Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has called on opposition parties to submit an effective plan to resolve Bangladesh’s gas and electricity shortages within the next six months. He said the government would accept such a proposal if it proved workable. Rahman made the remarks on Saturday at the T&T Colony field in Banani, in the capital.

He was speaking as chief guest at an event providing financial assistance to poor and vulnerable people to mark the 82nd birth anniversary of late former prime minister and BNP chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia. Rahman said the government was working to address power and gas problems and would positively consider implementing any effective opposition proposal.

Criticising the Awami League government, Rahman said the previous “fascist” government had left the country’s health system weakened. He said this had forced people to seek medical care in a particular country. Addressing Jamaat, he noted that the national parliament session would begin on August 27 and urged opposition parties to present any sound plans there. He said the government would implement good proposals submitted in parliament.

Faham has called for an end to abuses against Awami League leaders, activists and supporters, citing an alleged assault on a person who went to lay flowers at Dhanmondi 32. In a Facebook post on Saturday, August 15, 2026, he said oppression was unacceptable and that the Awami League could be defeated by establishing justice.

He said he saw several people slapping the individual, while adding that he did not know how authentic the incident was. Faham nevertheless said the people involved were likely from “our side” and urged them to stop such actions. He said it had been two years and that beating an Awami League member whenever something happened should not continue.

Faham argued that nobody can be defeated through beatings and that oppression erodes moral standing. He said there was no need for blind affection toward the Awami League, but described attacking ordinary people as a very bad act. According to him, oppression would make the Awami League more resistant and make those carrying out such attacks look ridiculous.

Iran has not made a decision to resume talks with the United States, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a statement on the latest status of the Islamabad ceasefire memorandum. He said the memorandum declared an “end to the war,” rather than a ceasefire that required extension. The statement was published on August 15.

Araghchi said the memorandum provided 60 days for talks toward a final agreement. He accused the United States of violating that opportunity and restarting the conflict. Qatar and Pakistan are only exchanging messages and maintaining contact as mediators, he said, stressing that such communication does not amount to negotiations with Washington.

The foreign minister said Iran’s discussions with Oman are separate and concern detailed strategic matters, including maritime boundaries and shipping routes in the Strait of Hormuz. Previous routes are no longer effective, and Iran is designing a temporary route that would later become a final route. Araghchi added that strategic talks with Oman and reopening the strait are different matters; even after a route is set, reopening would depend on other conditions that the United States must meet.

Hasnat Abdullah, the National Citizen Party’s southern region chief organiser and member of parliament for Cumilla-4, said the party accepts the prime minister’s six-month challenge to opposition parties to offer a plan for resolving the power problem. In a Facebook post on Saturday night, August 15, he said the NCP had already put forward solutions and called on the government to act on them.

He said NCP convener, lawmaker and opposition chief whip Nahid Islam had proposed 15 specific measures: five for the first 30 days, six for the medium term of six to 18 months, and four for the long term. Abdullah also cited opposition statements on subsidy policy, fuel planning, contingency planning and disaster-recovery planning, as well as opinions from civil society and research institutions.

Abdullah urged the government to respond to the opposition’s request for a special parliamentary session on the power crisis. He questioned why the interim government-approved Merchant Power Policy 2025 had not been implemented. According to his post, the framework would allow private producers to sell electricity directly to large industrial consumers, with prices set by the two sides and surplus power sent to the grid. He said finalising an SLA format and wheeling charges remained administrative work.

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Secretary General Mia Golam Porwar said the party must overcome both external and internal challenges in running the organisation and addressing the country’s crisis. Speaking as chief guest at a three-day training camp for the Rangpur-Dinajpur region in Saidpur, Nilphamari, published on August 15, he urged party officials to play constructive and effective roles.

Porwar called for strengthening ties with Allah, building knowledge and wisdom, and increasing leadership acceptability through adherence to ideals and conduct. He also urged caution and responsibility in using social media. The camp was chaired by Jamaat Assistant Secretary General and Rangpur-Dinajpur regional director Maulana Abdul Halim.

Referring to the 11-party alliance’s programme, Porwar said the alliance had called for a road march and a grand rally in Dhaka in November, protesting what he described as the government’s reluctance to implement a referendum verdict of 70 percent of people. He urged coordination with local alliance partners, prioritising public welfare, tolerance in handling differences, and opposition to corruption and abuse of power.

Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed said the BNP keeps its promises and implements its election manifesto, claiming the party delivers beyond its 31-point programme. He made the remarks on Saturday at an event to distribute retirement and welfare benefits to private teachers and employees at the Osmani Memorial Hall in the capital.

