Housing and Public Works Minister Zakaria Taher said Bangladesh will no longer allow construction of buildings or housing projects that violate laws or depart from approved designs. He made the remarks on Sunday at the Secretariat during an exchange meeting with members of the Real Estate and Housing Association of Bangladesh (REHAB) and the Bangladesh Land Developer Association. The report was published on August 23, 2026.

Taher said laws, rules and policies governing building construction had not been properly implemented over the past 17 years. He said approved building plans include sewage treatment plants and soak wells, but many developer companies had not built them. He called on members of both industry bodies to ensure that no buildings or housing projects are developed in breach of the law.

RAJUK is bringing its full land-use clearance and design-approval process under digitalisation, Taher said. He added that rules of the National Housing Authority would be amended to bring developer companies outside the capital under specific policies. State Minister Ahmmad Sohel Manzur urged developers to consider customers’ hardships, including delayed handovers and delayed refunds. Industry leaders voiced support for legal compliance and presented views on DAP and Dhaka building rules.

State Minister for Religious Affairs Mohammad Shamim Qaiser said his ministry would make the highest effort to ensure people of all religions and viewpoints can speak from their respective positions. He made the remarks during an exchange with journalists at the Religious Affairs Ministry’s conference room in the Secretariat on Sunday.

Qaiser described Bangladesh as a country of religious people and communal harmony, saying harmony would grow if followers of every faith followed and embraced their religious scriptures. He said the ministry works on coexistence among prominent Islamic scholars of different views and on religious values, while also engaging leaders and gurus of other faiths.

Responding to questions about a statement by an organisation over his appointment, Qaiser said no appointment is expected to be liked by everyone and that greater communication can resolve misunderstandings. He said he visited Jamia Madania Baridhara the previous day and spoke with senior scholars from Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam and Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh. He said they raised questions, which he believed he had addressed, and that they welcomed him.

Olympic gold medal-winning former Chinese table tennis player Ding Ning played an exhibition match against the advanced Chinese-made “AgiBot Expedition A3” robot in Beijing, China’s capital, on Saturday. The robot exchanged rapid shots with Ding Ning during the demonstration, drawing attention to its table tennis capabilities.

The robot was shown quickly responding after recognizing the speed and direction of its opponent’s shots. The contest offered spectators a view of a robot competing with a world-class player and renewed discussion around advances in artificial intelligence and robotics technology.

China’s artificial intelligence and robotics development has been advancing rapidly, according to the report. Beyond industry and research, the use of these technologies is increasing in sports. The match involving Ding Ning and the robot is being viewed as a demonstration of that technological progress.

Russia has withdrawn its ambassador to the United Kingdom, Andrei Kelin, as tensions between Moscow and London deepen over British military support for Ukraine. Kelin left Britain last month after seven years in the post, and Moscow has not nominated a successor. His name has also been removed from the Russian embassy’s diplomatic list, which now identifies Vasily A. Siganov as chargé d’affaires.

The Russian embassy said Kelin had sought to keep communication channels with Britain open, but claimed the British government had chosen a path of confrontation with Russia. It said he hoped constructive, mutually respectful dialogue could be restored if Britain reconsidered its policy toward Russia. Moscow’s rhetoric hardened after indications that Ukrainian forces used two drones made by British companies for attacks inside Russia.

Britain’s Foreign Office described the ambassador’s withdrawal as an internal Russian decision. It said Britain still has an ambassador and embassy in Russia and continues to raise concerns with the Russian government. London also said it would stand firmly with Ukraine and supported its right to self-defence against what it called Russia’s illegal and unprovoked aggression. Analysts said the vacancy could further lower diplomatic ties.

Two children were rescued from a locked fifth-floor apartment in a six-storey building in Jamalpur city’s Shekher Vita rail crossing area on Sunday morning after passers-by heard them crying for water. The children, aged 10 and five, were found alive in a room whose door was bolted from outside. In another room, residents found the body of their mother, Israt Jahan, and police later recovered it.

Residents said the apartment’s main door had been locked from outside. They informed the building owner, who joined them in breaking the lock and entering the flat. Police said the children are the offspring of Israt Jahan and her former husband, Kawsar Ahammed Shawon, who had died. Following the incident, police collected evidence from the apartment and placed the children in safe custody.

Police said Israt Jahan had been living in the rented apartment with a man she had reportedly married secretly after her former husband’s death. The owner could not provide his identity, address or details of how long he had lived there. Her current husband was not found after the incident. Police sent the body to Jamalpur General Hospital morgue and said they are investigating the cause of death and the man’s possible involvement.

