Bangladesh signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, or CEPA, with South Korea at the Ministry of Commerce on Tuesday. Under the agreement, 97 percent of Bangladeshi products will receive preferential tariff treatment in the South Korean market, while 87 percent of South Korean products exported to Bangladesh will receive the same benefit. Commerce Minister Khandaker Abdul Muktadir announced the details at a news briefing after the CEPA Negotiation Conclusion Ceremony.

Muktadir said this was Bangladesh’s first CEPA agreement within five months of the current government taking office. He said the deal would create new opportunities for duty-free access and other benefits for Bangladeshi exports including ready-made garments, leather and leather goods, jute and jute products. Bangladesh would also benefit when importing agricultural products, plastics and spare parts from South Korea, he said.

According to the Ministry of Commerce, bilateral trade currently totals about $1.39 billion, with Bangladesh running a deficit of about $411 million. South Korean Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo cited the need for more diversified trade and said the countries could work together in technology and supply-chain management. He expressed hope that the agreement would encourage Korean companies to invest in Bangladesh in a more accessible and favorable environment.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said bilateral relations between Iran and Iraq are currently at their highest level. He made the remarks on Monday night in Najaf, Iraq’s holy city, according to comments published by Iran’s state news agency IRNA.

Araghchi said Tehran’s relationship with the Iraqi government was in its best condition. He also said recent discussions during the Iraqi prime minister’s visit to Tehran had been highly productive.

The foreign minister said cooperation between Tehran and Baghdad is not limited to politics. He cited coordinated positions on various shared issues as well as close cooperation in the economic and security sectors. Against a changing geopolitical situation in the Middle East, the close Iran-Iraq relationship is viewed as an important part of regional diplomatic and security cooperation.

Prime Minister’s Information and Broadcasting Adviser Dr. Zahed Ur Rahman said the government is not under any geopolitical pressure or tension. He made the remarks on Tuesday during a regular briefing at the Information Department conference room in the Secretariat, responding to journalists’ questions about recent developments involving a US special envoy, India’s high commissioner and reports concerning former prime minister Sheikh Hasina.

Rahman said he had met the Indian high commissioner, who then returned to India. Addressing claims that the US special envoy had travelled directly from Bangladesh to India, he said the official is the ambassador posted in India and also has additional responsibilities. He said the government was not officially informed about whom the envoy met privately and therefore would not comment.

On a possible August 5 statement by Sheikh Hasina, Rahman referred to the home minister’s previous assertion that the banned party has no capacity. He said some people still support the Awami League and that its beneficiaries remain in various places, including the administration. However, he said the party lacks the moral strength needed to run an organisation.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino has faced an administrative and political crisis after a controversial plan to sell World Cup commercial rights to private investors collapsed. In a report published on August 4, 2026, Infantino was said to be seeking support from US President Donald Trump to address the fallout, but Trump reportedly did not respond to repeated phone calls.

FIFA had planned to establish a separate company to manage World Cup commercial operations and sell about 20 percent stakes in various tournaments, aiming to raise $4.2 billion. Infantino agreed to cancel the plan after strong opposition from UEFA and several national football federations. The proposed investment deal’s main partner was Thrive Capital, the firm of Joshua Kushner.

The report said Infantino also tried to contact US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, but the US administration said no such meeting had been scheduled. Trump stated that he had held no discussions with the FIFA president about the proposed deal. Following the plan’s collapse, several influential football bodies, including the Football Association of Wales, withdrew support for Infantino, leaving his leadership under uncertainty ahead of the 2027 FIFA presidential election.

A report published on August 4, 2026 recounts August 4, 2024 as a day of intense anti-fascist student-public resistance in Eidgaon Upazila, Cox’s Bazar, during the July Revolution. It says Awami League members and their allies fled the upazila that day in the face of resistance, describing the event as a significant moment in the anti-discrimination student-public movement.

According to the report, the then Hasina government had announced the closure of colleges and universities nationwide to suppress the movement. Students who had returned to the area tried to march in support of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement at Eidgaon bus station on the afternoon of August 3. The report alleges that Awami League attackers, who had been waiting there, publicly beat the students, prompting anger among students, including the upazila Shibir and wider student community.

The following afternoon, students announced resistance while armed Awami League attackers reportedly took positions at the bus station in the presence of police and other administration officials. Clashes followed after a procession reached the station from Eidgaon market. The report says more than 50 vehicles, including then UNO Subal Chakma’s official vehicle, were damaged or burned.

A 16-year-old boy, Sajjad, was stabbed to death in Bhairab upazila of Kishoreganj after seeking information about his uncle’s stolen boat. The incident occurred around 8pm on Monday on Yusuf Ali High School Road. Sajjad, son of local resident Sadeq Mia, was taken to Bhairab Upazila Health Complex with serious injuries, where the attending doctor declared him dead.