Ahmed said payments to retired teachers in this form were not included in the manifesto, describing them as a 32nd commitment. He called the provision of school uniforms a 33rd commitment. He also referred to initiatives attributed to Ziaur Rahman to improve education, promote productive learning and turn students' hands toward work, including technical education.

The minister said Khaleda Zia had introduced retirement allowances for teachers. In addition to the Teachers' Welfare Trust, each person will receive retirement benefits of five to seven lakh taka, he said, describing the amount as significant for poor schoolteachers living in villages. He added that the money would be deposited into recipients' bank accounts through a digitalised system while they remain at home, without any need to pay bribes.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey is moving toward resolving its longstanding terrorism problem through national unity, parliamentary support and the sacrifices of security forces. Speaking Friday in Ankara at the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AK Party’s, 25th anniversary event, he reaffirmed a commitment to building a “terrorism-free Turkey.”

Erdogan said terrorism has caused extensive damage to Turkey’s lives, resources, morale and potential for more than four decades. He said the government aims to fully resolve the issue on the basis of national consensus and build a terrorism-free Turkey and region for future generations.

He also said efforts would target what he described as “imperialist plans” to destabilize Turkey from within, alongside counterterrorism measures. At the anniversary event, the AK Party unveiled a new vision document for the next 25 years. Erdogan said Turkey would not only keep pace with global change but also help shape its direction and contribute to building a more just world.

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman apologised for the hardship caused by power and gas shortages across Bangladesh, saying the government was working quickly to resolve the crisis. Speaking on Saturday at a prayer and cheque-distribution event in Mohakhali’s T&T field in the capital, he said gas problems were expected to ease substantially within the next few days. The programme marked the 82nd birth anniversary of late BNP chairperson and former prime minister Begum Khaleda Zia.

Rahman said people in rural areas, towns and upazila and district centres had faced recent electricity and gas disruptions. He said the previous government had left nearly Tk 3 lakh crore in liabilities in the power sector. He also alleged that no gas well had been drilled, or allowed to be drilled, over the past 17 years, while the sector had been handed to foreign interests.

The prime minister said the government had decided to rapidly drill gas wells domestically through state-owned Bapex. He said an accident involving one of two gas-import vessels had caused the current problem, while technical faults had already been repaired. Rahman also announced that a 10-year energy plan would be presented in the parliamentary session due to begin on August 27.

Bangladesh Nationalist Party, or BNP, has appointed four new members to its national standing committee to increase the party’s organisational dynamism. The decision was announced on Saturday in a press release signed by BNP Joint Office Secretary Muhammad Munir Hossain.

The newly appointed members are Advocate Ruhul Kabir Rizvi Ahmed, Md Aman Ullah Aman, Farhad Halim and Md Ismail Jabiullah. The press release described the national standing committee as the party’s highest policymaking forum.

BNP said it expects the appointed leaders to use their talent and prudence to provide well-considered advice. According to the party, they will contribute to important decision-making on behalf of the party and the people within the top policymaking body.

Dhaka University professor and former interim government adviser Asif Nazrul said Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s contribution to Bangladesh’s independence and autonomy movements was undeniable, and that without his birth the country would not have become independent in 1971. He made the remarks in a Facebook post on Saturday, August 15, marking Bangabandhu’s death anniversary.

Nazrul wrote that Bangabandhu had a clear commitment to democracy, economic liberation and political dissent over a long period. He said this was reflected in records of Constituent Assembly debates up to November 4, 1972. At the same time, he said Bangabandhu was not skilled at governing and that administering post-1971 Bangladesh was extremely difficult for several reasons.

He said those circumstances did not justify what he described as Bangabandhu’s increasingly oppressive and authoritarian rule from 1972 onward. Nazrul cited famine, indiscriminate killings and the establishment of one-party rule during that period. He also criticized Sheikh Hasina’s rule as identity-based fascism, saying her use of her father made Bangabandhu an opponent of the July uprising. Nazrul ended his post by expressing love for Bangabandhu and praying for him.

Nurul Haque Nur, president of Gono Odhikar Parishad and state minister for expatriates’ welfare and overseas employment, warned Jamaat-Shibir after alleging an attack on his party’s peaceful protest rally in Kushtia. In a Facebook post on Saturday night, August 15, he said the “throat-slitting” Jamaat-Shibir had returned to its true form and accused Jamaat workers of carrying out repeated attacks with machetes, hockey sticks, knives and cleavers.

