Force Major Jason Watson has faced disciplinary action after posting on social media that President Donald Trump should be impeached, according to the report published on August 18, 2026. Watson made the call after US military strikes in Iran and publicly criticized Trump’s Iran policy. He questioned the president’s decision to take military action against Iran and said it warranted impeachment.

The report says US military personnel face strict restrictions on political activity and public political statements. Service members on duty cannot take part in activities that could call the military’s political neutrality into question. The action against Watson has prompted renewed debate over the need to uphold military discipline and political neutrality.

Critics have raised questions about how much freedom a service member has to personally criticize government policy or express opinions. The case emerged amid intensified political debate in the United States over the Trump administration’s military and foreign policy toward Iran. It has also renewed questions about the boundaries of free expression, political neutrality and military discipline within the armed forces.

The US Supreme Court has rejected President Donald Trump’s request for reconsideration in the civil case brought by writer and former magazine columnist E. Jean Carroll over sexual abuse and defamation. The decision appeared on the court’s August order list released Monday. It was the second rejection after the court declined in June to hear Trump’s appeal of the 2023 verdict.

In the 2023 case, a jury found Trump liable for sexually abusing Carroll in 1996 and later defaming her. It ordered him to pay roughly $5 million in damages. Carroll’s lawyer, Roberta Kaplan, said they were pleased that the Supreme Court again declined to hear the case, adding that the jury’s unanimous decision was now final and could not be challenged in any court.

The Supreme Court gave no explanation for denying Trump’s request, one of 33 reconsideration requests rejected that day. After the June denial, Carroll received about $5.8 million in damages and interest. Trump is also appealing to the Supreme Court a separate 2024 jury award of $83.3 million to Carroll in a defamation case.

The Kalima Tayyiba, “La ilaha illallah Muhammadur Rasulullah,” has been engraved in Arabic calligraphy on the wall directly behind the speaker’s seat in the National Parliament. The BNP Facebook page said on Tuesday that the work was completed on March 12, before the start of the parliament’s 13th session, following Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s advice.

The initiative was not limited to the speaker’s seat. At the prime minister’s special instruction, the country’s principle of “faith and trust in Almighty Allah” was also added at the entrances to the National Parliament.

Sources concerned said the measure was taken to preserve the dignity and solemnity of the National Parliament. The report was published on August 18, 2026, and updated later the same day.

Two campus journalists alleged they were harassed while covering clashes between two factions of the student wing at Noakhali Science and Technology University. The incident occurred around 3:30am on Tuesday at Bir Muktijoddha Abdul Malek Ukil Hall and near the pocket gate. The journalists named were Mahiz Siddiqui Siam of Manab Zamin and Mehedi Hasan of Protidiner Sangbad.

The reporters alleged that several student-wing activists pushed and assaulted them, seized their phones and deleted recorded video footage. Siam said he was forced to unlock his phone, after which footage was removed and social-media applications were checked to see whether he had sent any video. Hasan said Faisal Hossain took their phones, told them to stop recording and pushed both reporters away from the scene.

The journalists sought a fair investigation and organisational action against those involved. The NSTU Journalists Association said it would submit a complaint to the university administration. Student-wing general secretary Hasibul Hossain said he was unaware of the matter and would look into it. Proctor A F M Arifur Rahman said action would be taken under university rules if a formal complaint is received.

At least three people were injured after two factions of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, or JCD, clashed over a room-seat exchange at Noakhali Science and Technology University. The violence occurred in phases from late Monday night into the early hours of Tuesday, August 18, at Abdul Malek Ukil Hall and the Pocket Gate area. One injured student was admitted to Noakhali General Hospital.

The injured were branch JCD student welfare affairs secretary Anisur Rahman Sifat, former Anti-Discrimination Student Movement coordinator Jahidul Islam Hasan, and agriculture student Samiul Islam. Witnesses said an argument between senior and junior activists began around 2am over a seat exchange. About an hour later, supporters of the branch president and general secretary allegedly attacked Sifat. Samiul was later attacked near Pocket Gate, suffering a split lip, while Hasan was beaten while trying to stop the incident.