Local sources said a steel boat belonging to Swapan Mia was stolen from the Brahmaputra River in the Lakshmipur area about 15 to 16 days earlier. Based on local suspicion, a man referred to as Anar Dakat was detained and questioned. He allegedly admitted stealing the boat and promised to return it, but later left the area and went into hiding.

Police said Sajjad saw the accused on Monday night and tried to gather local people by shouting. Anar allegedly stabbed him and fled. Bhairab police recovered the body from the health complex and sent it to Kishoreganj Sadar Hospital morgue for autopsy. No case statement had been filed by the family, while police operations to arrest the accused were continuing.

The Guchchhagram Land Protection Committee alleged attempts to forcibly seize recorded land belonging to Bengali residents in Batnashibir, Taisagara Thanachandra Para and Lalchhari areas of Ramgarh in Khagrachhari. At a press conference at Khagrachhari Press Club on Tuesday, the committee protested the allegations and demanded measures to ensure residents' security.

In a written statement, Md Yunus alleged that outsiders from indigenous communities were attempting the land grabs with direct support from armed UPDF members. Committee leaders said Bengali families who have lived in the areas for a long time were facing attempts to take their recorded land. They said more than 400 families feared losing their homesteads and agricultural land and were unable to visit the areas because of fear of armed people.

The committee called for immediate army camps in Batnashibir, Taisagara Thanachandra Para and Lalchhari. It also sought an investigation into the allegations, necessary legal action, an end to alleged land-grab attempts and effective administrative intervention. Earlier, affected Guchchhagram residents held a human chain and protest march in Ramgarh over the same demands.

A coordinated overnight operation has freed the container vessel MV CNC Uranus after it became stranded in the Karnaphuli River navigation channel at Chattogram Port. On Monday, seven tugboats moved the vessel safely to the port’s outer B Anchorage. Chattogram Port Authority Secretary Syed Refayet Hamim confirmed the successful recovery on Tuesday afternoon, saying port operations and vessel movements were normal after the ship was anchored safely.

Port sources said the 170-metre, Malta-flagged vessel, built in 2017, became stranded at about 2pm Monday while entering the Karnaphuli channel because of a mechanical fault. Its steering failed, causing it to strike red buoy number 2 and crash into a retaining wall near the river mouth. The vessel had arrived from China’s Shikou port and had a draft of 9.50 metres.

The ship carried 1,282 TEUs of containers and 24 sailors, including its master. APL (Bangladesh) was its local agent. The recovery began immediately under the port authority’s leadership with support from the Bangladesh Navy and Bangladesh Coast Guard. Four port tugboats, one Navy tugboat, one Coast Guard tugboat and one tunnel tugboat took part.

Pakistan has launched a new diplomatic initiative aimed at restarting stalled talks between the United States and Iran, inviting senior Iranian negotiators to visit Islamabad. On Monday night, Pakistani Deputy Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar called Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and asked him to travel to Pakistan as soon as possible, according to the report published on August 4.

National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq also invited Iran’s chief negotiator, Baqer Ghalibaf, to visit Pakistan this week. An Anadolu News government source provided the information. Iran has not yet issued an official response to the invitations, and no details were available on when a possible meeting could take place.

Iran has repeatedly said it is not holding direct talks with the United States, while US President Donald Trump has maintained that discussions between the two countries are continuing. The source said mediators from Pakistan and Qatar are working with both sides to determine a date and venue for possible talks. Pakistan previously helped establish a fragile ceasefire in April and mediated a memorandum of understanding signed in June, though that agreement was not implemented.

Moulvibazar Sadar Model Police arrested three alleged drug traders and seized 8,000 yaba tablets, Tk 440,000 in alleged drug-sale proceeds and a private car. The operation was conducted on Monday afternoon on Srimangal Road in Moulvibazar town after police received confidential information about a suspected large yaba consignment, according to a report published on August 4.

Police said the suspects were travelling in a white private car toward the Moulvibazar-Dhaka bus stand area to receive the consignment. A team led by Sub-Inspector Ripton Purkayastha stopped the vehicle near Panchami Washing Centre. Based on information provided by driver Murad Ali Milon during initial questioning, police detained his two alleged associates, Manik Ahmad and Sabbir Ahmad, near the SMS bus counter.

Police searched the suspects and the vehicle in front of witnesses, recovering the tablets from four tape-wrapped packets inside two shopping bags. The three detainees have been named as Manik Ahmad, 32, and Sabbir Ahmad, 26, of Zakiganj in Sylhet, and Murad Ali Milon, 45, of Rajnagar in Moulvibazar. A regular case was filed under the Narcotics Control Act, 2018.

