The Customs Intelligence and Investigation Directorate detained 101 cartons of goods allegedly imported under false declarations at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport’s airfreight area on July 30. Officials from the directorate’s headquarters and the airfreight circle jointly conducted the operation near the yard beside delivery gate No. 8, acting on secret information. The goods were initially valued at nearly Tk1 crore.

According to preliminary information, Sardar Global Trade imported the consignment from the United Arab Emirates under Air Waybill No. 176-63518722. The declaration listed motor parts, cosmetics, mini PCs, tablets, projectors and computer parts. The importer’s nominated C&F agent, Fahim 5 Star Ltd., submitted bill of entry No. C-764177 through the ASYCUDA World System on July 29.

Physical inspection found old and used goods allegedly concealed behind declarations for new products, customs officials said. The shipment included 450 laptops, 963.8 kilograms of car parts, 96 6TB hard drives, 291.14 kilograms of cosmetics and 96 used mini PCs. Officials said they would investigate whether the motor parts were components of an unassembled vehicle. They will determine the liabilities of the importer and C&F agent and take legal action under customs law.

State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaid Islam said the visas of 626 Bangladeshis in the United Arab Emirates were automatically cancelled. Bangladesh has sent the UAE government a list seeking visa renewals for 417 of them, while information on the remaining people will be submitted in phases. She disclosed the figures to reporters after an inter-ministerial meeting at the Foreign Ministry on Thursday, July 30, 2026.

Islam said employers also bear certain responsibilities when visas are cancelled because workers lose their jobs. Bangladesh’s embassy is directly coordinating and communicating with the relevant companies. She urged expatriates to comply with the laws of both Bangladesh and their destination country, and advised them to avoid controversial Facebook posts on sensitive issues or politics and to refrain from destabilising activities.

The state minister said the government is moving to amend the 2013 migration law. It plans strict legal action against people involved in fraud, including provisions for up to seven years’ imprisonment for submitting false information or documents. The ministry has also begun coordinated work to reduce migration costs, curb broker fraud, and prevent irregular migration and human trafficking, establishing a separate migration wing at the Foreign Ministry for the first time.

A new Economist/YouGov poll found that nearly half of Americans believe Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should be arrested if he enters the United States, based on an International Criminal Court warrant. The survey, conducted among 1,559 US adults from July 25 to 27, 2026, found 49% supported an arrest, 27% opposed it and 23% were unsure.

Among people who voted in the 2024 US presidential election, 74% of Kamala Harris voters supported Netanyahu’s arrest. The poll also found that 23% of Donald Trump voters supported an arrest. Forty-seven percent of respondents said Netanyahu was guilty of war crimes in Gaza, while 24% disagreed. The same share, 47%, said his actions had damaged relations between Israel and the United States.

The survey found 43% of Americans believed Israel was committing genocide against Palestinian civilians, while 24% did not. Seventy-two percent of Harris voters described Israel’s conduct as genocide, compared with 22% of Trump voters. The ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on November 21, 2024, over allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Bangladesh Bank has extended by five months the deadline for implementing new rules governing “add money” transfers from bank cards to mobile financial service, or MFS, accounts. In a circular issued Thursday, the central bank said mobile financial service providers and scheduled banks will have until December 31 to implement the requirements.

Under the new instructions, institutions must establish the necessary technical and operational arrangements for card-to-MFS add-money services by the deadline. Customers can currently add funds to MFS accounts using bank debit and credit cards. Bangladesh Bank had issued the new requirements to strengthen security, customer identification verification, or KYC, and transparency in these transactions.

The additional time was provided because banks and MFS institutions need to make required changes to their technological infrastructure and operating procedures. If the requirements are not implemented within the stipulated period, the facility to add money to MFS accounts using cards must be discontinued from January 1, 2027. The circular gives the affected providers and scheduled banks until the end of December to complete the required preparations.

Dhaka University’s syndicate has decided to send a recommendation for the permanent dismissal of sociology professor Dr Sadeqa Halim to the university tribunal. The decision was taken at a July 28 syndicate meeting chaired by Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr A B M Obaidul Islam, according to the university’s public relations office. The syndicate also decided to temporarily suspend Halim, with further action to follow the tribunal’s final decision.

University sources said the action followed an investigation report concerning allegations including taking a position against students during the July mass uprising. Halim said she had learned some details of the matter and that the investigation committee’s recommendation had been sent to the tribunal. She said she would not comment until a final tribunal decision is issued. Allegations of unteacherlike conduct in and outside classrooms and ethical lapses were also cited.

The syndicate also removed six professors from academic and administrative duties and temporarily suspended three teachers and one official. It formed a committee to review all university appointments from January 1, 2009, to June 30, 2024, and another to examine HEQEP research activities and fund use. A July memorial monument is due for foundation-stone inauguration on August 5.

