Prime Minister’s political adviser Ruhul Kabir Rizvi has alleged that India dishonored the July martyrs by allowing deposed and convicted former prime minister Sheikh Hasina to speak. He made the remarks on Thursday morning after paying tribute at the graves of Ziaur Rahman and Begum Khaleda Zia for the anniversary of the Doctors Association of Bangladesh, known as DAB.

Rizvi said that despite the existence of laws, not returning a fugitive accused person and instead giving that person political space was an insult to national sovereignty. He described Hasina as a deposed and convicted former prime minister while criticizing India’s role.

He also said Prime Minister Tarique Rahman was working to resolve crises including gas, measles and dengue in the country. According to Rizvi, Tarique Rahman was prioritizing the public in line with his commitment. Rizvi further alleged that one group was conspiring against the country in an effort to make the government fail.

US President Donald Trump has denied reports that the United States’ weapons stockpiles have declined because of the Iran war, saying the country still has large quantities of arms. In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump also pledged to identify sources cited in media reports on the issue and bring them under the law. The report was published on August 6, 2026.

Trump said the United States has substantial “weaponry,” particularly of certain types. He stressed that the military is maintaining extensive stockpiles while increasing production rapidly. According to his statement, large quantities of weapons are being manufactured and sent to the United States as needed.

He also said defence agencies are building the greatest number of plants and factories in the country’s history. Trump described the statements behind the reports as “treasonous” and said those responsible for leaking the information were being sought. He added that long-term prison sentences would be requested for the alleged leakers.

An analysis published by Amar Desh, drawing on Middle East Eye, questions the credibility of a July New York Times investigative report alleging that Israel’s Mossad sought to cultivate former Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as an intelligence asset. The report allegedly described secret meetings in Budapest, payments, and Ahmadinejad’s removal from his Tehran residence after a February 28 bombing, with the aim of installing him in a post-Islamic Republic Iran.

The analysis argues that Ahmadinejad would be an implausible choice because Iran’s supreme leader and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps hold the country’s central power and sensitive knowledge. Former Unit 8200 commander Hanan Gefen reportedly challenged the alleged sequence of events, saying a Mossad chief personally meeting an unreliable, high-risk target would violate normal operational practice. The article also questions using a climate conference in Budapest as cover.

Ahmadinejad’s office rejected the account as a “Hollywood-like claim” and accused the New York Times of publishing fabricated information. The analysis says the report relies on unnamed US and Iranian officials, while Mossad did not respond and no documents or identifiable intelligence sources were presented. It urges readers and policy analysts to treat the allegations as a contested narrative rather than established fact.

Clashes involving Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, Islami Chhatra Shibir and other student groups have erupted at several Bangladeshi educational institutions around the second anniversary of the July mass uprising. Incidents were reported at Jagannath University, Barishal University, Begum Rokeya University, Government Madrasa-e-Alia, Dhaka College and the Government Graphic Arts Institute. The report said more than 100 students were injured, while allegations emerged of residential hall takeovers and room vandalism.

At Jagannath University, violence linked to placards displayed at an event left more than 100 people injured, including the JAGSU vice president, general secretary and journalists. At least 70 injured people received treatment at Dhaka National Medical College Hospital, where Chhatra Dal and Jubo Dal activists were accused of entering the emergency department and attacking injured people. The vice chancellor said a four-member committee had been formed; the proctor alleged planned actions by JAGSU and Shibir.

At least 15 students were injured at Barishal University and at least seven at Begum Rokeya University. At Alia Madrasa, both sides made differing injury claims amid allegations of explosions, vandalism and evictions from a hall. Two cocktail explosions were reported near Dhaka College, although its principal denied a major clash.

A commentary published on August 6, 2026 argues that at least 325 retractions of papers by Bangladeshi researchers from international journals should be treated as evidence of structural weaknesses in higher education, not solely as misconduct by individuals. The reported retractions were linked to plagiarism, data inconsistencies, image manipulation and duplicate publication. Author Shamsul Arefin says firm and consistent action against misconduct remains necessary.

The article argues that most Bangladeshi universities were designed as teaching institutions but are increasingly judged by research-university publication standards. It says many lack adequate funding, laboratories, research assistants, postdoctoral researchers, libraries, international collaboration and reduced teaching loads. Teachers are described as balancing five or six courses, examinations, administration, thesis supervision and pressure to publish internationally.

Arefin calls for separating institutional roles by developing selected full research universities while strengthening teaching universities, evaluating research quality rather than publication volume, and building training and oversight systems. The proposals include mandatory instruction in research ethics, methodology, open science and academic writing, plus consideration of an independent national body to investigate research misconduct.

Foreign Minister Dr Khalilur Rahman said Türkiye’s foreign minister told him that Bangladesh had once been fading from the international arena but is now returning. He made the remarks while chairing a discussion at the Foreign Service Academy on Wednesday, August 5, marking July Mass Uprising Day 2026.

Rahman said the observation underscored a central goal of the July movement: ensuring Bangladesh is never again turned into a dependent state. He said the current government’s foreign policy has been founded on “Bangladesh First” from the beginning, adding that everyone has a responsibility to achieve that objective and preserve the movement’s success.

The minister also said he became deeply concerned about Bangladesh’s situation in early August last year. He contacted several former colleagues working at the office of the UN secretary-general because he believed the United Nations should not remain silent over serious human rights violations in Bangladesh. Foreign Ministry Secretary Nazrul Islam and Foreign Service Academy Rector Mohammad Abdul Muhit also spoke at the event.