Former Disappearance Commission member Nabila Idris has criticized provisions in a new draft law on enforced disappearances approved by the cabinet on Monday. In a Facebook post on Tuesday, she said the proposed measures could block families of disappearance victims from obtaining justice and instead expose them to legal harassment and punishment.

Idris focused on two provisions of the draft. Under Article 14, when a family files a disappearance complaint against a security force, the relevant security force would investigate the complaint itself. She argued that this would allow police or other law-enforcement agencies to investigate allegations against themselves and clear themselves of responsibility, undermining impartiality.

Article 21 states that if a disappearance allegation is found false in court after an investigation, the complainant or victim’s family could face up to five years of rigorous imprisonment. Idris said such a penalty could make families afraid to speak out. Human rights activists and others cited in the report also said an independent structure has long been sought to investigate allegations against state or law-enforcement bodies, and called for revisions to the draft.

Police recovered the body of an unidentified woman from a footpath in front of Salimullah Muslim Hall at Dhaka University, within Shahbagh police station jurisdiction in the capital. The woman was described as homeless, and her age was estimated at about 60.

The body was recovered on Tuesday morning, August 4. Shahbagh police sub-inspector Liton Ali sent it to Dhaka Medical College Hospital at about 10:15am after the recovery.

The body is currently being kept at the morgue of Dhaka Medical College Hospital. The report did not provide any information about the woman’s identity.

Bangladesh Krishi Bank held a discussion meeting and prayer gathering at its head office on August 3 to mark the July Uprising-2026. Participants paid deep respect to the uprising’s martyrs, observed one minute of silence for the recovery of those injured, and offered special prayers for peace, prosperity and continued progress for the country and nation.

Chairman Mohammad Nurul Amin, speaking as chief guest, described the July Uprising as an important chapter in Bangladesh’s history. He said the nation would always remember with respect the sacrifices of students and members of the public in the struggle to establish democracy, justice and people’s rights. He called on bank officials and employees to perform their duties with honesty, transparency, accountability and professionalism.

Managing Director Sanchia Binte Ali chaired the event and said the bank was working to provide modern, technology-driven and timely banking services for farmers, rural communities and customers at all levels. She urged staff to strengthen customer service and development activities through responsibility, dedication and teamwork. Deputy Managing Director Moha. Khaleduzzaman, general managers, executives, central leaders of the bank employees’ union and other staff attended.

More than 50 people, including women, children and elderly residents, were injured by bites from stray rabid dogs in Sarishabari, Jamalpur, over the past four days. The incidents have caused alarm in Aona, Satpoa, Mahadan, Kamrabad and municipal areas, while injured residents sought treatment at the উপজেলা Health Complex.

Local sources said victims were reported in Dhoinchar Char, Satpoa, Kamrabad and Chak Hatbari, among other locations. Stray and rabid dogs were reported to be biting people on roads, in markets and in home yards across Mahadan, Aona, Pingna, Satpoa, Kamrabad and municipal neighbourhoods including Hatbari, Jhalupara, Aramnagar, Shimla Bazar and Bausi.

Residents have reportedly formed groups carrying sticks to guard their safety and called for vaccination, public awareness and control of stray dogs. Some families of bite victims alleged that rabies vaccines were not available at hospitals in time. উপজেলা Health and Family Planning Officer Dr Debashish Rajbangshi said more than 50 people had received rabies vaccines and first aid, and that sufficient vaccine stocks were available. Municipal administrator Liza Ritchil said action would be taken and the dogs would be brought under vaccination coverage.

Md. Tarikul Islam Tarik, joint general secretary of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, recounts his experience of the August 5, 2024 march toward Shahbagh in Dhaka. He wrote that he tried to reach the Shaheed Minar around 8:30 a.m., when the area was effectively blocked and security forces were using sound grenades, tear gas, rubber bullets and pellet shots to disperse protesters. He said an attempt was made to detain him near TSC before members of the Dhaka University Journalists’ Association helped him move toward Palashi Bazar.

At Palashi, Tarik said students and local traders began gathering in small groups before deciding to head to Shahbagh. The group offered voluntary prayers on the road. He recalled that an army patrol advised them to wait until 2:30, but they proceeded despite Section 144 restrictions. Near the Raju Sculpture, he said several teachers led by Professor Dr. ABM Obaidul Islam were present in support of the movement.

A further army patrol near Charukola and the Central Library dispersed much of the march, he wrote, leaving eight to 10 people to continue. According to his account, they reached Shahbagh and took position at about 11:30 a.m., after which crowds rapidly gathered. He described the events as a collective effort involving students, traders, teachers, journalists and other people.