Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer and opposition leader Dr Shafiqur Rahman said Bangladesh’s possible accession to the Mecca Pact is solely the country’s own matter. In a Facebook post published at about 11:45am on Thursday, he said no one else needs to feel discomfort if Bangladesh makes a decision based on the needs and interests of the country and nation.

Discussion has recently emerged over whether Bangladesh may join the Mecca joint defence agreement signed by Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan. Opinions have already been expressed both in favour of and against Bangladesh joining the arrangement.

The joint defence agreement was signed in Mecca on August 7 by Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan. Under the agreement, a military attack on any one of the three countries would be considered an attack on all three countries.

Pakistan’s security forces said 11 people were killed in separate counterterrorism operations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. Two militants were killed in an operation in the Bannu area, while five were killed in Ladha, South Waziristan. Security forces also recovered weapons and ammunition during the operations.

In Balochistan, four more militants were killed during an operation in the Sasul area of Khuzdar district that used a quadcopter. Authorities claimed those killed were members of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, and Balochistan-based armed groups.

President Asif Ali Zardari and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi praised the security forces for the operations. Zardari said security forces’ activities to eliminate terrorism would continue. Earlier, on August 21, the military’s media wing had reported that 49 militants were killed in separate operations.

Police in Raiganj, Sirajganj, have arrested the main suspect, Titon, about one and a half months after the killing of HSC examinee Abdur Rahman. Raiganj police detained him during an operation in Gazipur on Wednesday. Rahman was a student of Raiganj Business Management and Technical College.

Police said an argument began on the night of July 14 after Rahman objected to drug use. Titon allegedly became enraged and attacked Rahman and his elder brother, Hasan, with a Burmese knife and a machete. Both brothers were indiscriminately hacked and injured in the attack.

Local residents rescued the injured brothers and admitted them to hospital. Abdur Rahman died while receiving treatment on July 17. Additional Superintendent of Police Saiful Islam Khan of the Raiganj Circle said Titon, identified as the main accused in the killing, had been arrested from Gazipur. Police said the incident is under investigation and necessary legal action is being taken.

A series of killings and domestic violence incidents in Egypt during August has heightened public concern, with dozens of people reported killed in a single month. Victims included spouses, parents, children and other close relatives. In Alexandria’s El-Agami area, a 27-year-old woman named Renia was killed by a beach worker after a dispute over seating; she had been vacationing with her husband and two children.

Other reported cases included the stabbing deaths of three people, including a wife, in Sohag Governorate over suspected infidelity. In 15 May City south of Cairo, an engineer allegedly shot dead four people, including his daughter, during a reconciliation meeting with his former wife’s family. Police cases cited in the report also involved disputes over loans, family conflicts and alleged killings of parents and children.

The Idrak Foundation for Development and Equality recorded 598 violent crimes against women and girls in the first six months of 2026, up from 495 a year earlier, a 20.81% rise. About 41% were domestic violence cases. Experts cited economic pressure, rising prices, inequality, weakened family ties, drug addiction and social tension, urging swift justice, counseling, social support and early identification of at-risk families.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the United States would achieve nothing through newly announced sanctions against Iran. Speaking to Iran’s ISNA news agency in response to the measures, he said Washington could not accomplish anything through economic pressure at this stage, just as it had not achieved anything through war.

Pezeshkian said Iran would firmly resist economic pressure, as it has done so far, and would continue to do so in the future. His remarks followed the announcement of a new round of US sanctions targeting Iran.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced the sanctions campaign, which Washington has called “Operation Economic Outcast.” Bessent said the operation would target Iran’s financial network worldwide. He also warned that countries and institutions maintaining commercial ties with Tehran could face secondary sanctions.

The United States is preparing to deploy the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt to the Middle East amid its continuing war against Iran. The carrier is expected to remain deployed in the region for more than seven months, according to the US Naval Institute.

US Navy chief Admiral Daryl Caudle and Master Chief Petty Officer John Perryman told reporters on Wednesday that the Theodore Roosevelt would deploy with its accompanying warships and Carrier Air Wing 11. The announcement outlines a planned shift in the US naval presence in the region.

