The passports of 22 former district commissioners (DCs), who were closely associated with Hasina’s regime and served in controversial elections, have been revoked. Sources confirm that following Hasina’s downfall, a nationwide administrative cleanup is underway, resulting in forced retirements and reassignments of such loyalists. As part of this effort, their passports were officially canceled through a directive issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs to the Passport Department on February 25. Reports suggest that these officials were involved in electoral fraud due to their political allegiance.

Police have arrested five armed robbers while they were preparing for a heist in Ashulia, Savar. At a press conference, Additional Superintendent of Police Shahinur Kabir confirmed the arrests. He reported that a group of armed criminals was planning a robbery early in the morning at Baishmail area on the Dhaka-Aricha Highway. In a joint operation, the Dhaka District North Detective Branch (DB) and Ashulia Police Station arrested five individuals, while three managed to escape. The arrested robbers have been identified as Khair Hossain, Kabir Hossain, Imran Ali, Sumon Mia, and Saiful Islam.

A mobile court in Mymensingh has sentenced a warehouse manager to 15 days in jail for illegally hoarding 53 metric tons of edible oil. He was also fined Tk 80,000, with an additional Tk 10,000 penalty in case of non-payment. Executive Magistrate KM Rafsan Rabbi stated that the raid was conducted based on secret information about large-scale hoarding ahead of Ramadan. The owner of the warehouse was not found, so the manager was held responsible. Authorities have ordered that the seized oil be sold at fair market prices.

A total of 29 Bangladeshi fishermen, who were detained by the Arakan Army after mistakenly crossing maritime borders while fishing in the Naf River and the sea on February 11 and 20, have been brought back to the country. Teknaf Upazila Executive Officer Sheikh Ehsan Uddin confirmed that the return was facilitated by the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB). The Arakan Army had seized six engine-run fishing boats along with the fishermen. Hnila Union Parishad Chairman Md. Ali, along with the victims’ families, expressed gratitude to the BGB and others involved in securing their return. Concerned authorities are urged to strengthen patrols in the Naf River and nearby waters to ensure fishermen’s safety in the future.

Professor Dr. Muhammad Yunus, the Chief Adviser, has been invited to the launch event of the new political party, the National Citizens’ Party (NCP), which is being formed by young leaders of the recent mass uprising. On Thursday afternoon, a delegation led by coordinator Abdul Hannan Masud delivered the invitation letter to the Chief Adviser’s office. In a Facebook post, Masud wrote, “I handed over the invitation for the post-2024 new political party’s launch event and took his blessings.” Reports indicate that Nahid Islam has been appointed as the party’s convenor, while Akhtar Hossain will serve as the member secretary.

During a meeting with United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi on Thursday, Home Affairs Adviser Jahangir Alam Chowdhury urged the international community to apply pressure on Myanmar to facilitate the repatriation of Rohingya refugees. He highlighted that Bangladesh has provided shelter to 1.3 million Rohingya refugees on humanitarian grounds, but this has led to social and economic challenges, as well as rising criminal activities among the refugee population, posing risks to both national and regional security. In response, Grandi acknowledged the hardships faced by Rohingya refugees but noted that repatriation remains difficult due to the ongoing conflict in Myanmar’s Rakhine state. However, he assured that efforts will continue to find a resolution.

On Thursday afternoon, Tangail Superintendent of Police Mizanur Rahman announced the arrest of four suspects involved in an armed robbery on four buses carrying picnic-goers in the Fulmali Chala area of Ghatail. The arrests were made on Wednesday during a day-long operation. The suspects, identified as Md. Ainal Haque (37), Md. Fazlu (41), another individual named Ainal Haque (37), and Nasir (35), allegedly robbed the buses on Tuesday night. The buses were carrying around 240 school students, teachers, and staff heading to a picnic spot in Natore. The robbers looted cash amounting to 1.5 lakh taka, 1.5 tolas of gold, ten smartphones, and other valuables.

The Johor Immigration Department reported on Thursday that, as part of a year-long enforcement operation from January 1 to December 31, 2024, authorities conducted 3,040 raids, screening 25,923 individuals. A total of 13,095 undocumented immigrants were arrested, while 5,719 were deported via air, land, and sea routes. Additionally, legal action has been initiated against 3,206 undocumented immigrants at the Pontian Sessions Court, and those who have served prison sentences are being transferred to the Pekan Nanas Immigration Depot.

A day after assuming office, newly appointed Information and Broadcasting Adviser Mahfuz Alam held a meeting with ministry officials at the Secretariat on Thursday. He urged officials to implement structured plans to improve work efficiency and ensure timely completion of ongoing projects. Alam emphasized that effective collaboration is essential for the smooth operation of the ministry. He replaced Nahid Islam, who recently resigned from the position.

On Thursday morning, immigration police at Dhaka’s Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport arrested an Awami League leader from Habiganj while he was attempting to flee to Saudi Arabia. The arrested individual, Md. Amzad Ali (70), is the Senior Vice President of the Sadar Upazila Awami League. According to the police, an investigation revealed that Ali was involved in an attack on students and protesters during an anti-discrimination movement in Habiganj on August 2 last year.

Bangladeshi competitors from the Martial Arts Foundation won 15 gold, 3 silver, and 5 bronze medals at the 12th ISKDJ International Karate Cup 2025, held in Sri Lanka on February 22-23. The team secured third place overall in a competition featuring around 2,000 athletes from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Palestine, and Sri Lanka. Under the leadership of coach Sajjad Hossain, ten Bangladeshi athletes participated in the event.

During a discussion on Thursday, Adviser Asif Mahmud stated that no final decision has been made regarding holding local government elections before the national polls. He assured that a decision would be announced soon, as discussions on the matter are ongoing. Mahmud also noted that the government has taken various steps to improve law and order, with increased security patrols. He clarified that he is not affiliated with any political party and intends to work within the government to implement structural reforms.

A fire broke out at the local market beneath Shewrapara Metro Station, sparking concerns of rapid spread. Firefighters are actively working to control the flames and have successfully prevented further escalation. However, a large crowd of onlookers is obstructing the firefighting efforts, making the situation more challenging. Police are trying to disperse the crowd to ensure smooth operations. The cause of the fire remains unknown, and authorities are closely monitoring the situation. Further updates are expected as firefighting efforts continue.

The joint forces arrested 743 individuals in the past 24 hours under ‘Operation Devil Hunt’, bringing the total number of arrests since the operation began on February 8 to 11,313. Additionally, 914 fugitives with existing arrest warrants were apprehended.

Law enforcement recovered one firearm and two knives during the operation. In a separate crackdown, 27 professional drug traffickers and criminals were arrested in Dhaka’s Mohammadpur area.

At a conference for upazila and thana-level leaders of Jamaat-e-Islami’s Rangpur-Dinajpur region, held at Model College Auditorium in Rangpur on Thursday, Jamaat’s central Assistant Secretary General, Maulana Rafiqul Islam Khan, accused the Awami League of inflating voter rolls with two crore fake voters over the past 16 years. He stressed the need to cancel these fraudulent voter lists and conduct local government elections as soon as possible based on a transparent and accurate voter registration process.