Nur said more than 50 leaders and activists were seriously injured, including Abdul Khalek, general secretary of Kushtia district Gono Odhikar Parishad, and Sohan Ahmed, president of the Kushtia Government College unit of Chhatra Odhikar Parishad. He condemned and protested what he described as a terrorist attack by Jamaat-Shibir.

In his post, Nur said Jamaat-Shibir had remained underground for the past decade and a half and warned that further excesses would result in arrangements to keep them underground for life. Party spokesperson Abu Hanif also alleged that activists of lawmaker Amir Hamza attacked several Gono Odhikar Parishad leaders and activists in Kushtia. No immediate response was available from Jamaat or Amir Hamza's side.

Former civil servants, researchers, teachers and civil society representatives called for a professional and politically neutral bureaucracy, saying it is essential for fair elections, democracy, good governance and sustainable development. The call came at a roundtable titled “State Building and Bureaucracy: Southeast Asian Experiences and Bangladesh’s Reality,” organized by the Center for Policy Analysis and Advocacy at the National Press Club on August 15.

The session was chaired by the organization’s president and former secretary Dr Mohammad Shariful Alam. Rajshahi University public administration professor Dr Shafiul Islam presented a paper written by governance researcher and civil service specialist Dr Yusuf Zarif. Drawing on examples from Japan, China, South Korea and Singapore, the paper said merit is vital to building an effective bureaucracy.

The paper proposed establishing a Civil Service Ombudsman, requiring parliamentary committee approval for appointments of secretaries and agency heads, and publishing clear posting and promotion rules. It also proposed ending reliance on police verification and intelligence reports in recruitment, posting and promotion decisions, informing officers denied promotion of the reasons, and adopting mandatory ethics and accountability rules. Speakers also expressed concern over appointments of political leaders to government corporations.

Three workers of Chhatra Dal have been expelled in Lalpur, Natore, over allegations of involvement in the harassment of journalists. Lalpur উপজেলা Chhatra Dal convener Raihan Kabir Sweet and joint convener Abu Raihan confirmed the decision in a press release issued on Saturday afternoon. The expelled workers are Jahid Hossain, Shafiqul Islam Shafik and Mamun Ali.

According to local sources, the allegations stem from an incident on August 12 during a Chhatra Dal protest procession at the Lalpur উপজেলা Parishad premises. NTV online representative Sajibul Hridoy and Lalpur representative of the daily Manab Zamin, Rashidul Islam, were allegedly harassed during the procession. The press release said organizational action was taken after the allegations against the three workers were proven.

The release said Chhatra Dal would not tolerate any activity contrary to party discipline, image and organizational interests. It also directed all leaders and activists to refrain from such conduct in the future. Raihan Kabir Sweet and Abu Raihan said the three were expelled for violating party discipline.

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman said private teachers and employees will no longer need to visit multiple offices to obtain retirement funds. He made the remarks on Saturday at a programme distributing retirement and welfare benefits to private teachers and employees at Osmani Memorial Hall in the capital. He said there would be no harassment in obtaining the money and no need to approach intermediaries.

Rahman said a video showed the real conditions faced by teachers, including that they previously had to pay bribes to receive allowance money. He said funds are now being transferred to teachers' accounts more easily than before. He also described teachers' role as widely accepted and said that, despite retirement under existing rules, they remain teachers.

The prime minister alleged that the previous fascist Awami League government had looted resources and left two retirement boards crippled. He said the teachers' retirement allowance fund does not have sufficient money, but payments are being made through special arrangements. The event concerned the payment of retirement and welfare benefits for private teachers and employees.

Rajshahi University Central Students’ Union general secretary Salahuddin Ammar led a July feast involving the slaughter of a cow named “Bakshal.” The meal was held at 2pm on Saturday at the university’s central mosque premises, according to the report. About more than 600 students attended the feast.

In a video posted on his personal Facebook page on Friday night, Ammar said the cow had been named Bakshal and would be sacrificed as part of the celebration, which he described as a July feast or July hospitality. He also invited students to attend. In a separate midnight post, he wrote that Bakshal had been laid down on the night of August 15.

Applications were collected through a Google Form, with a registration fee of Tk15. Organizers said about 750 students were taking part, with beef meals for roughly 650 and alternative food for the remaining 100. The event was initially promoted as a RAKSU initiative, prompting criticism online. Ammar later said RAKSU was not involved because all its members had not agreed, and said the cow’s name referred to the historical day of Bakshal’s fall and two years since the July mass uprising.