India’s Lok Sabha passed an amendment bill on July 30, 2026, amid heated debate, granting “Vande Mataram” equal status with the national anthem “Jana Gana Mana.” The bill makes insult to the song a punishable offence. According to the report, it was the first bill passed in the Lok Sabha during the ongoing monsoon session.

The measure passed by voice vote after only two lawmakers spoke, while opposition amendments were rejected. DMK member K. Kanizha opposed it, calling it a “Hindutva agenda” behind nationalism. He said making all six verses mandatory and treating refusal to sing them as a criminal offence would polarize the country and run against secular principles.

BJP’s Sambit Patra said Congress had failed to give “Vande Mataram” appropriate respect during 76 years of rule. Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai said the Modi government was giving the national song its due honour. Existing law provides up to three years’ imprisonment, a fine, or both for intentionally preventing or disrupting the singing of “Jana Gana Mana”; the amendment extends those provisions to “Vande Mataram.”

Kader Siddique, president of the Krishak Sramik Janata League, said the arrest of Latif Siddique was a conspiracy to weaken the BNP government. He made the remarks on Thursday, July 30, while speaking to journalists after visiting the grave of Khondkar Mohammad Abul Hasnat Kismat, a founding general secretary and former president of Mirzapur Press Club in Tangail.

Siddique claimed that if Latif Siddique had been involved in the Shapla Chattar incident, he would have been arrested when he went to jail on August 28 last year. He said Latif Siddique told a court that he had no involvement in the incident and was not a member of the Crescent Committee. Kader Siddique also claimed that remarks Latif Siddique made about Sajeeb Wazed Joy were presented differently and complaints were made to several then Awami League leaders.

He said they would seek bail for Latif Siddique. Kader Siddique added that Latif Siddique had been jailed at least 40 times for participating in movements during the Pakistan era and would serve prison time in Bangladesh if necessary. He said they expected justice, democracy, and security for people, lives, and property in the country.

State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Anindya Islam Amit said public money must not be wasted on unplanned projects as in the past. Speaking at a Thursday morning meeting at the Secretariat with senior Energy and Mineral Resources Division officials, he instructed them to establish the justification for every unapproved project. He also stressed setting priorities based on each project’s role in meeting public needs.

Amit highlighted the need for a clear, geographically based and data-driven comprehensive map of the country’s mineral resources. He directed officials to combine fragmented block maps, geological surveys and information held by different agencies into a single modern, integrated framework. A complete picture of underground resources and their potential would help coordination among government departments and support planned work, he said.

In two separate meetings, participants discussed recommendations to make energy and electricity demand, production and distribution more efficient and economical. The minister called for zone-based assessments of actual demand and supply, rapid identification of obstacles, and prompt decisions on necessary actions. Energy and Mineral Resources Secretary Mohammad Saiful Islam, Power Secretary Mirana Mahrukh and senior ministry and power-sector company officials attended.

Writer Josh Sheldon’s new book, “The Zionists Who Hate Jews,” makes contested claims about the history and aims of the Zionist movement. In a report published on July 30, 2026, Sheldon is described as arguing that leaders of a movement presented as protecting Jews historically held hostility toward Jews themselves. The book runs to more than 300 pages and is organized in 11 chapters.

The report says Sheldon draws on material from historians Tom Segev, Avi Shlaim and Ella Shohat. It attributes derogatory descriptions of Jews to Theodor Herzl, Ze’ev Jabotinsky and Moses Hess, and presents Sheldon’s view that Zionism and antisemitism are two sides of the same coin. It also says writer Karl Kraus warned in 1898 that Herzl’s movement represented Jews’ own antisemitism.

The book also addresses the Holocaust, including an alleged agreement involving Hungarian Zionist official Rudolf Kastner and Nazi officials. The report further cites statements attributed to David Ben-Gurion to support Sheldon’s claim that Zionist leaders prioritized state-building over saving Jews. According to the report, the book has prompted renewed discussion of Zionism’s historical foundations and underlying purpose.

The National Citizen Party, or NCP, demanded that the government cover all treatment costs for Habiganj district Jatiya Chhatra Shakti leader Alif Chowdhury and swiftly arrest those responsible for attacks. NCP Member Secretary Akhtar Hossain made the demands at a news conference on Thursday afternoon after visiting Alif at the National Institute of Ophthalmology and Hospital in the capital. He said Alif lost one eye in an attack during the party’s July march in Habiganj.

Hossain said Alif remained hospitalized after surgery and that doctors had said the damaged eye would never recover. He added that Alif was also seeing blurred vision in his other eye, creating concern that it could be affected as well. Hossain also alleged that an NCP motorcade was attacked in Sylhet about an hour before the news conference while returning after visiting graves of July uprising martyrs and meeting their family members.