Dhaka University Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr A B M Obaidul Islam said no one has been able, or will be able, to endure after unjustly wielding power over the university. He made the remarks on Sunday at a discussion marking “Black Day,” commemorating the repression, arrests and alleged torture of teachers and students in August 2007. Teachers, students, officers and employees wore black badges, followed by a memorial and discussion programme at the TSC auditorium.

The vice-chancellor said the university has never compromised with injustice and that suppressing it cannot stop democratic movements. Recalling the events after 20 August 2007, he said teachers and officials involved in the movement faced pressure, harassment and torture, while some teachers were jailed. He called on the university community to speak out against any future injustice, repression or persecution.

Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr Mohammad Almojaddedi Alfechani said the violence from 20 to 23 August 2007 aimed to suppress the university and weaken democratic movements. Former dean Professor Dr Sadrul Amin said the crisis created unprecedented unity, proposing that 23 August also be observed as a day of harmony and solidarity.

Argentina’s former first lady Eva Peron died of cervical cancer on July 26, 1952, aged 33. Her embalmed body was kept after her death and became central to a 16-year journey following the 1955 military coup that removed her husband, President Juan Peron. The new authorities removed her body from a planned memorial in central Buenos Aires, fearing it could become a symbol of Peronist resistance.

Spanish anatomist Pedro Ara preserved the body using paraffin and glycerine injections. More than two million people viewed Eva Peron’s coffin over 14 days at the Congress building, reflecting her continued public support. The body was reportedly moved between locations in Buenos Aires, including military intelligence facilities, before being buried under an assumed name in Milan, Italy, in 1957.

In 1971, a new Argentine government agreed to return the body to Juan Peron in exile in Madrid. After Juan Peron died in 1974, it was returned to Buenos Aires and restored. In October 1976, Eva Peron was placed in a highly secure crypt, five metres underground, with concealed doors intended to prevent another theft.

CARBODIT, an innovation team of students from Gazipur Agricultural University, has become Bangladesh’s regional champion in the CIRDAP–REEDS International Rural Development Innovation Challenge 2026. The team was also selected among the top five innovations in the Asia-Pacific region for its proposal to turn trees owned by rural households into measurable climate-economy assets.

The team is led by co-founder and chief executive Saifullah Manwar. Other members are co-founder and chief operating officer Fabian Taskin, chief financial officer Aditi Ghosh and developer Arfa Sayara Riza. The competition received 187 innovation proposals from 13 countries, with selections made through an evaluation by an international judging committee. The award was presented on July 6 during CIRDAP’s 47th anniversary event.

CARBODIT has been formally invited to present its model at the Asia Pacific Conference on Innovations in Rural Development in Colombo, Sri Lanka, from October 6 to 10, 2026. Its proposed digital system would measure trees’ carbon-storage capacity, connect them to carbon markets and climate finance, and involve local youth in data collection and digital management.

A driver for Dhaka’s Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal-7 has accused Judge Sohel Rana of assaulting him inside the judge’s chamber on Sunday. Ali Hossain Bacchu said he was called at about 9:30am with the vehicle logbook and was questioned over an entry showing 7am. He alleged that, after explaining the timing was needed to clean the car before the judge entered at 8am, the judge punched him near the eye and slapped him near the ear.

Bacchu said the judge’s peon pulled him away, while a kick was attempted but did not strike him. He alleged he was abused and later had watery, swollen eyes. He also made allegations concerning the use of the vehicle and fuel allocation, saying these issues had caused tensions, and said he wanted justice and might pursue legal action.

Driver Abdur Rahim of Tribunal-4 said Bacchu came to them while unwell and was sent to National Medical College Hospital, where he received primary treatment and had one eye bandaged. Judge Rana denied punching him, saying he had questioned the driver about professional duties including vehicle cleaning and logbook updates, then pushed him out of the room after the driver looked at him angrily.

The selection process for the United Nations’ 10th secretary-general is under way, with eight candidates from different countries and regions seeking to succeed António Guterres. The new secretary-general will begin a five-year term on January 1, 2027. Sources connected to the process said Guyana’s Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett was narrowly ahead in a second informal opinion poll held on Friday.

The contenders include diplomats, former heads of government, economists and current or former UN officials. They are Rafael Grossi of Argentina, Rebeca Grynspan of Costa Rica, Michelle Bachelet of Chile, Macky Sall of Senegal, María Fernanda Espinosa of Ecuador, Rodrigues-Birkett, Uganda’s Olara Otunnu and Ecuadorian diplomat Ivonne Baki, nominated by Tonga.