The Theodore Roosevelt and its accompanying forces will replace the Japan-based USS George Washington, which is currently deployed in the Middle East. The George Washington entered the area under the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet last week, according to the report.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei sharply criticized Washington’s measures to implement newly imposed sanctions against Iran, saying US policy toward Tehran had become “a farce.” In a post on X on Wednesday, made two days after the United States announced the new sanctions, Baghaei condemned the steps as further pressure on a country already under sanctions.

Baghaei said Washington was now focusing on Bahrain, which he said has virtually no significant economic transactions with Iran. He argued that this showed the effectiveness of what he described as the US “coalition.” He also said the United States was seeking to halt sporting and educational exchange activities with Iran that, according to him, had already been effectively suspended for years.

Earlier, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced the new round of sanctions against Iran. Washington has named the campaign “Operation Economic Outcast.” Bessent said the operation would target Iran’s financial networks worldwide and warned that countries and institutions maintaining commercial ties with Tehran could face secondary sanctions.

A new study by Palestinian-American writer Susan Abulhawa says Israel led the world in arms exports per capita in 2025. The study estimated Israeli arms exports at about $263 per person, compared with $41 in the United States and $14 in Russia. Calculated using only Israel’s Jewish population, the figure rose to about $340 per person.

By total arms exports between 2020 and 2025, Israel ranked seventh globally, behind the United States, France, Russia, Germany, China and Italy. The study said Norway was Israel’s closest competitor on a per-capita basis, but Israel’s level was roughly two and a half times higher. Over the 1960-2025 period, Israel also ranked first in average annual per-capita arms exports, at about $56.

Israel’s Defence Ministry said defence exports reached a record $19.2 billion in 2025, nearly 30 percent above $14.8 billion the previous year and the fifth consecutive annual record. SIPRI said Israel’s share of global arms exports rose to 4.4 percent in 2021-25 from 3.1 percent in the prior five-year period.

Ten former ministers, lawmakers and officials of the Awami League government were brought before the International Crimes Tribunal in a case over alleged crimes against humanity linked to killings during the July uprising. They were transported from prison to the tribunal in prison vans under tight security on Thursday.

Those presented included former textile and jute minister Golam Dastagir Gazi, former industries minister Amir Hossain Amu, former agriculture minister Abdur Razzaque, former shipping minister Shajahan Khan and former social welfare minister Dipu Moni. Former lawmaker Faruk Khan, former justice A H M Shamsuddin Chowdhury Manik, former home secretary Jahangir Alam and former lawmaker Solaiman Selim were also brought to the tribunal.

The group also included Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury, former adviser on power, energy and mineral resources to ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina. The prosecution said Thursday had been set for submission of the investigation report in the case. The 10 accused, who are in custody, were produced before the tribunal in connection with that scheduled proceeding.

Police have confirmed that a skeleton recovered from a sugarcane field near Jitarpur intersection in Joypurhat Sadar belonged to missing e-rickshaw driver Farid Hossain, 41. Rapid Action Battalion and police arrested the main accused, Sagar Hossain, from the Atrai railway station area of Naogaon on Wednesday afternoon. He is due to be sent to court after questioning on Thursday.

Farid left his home in Hopirhat village of Khetlal upazila with his e-rickshaw at 10am on August 20 and did not return. His father, Abdul Quddus, filed a general diary the following day. Using information technology, police recovered Farid's e-rickshaw from a garage in the Pakar Matha area on Monday and arrested two people, Robiul and Jakir Hossain.

Farid's father then filed a murder case naming Sagar as the main accused and three or four unidentified people. Locals found the skeleton after jackals dragged human bones onto a road from the sugarcane field. Relatives identified Farid through clothing found with the remains. Police collected DNA samples, and the family buried the remains Tuesday night.

Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) said it thwarted an attempt to push six men into Bangladesh through the Ramdaspur border in Gomastapur, Chapainawabganj, early Thursday. The incident occurred near border pillar 216/MP in the Ramdaspur BOP area under Naogaon Battalion 16, according to Lieutenant Colonel Mohammad Ariful Islam Masum.

BGB said members of the Shamshernagar BSF camp of the 12 BSF Battalion attempted to push the six men into Bangladesh at dawn. After receiving information, a patrol from Ramdaspur BOP reached the site and identified the six men while they were inside the zero line on the Indian side of the border.