The NCP alleged that Chhatra Dal, Jubo Dal and BNP activists attacked its programmes in Habiganj and protests in Kurigram, Dinajpur and Chattogram. Hossain accused the BNP government of following the Awami League’s path in attacks and repression against opponents. He sought compensation for Alif and his family, prosecution of identified attackers, and security for all opposition political activities.

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman directed authorities to reopen long-closed government industrial factories and complete the process by 2026. A high-level meeting chaired by the prime minister was held at the Cabinet Division conference room in the Secretariat at 3:30 pm on Thursday, July 30. The meeting addressed reopening the factories, accelerating privatization activities, and attracting domestic and foreign investment.

Participants decided that necessary measures would be taken to restart the closed factories quickly. They emphasized removing bureaucratic complications to speed up implementation and drawing private investment to begin production operations at the industrial facilities as soon as possible.

Relevant agencies were also instructed to take effective steps to ensure an investment-friendly environment. Those attending included Economic and Planning Adviser Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir, Commerce, Industries, and Textiles and Jute Minister Khandakar Abdul Muktadir, State Minister Md Shariful Alam, Bangladesh Investment Development Authority Executive Chairman Ashik Chowdhury, and senior officials from relevant ministries and agencies.

Abhijit Dipke, founder of the Cockroach Janata Party, or CJP, demanded the resignation of Indian Home Minister Amit Shah on July 30, alleging that police action against students during a July 20 march over examination irregularities was ordered by Shah. Dipke said the attack on students and bloodshed among protesters could not have occurred without the home minister’s instructions.

A day earlier, opposition leader Rahul Gandhi made a similar allegation during debate on an anti-question-paper-leak bill and also sought Shah’s resignation. The report said police used batons, tear gas and pellets during the march. Dipke further alleged that Delhi Police deliberately created a stone-throwing incident to justify action against protesters, claiming stones and a damaged vehicle were brought to Jantar Mantar and that BJP members threw stones while students were blamed.

Dipke rejected allegations that CJP received foreign funding for its Jantar Mantar protest, saying failure to stop such funding would itself reflect a Home Ministry failure. The report said Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan left office on July 25 following the movement. Dipke also alleged harassment of activists after protests were withdrawn and said the movement could expand if necessary.

National University is set to introduce Language Clubs at all its affiliated colleges and educational institutions nationwide to strengthen students’ language and communication skills. The initiative, announced through the university’s public relations office on July 30, is intended to help students prepare for the international labour market and the modern information technology era. Students will be able to develop skills in their mother tongue as well as international languages, particularly English, Mandarin, Japanese and others.

Each club will hold regular language practice and speaking sessions alongside public speaking, debates, presentations, reading, literary and cultural activities, seminars, workshops and language-based competitions. The clubs will also provide access to technology-based language-learning tools in addition to direct instruction. University authorities said the programme was adopted because students needed an integrated platform to improve language proficiency, with expected benefits for employment, higher education and international communication.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr A. S. M. Amanullah said the clubs aim to remove students’ hesitation and fear so they can speak and express themselves fluently in English or another third language. Teachers, guardians and education stakeholders welcomed the plan, especially for students in remote colleges. A workshop involving Dhaka metropolitan colleges is planned soon, while guidelines are being prepared for distribution to relevant institutions.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it shot down a hostile drone over the strategic southwestern port city of Bandar Imam Khomeini early Thursday. The incident was reported in a statement cited by Tasnim News Agency, according to Al Jazeera.

The IRGC’s local unit said the unmanned aerial vehicle was intercepted and destroyed in the city’s airspace immediately after it was detected. The statement did not identify the drone’s operator, origin, or intended purpose.

Debris from the destroyed drone fell onto a residential house in the Bandar Imam Khomeini area, but no casualties were reported. Tasnim said an IRGC bomb-disposal team arrived at the site shortly after the incident, neutralized all hazardous materials in the wreckage, and moved them to a safe location.

About 100 soldiers from the Tzabar Battalion of Israel's Givati Brigade reportedly rebelled against their commanders and left the Sde Teiman base in the Negev desert. The incident was reported on July 30, 2026, with Ynet describing it as a protest driven by anger at commanders. The soldiers reportedly left their weapons behind when departing the base.

An Israeli army spokesperson said the dispute began after the battalion commander ordered the removal of certain unusual signs or symbols associated with the traditions of older and newer soldiers. According to Ynet, the soldiers said the removed symbols had accompanied them during fighting in Gaza and Lebanon and had been passed down to successive groups of recruits. They viewed the mementos as symbols of a deep spiritual connection to the battalion and its traditions.

Maariv, citing an unnamed military source, reported that the battalion had become unfit to take part in a planned combat operation in Gaza because of the incident. Israel Hayom reported that the soldiers and commanders left military equipment and weapons at the base, taking only their personal bags as they headed home.