Candidates have stressed issues including multilateral reform, debt burdens of developing countries, Security Council reform, conflict prevention, climate action and restoring the UN’s moral authority. Grossi is considered strong by many diplomats because of his long-standing ties with the five permanent Security Council members, though Russia objects to his candidacy. The Security Council must recommend a candidate, with support needed from its five permanent members, before General Assembly approval is required.

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami has condemned what it described as a “deep conspiracy” to hand Malaysia’s labour market to a syndicate and fascist elements. In a media statement issued on Sunday, Secretary General Mia Golam Porwar alleged that a section of the government was undermining national interests and harming Bangladeshi remittance earners by limiting overseas worker recruitment arrangements.

Porwar said sources indicated that the governments of Bangladesh and Malaysia had selected only 25 recruiting agencies to send workers, creating a syndicate-based system. He warned that similar restrictions in the past had led to excessive charges for workers and losses for thousands of people. He said workers may now face costs of Tk 600,000 to Tk 700,000 to travel to Malaysia, placing a heavy burden on workers and their families.

The Jamaat leader said Bangladesh has more than 2,000 legal recruiting agencies and called for open, transparent and equal access for BAIRA members and experienced agencies. He urged the government to prevent fraud, exploitation and excessive costs, ensure worker safety and take diplomatic measures to protect citizens’ interests in overseas labour markets.

Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s traffic division filed 1,493 cases against traffic law violators during a daylong operation across different parts of the capital on Saturday. The operation also resulted in 499 vehicles being dumped and 335 vehicles being towed, according to the DMP traffic division.

The cases were filed separately across the city’s eight traffic divisions. Mirpur recorded the highest number, with 300 cases, followed by Motijheel with 278, Uttara with 256 and Lalbagh with 227. Other divisions recorded 141 cases in Wari, 102 in Tejgaon, 99 in Gulshan and 90 in Ramna.

The enforcement action covered buses, trucks, covered vans, CNG-run vehicles and motorcycles. In Mirpur, the 300 cases included 11 buses, 22 trucks, 35 covered vans, 35 CNG vehicles and 137 motorcycles. DMP said it regularly conducts such operations to maintain traffic discipline, control congestion and ensure compliance with road laws in the capital.

Bangladesh recorded five dengue deaths and 839 new hospital admissions in the 24 hours from Saturday 8am to Sunday 8am, according to a dengue press release issued by the Directorate General of Health Services’ Health Emergency Operation Center and Control Room on Sunday. In the first 23 days of August, 28 people died and 13,619 people were infected.

Khulna reported the highest number of new admissions, with 159 cases, followed by Dhaka division outside the city corporations with 135 and Barishal with 117. Chattogram recorded 100 admissions, Dhaka South City 91, Mymensingh 79, Rajshahi 71, Dhaka North City 61, Rangpur 23 and Sylhet three. During the same period, 796 patients were discharged from hospitals.

Since January, total dengue infections this year have reached 28,929, while total deaths stand at 82. Reported monthly deaths included two each in January and February, one in May, 13 in June and 36 in July. Of all dengue patients recorded so far, 61.9 percent are male and 38.1 percent are female.

A garment worker, Arun Das, 59, died after being struck by a bus in the Baluchhara area under Chattogram city’s Bayezid Bostami police station. The accident occurred on Sunday morning in front of Visual Garments, according to the report published on August 23, 2026. Das was a resident of Jalalabad in Baluchhara and the son of Satish Das.

SI Nurul Alam Ashik, in charge of the police box at Chattogram Medical College Hospital, said Das was crossing the road when a bus operating on Route No. 3 hit him from the front. He sustained serious injuries in the collision.

He was rescued and taken to Chattogram Medical College Hospital at about 8:30 a.m. The attending doctor declared him dead after he was brought to the hospital. The source did not provide further details about the bus, its driver, or any subsequent action by authorities.

Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime unit arrested four people in the Jatrabari area of the capital while they were allegedly preparing to commit mugging. The operation was conducted at about 8:15am on Sunday at the Jatrabari police station roundabout, according to CTTC sources.

The detainees were identified as Mohammad Ali, 20; Nurnabi Akash Majhi, 23; Jamal, 25; and Sohan, 26. CTTC said an operational team from its City-Intelligence Analysis Division received confidential information that several alleged criminals were preparing for mugging near the Jatrabari roundabout.

Following the information, the team conducted an operation at the location and detained the four during the alleged preparations, the CTTC said. Legal action has been taken against them, and they were later sent to the court, according to the unit.