BGB personnel prevented the men from entering Bangladeshi territory, the force said. Efforts were under way to send the six men back into Indian territory. BGB said it had lodged a protest with the BSF over the incident and strengthened border patrols and surveillance. The force said it remained alert to prevent illegal entry and any attempt at push-ins.

A survey of more than 36,000 people across 34 countries found strong public support for international cooperation amid wars, nuclear threats and rising conflict among major powers. Former British prime minister Gordon Brown cited the findings in a Guardian article, arguing that people are rejecting divisive and nationalist politics in favour of cooperation. The poll, conducted by Focaldata for the Rockefeller Foundation, found that 55% would support international cooperation even if it required some compromise of national interests, while 20% opposed it.

Brown said the world is shifting from a rules-based system towards one driven by power, with military strength and economic pressure increasingly used to influence international politics. He said concern about a third world war in Europe has reached its highest level in decades. He also criticised the approaches of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump.

More than 70% of respondents wanted government action on human rights, rule of law, climate change, AI and cybersecurity regulation, and humanitarian aid. Nearly 80% wanted a global system addressing peace, stability, poverty, hunger, disease and illiteracy. Brown said countries beyond the United States, China and Russia could pursue institutional reform and coordinated action.

Flash floods triggered by mountain runoff in Nepal have killed 162 people, with several villages inundated by the powerful Bhote Koshi River in Rasuwa district. Homes, bridges and wider infrastructure were damaged in the disaster. Prime Minister Balendra Shah urged citizens affected by the floods to remain patient and united, saying the state stands beside them during the crisis.

Shah said the government has assumed full responsibility for rescue operations, medical treatment, food and shelter. He said all available government resources were being mobilised to strengthen rescue and relief efforts. The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, the National Council and the cabinet held emergency meetings and decided to intensify the response.

The Nepali Army, Armed Police Force and other security personnel have been deployed for rescue work. Bir Hospital and the National Trauma Centre have prepared 100 beds for free treatment of injured people, while doctors, rescuers and medical supplies have been sent to affected areas. The government is arranging food, clean water, medicine and temporary shelter, and Shah pledged rapid rebuilding of damaged roads, bridges, electricity and water systems, alongside relocation of displaced families to safer places.

An investigation found that a purported think tank called the Hanover Institute for Public Policy published large volumes of pro-Israel material in the United States in an apparent effort to influence AI chatbot responses. The source says the institute has no verifiable existence, office or known staff. Between August 6 and 14, its website published 124 reports totaling more than 560,000 words, including 73 reports of about 354,000 words over August 12 and 13.

The reports were framed as answers to questions users might ask AI systems, including allegations concerning genocide in Gaza, displacement of Palestinians and whether opposition to Zionism is antisemitism. Their wording sought to weaken allegations against Israel. The Guardian found that 20 reports stressed that no court had issued a final ruling on genocide or apartheid allegations, while 55 described casualty and aid figures as information from a party involved in the conflict.

Information linked the site to New York-based media company Pyro Inc., which registered work for the Israeli government under US foreign-agent law in a contract worth $1 million. Israel denied conducting an influence campaign, while Pyro co-founder Daniel Rosenberg said its work presented accurate, sourced information and countered misinformation.

Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Yao Wen said China is actively working with Bangladesh to address the country’s current energy crisis through renewable energy development, particularly solar power. Speaking to reporters after a Thursday morning meeting at the Secretariat with Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Minister Dr Abdul Moin Khan and State Minister Mir Shahe Alam, he said both countries want to reduce reliance on fossil fuels.

Yao said China sees an opportunity to use its technological capabilities to help meet Bangladesh’s energy shortfall. He said the prime minister’s recent visit to China created a new historic opportunity for cooperation between the two countries. According to him, they decided to build a “China-Bangladesh community with a shared future in the new era,” adding a new dimension to bilateral relations.

He said notable economic progress had been made in the two months following the visit. The foundation stone for Bangladesh’s first special economic zone project with Chinese assistance has been laid, while a feasibility study for the Teesta River project is under way. Construction of a women’s residential hall at Dhaka University and a hospital is progressing, and discussions are continuing on increasing direct flights between Bangladesh and China.