Sifat and senior vice-president Sabbir Hasan alleged the attack was planned, while general secretary Hasibul Hossain said he was not aware of the matter and would look into it. Proctor A F M Arifur Rahman said the hall provost body and university administration had been informed, Ansar members were alerted, and a proctorial body meeting would be called. Action would follow university rules if a formal complaint is submitted.

Rob Arlett, Delaware chairman for Donald Trump’s 2016 election campaign, said the main challenge in US-Israel coordination over Gaza is accountability for Israeli military actions and transparency in intelligence information. In comments published on August 18, he raised the question of whether Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu genuinely wants peace.

Arlett said Netanyahu and the Israeli military are willing to launch strikes at any time based on their own intelligence. He said this has become a problem for President Trump, who believes unilateral Israeli military operations could obstruct broader peace efforts in Gaza. According to Arlett, Trump wants Israeli forces to pull back somewhat so Hamas has an opportunity to carry out commitments it has made.

Arlett said Hamas would be held accountable if it breaks those commitments, while the United States would maintain its commitment to Israel’s security and military assistance. He claimed Trump may be more credible than Netanyahu among Israel’s neighboring countries and said Trump’s Board of Peace is seeking an agreement. However, he said the central question remains whether Trump and Netanyahu can agree on a path toward their ultimate goal of peace in Gaza.

At least 79 people were killed and 1,695 injured in political violence in Bangladesh during the first six months of the year, rights group Odhikar said in a report published on August 18. The group attributed most incidents to struggles for dominance, political retaliation, disputes over committee formation, extortion and the takeover of various establishments.

Odhikar presented its assessment of human rights conditions, political violence and institutional reform on Monday evening. It said 52 people were killed in mob lynching during the period. Electoral violence killed 13 people and injured another 1,081, according to the report. The organization said the situation had not improved after the elected government came to power.

The report said eight Bangladeshis were killed and five injured by Border Security Force gunfire in incidents along the India-Bangladesh border, while at least 27 people were pushed into Bangladesh. Seven people were victims of extrajudicial killings and 37 died in custody. It recorded 106 journalists facing attacks, cases, kidnapping threats or harassment, including 21 who were abducted. The report also said 367 women and children, including 223 children, were raped.

A Jubo Dal union president has been accused of collecting money from residents for electricity pole installation in Islamapur and South Charpara villages of Mithaganj ইউনিয়ন, Kalapara upazila, Patuakhali. The report, published on August 18, said more than 50 customers alleged that they each paid Tk2,000 to Riaz Sikdar, the Mithaganj Union Jubo Dal president. More than 100 families in the two villages reportedly remain without electricity access.

Residents said pole installation began through a contractor under instructions from Patuakhali-4 lawmaker ABM Mosharraf Hossain. Complainants alleged that money was sought for transporting and installing poles, while another Tk2,000 was requested within a week for meter connections. Several residents said they raised the money by pawning nose ornaments, using farm advances, or cutting household expenses.

Sikdar denied collecting money from customers, though he acknowledged taking some funds for workers' meals. Subcontractor Sumon said money taken through Sikdar had been coordinated with the customers. Kalapara Palli Bidyut Samity DGM Sheikh Abdur Rahman said customers should not be charged for work being carried out under government arrangements and that legal action would follow if allegations of collection were received.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel will not withdraw its forces from Gaza until Hamas fully disarms, and that military operations there will continue. He restated the position during a three-hour meeting in Israel on August 18 with Jared Kushner, US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and special envoy. An Israeli official said the meeting produced no agreement.

A day earlier, Kushner met Hamas political chief Khalil al-Hayya in Egypt. Hamas demanded that Israel withdraw from roughly 60 percent of Gaza under Israeli control before implementation of any agreement. Hamas said it accepts the US-backed 15-point roadmap, including disarmament, but said implementation requires all parties to agree to it.

Netanyahu’s office said the sides agreed to create two working groups on demilitarising Gaza and ending its militarisation. Netanyahu also requested the appointment of a US general to oversee Hamas weapons handovers. Officials from Egypt, Qatar and Turkey attended the talks. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and several other countries condemned Israel’s rejection of the roadmap and called for immediate, specific steps to prevent obstruction of the agreement.