A Tk153,978 auto-rickshaw stand project at Gangachara market’s zero point in Rangpur has installed four signboards but has not eased traffic congestion, according to local observations. The project, titled “construction of an auto-rickshaw stand to ease congestion at Gangachara market zero point,” was taken under the 2025-26 annual development programme. The site reportedly lacks enough space for auto-rickshaws, and no vehicles have been seen using the stand.

Local LGED office information shows the billed work includes four signboards and 10 metres of brick soling at one location. Reporters saw signboards at the designated site, with used shoes, sandals and rubbish piled in front of them, while limited brickwork appeared beside one signboard. Auto-rickshaws continue to stop around the zero point and nearby roads to pick up and drop off passengers, disrupting traffic.

Residents questioned the project’s visible infrastructure, cost and effectiveness, and called for verification and action. Driver Asikul Mia said coordination with drivers and mandatory use rules could reduce congestion. Upazila Engineer Joya Syanal said she was new and was looking into the matter. UNO Jesmin Akter said some work remained and payment would be made after work was received.

Severe erosion along the Brahmaputra, Dharla, Dudhkumar and Teesta rivers has swept away at least 400 homes in Bangladesh’s Rangpur division over the past 30 days, according to a report published on August 6. At least 50 acres of farmland were also lost, leaving hundreds of families without homesteads. Residents in affected areas are dismantling and moving homes to safer places amid fears of further erosion.

Nearly 200 homes were lost in Nilphamari, 150 in Kurigram, 30 in Gaibandha, 17 in Gangachara of Rangpur, and 15 in Lalmonirhat. Fresh erosion has been reported at at least 40 locations across Gaibandha, Kurigram, Nilphamari and Rangpur districts in the Teesta and Brahmaputra basins. Affected residents alleged that the Bangladesh Water Development Board focused on inspections rather than effective protection measures.

Rangpur Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Ruhul Amin said the LGED had been instructed to quickly repair damaged roads and that authorities had contacted the Disaster Management Ministry for special funding for roads in char areas. Water Development Board Executive Engineer Rabiul Islam said work had begun to place geobags in newly affected locations. Gangachara residents submitted a memorandum seeking road repairs, embankment protection and sustainable river management.

International gold prices rose for a fourth consecutive day, reaching their highest level in seven weeks as prospects strengthened for the Strait of Hormuz to reopen. Reuters reported on August 6 that spot gold gained 1% to $4,285.69 per ounce, its highest level since June 18. US gold futures also climbed 0.9% to $4,345.50 per ounce.

The report linked the rise in gold prices to market expectations surrounding developments in the Strait of Hormuz. The gains marked a continued advance in the precious metal over four straight trading days.

Analysts said a proposed agreement between Iran and Oman could help ease the five-month conflict between Iran and the United States. The prospect of normal shipping resuming through the Strait of Hormuz has raised investor confidence, according to the report.

Bangladesh’s banking sector reforms begun by the interim government after the July 2024 mass uprising are continuing under the current government, but bad loans, capital shortages, provision deficits and liquidity stress remain severe. When the interim government took office, the sector faced falling foreign-exchange reserves, an unstable dollar market, inflationary pressure and banks struggling to repay depositors. Bangladesh Bank responded with investigations, new loan-default policies, board restructuring, legal reform proposals and plans involving five weak Islamic banks.

Gross foreign-exchange reserves rose from $25 billion before the Awami League government’s fall to $36 billion at the end of July, an increase of $11 billion over two years. The report says the dollar market stabilised after Bangladesh Bank introduced a market-based exchange-rate system on May 14, 2025. Remittances reached $35.56 billion in fiscal year 2025-26, up 17.30 percent year on year, while deposit growth rose to 11.5 percent.

At the end of March, classified loans stood at Tk588,704 crore and the provision shortfall at Tk205,665 crore. The banking sector’s capital adequacy ratio fell to negative 2.64 percent last year. Economists say lasting recovery requires loan recovery, return of funds allegedly laundered abroad, capital restoration and restructuring of weak banks.

Two Israeli reserve soldiers were killed during an operation in Lebanon, according to an Israeli military statement. The deaths occurred in an explosion in the southern Lebanese town of Majdal Zoun, as reported on August 6, 2026. The statement said four additional soldiers were seriously wounded in the confrontation.

The source did not provide the cause of the explosion, the identities of the soldiers killed, or further information about the condition of those injured. It described the incident as occurring while Israeli forces were conducting an operation in Lebanon.

Following the explosion, Israeli forces carried out a series of attacks in different areas of southern Lebanon. At least one person was killed in those attacks, the report said. The source did not identify the victim or specify the locations of the strikes, and it provided no further details about subsequent military steps.

Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority has proposed promoting Saidur Rahman, acting president of its Bangabandhu Parishad, to chief engineer, according to a report published on August 6, 2026. The relevant file was submitted to the BIWTA chairman last Sunday, and Rahman would assume the role if approved. The report describes him as an accused in a case alleging attempted killing during the July movement.

The report says Rahman received promotions from executive engineer to additional chief engineer during the Awami League period and served for years in the dredging division. It also says State Minister for Shipping Rajib Ahsan recently instructed action against Rahman and two other Bangabandhu Parishad leaders, but the authority did not act on the instruction. Shipping Ministry Secretary Zakaria said he was unaware of the reported case and that action would be taken if a complaint was received.

Rahman denied all allegations, saying a conspiracy was being carried out against him because his promotion was imminent. He also denied being an accused in the July killing case. The report says he held posts in the dredging division from July 5, 2010, to January 12, 2025, and is currently director of a river navigability development and restoration project.

The Washington Post reported that US President Donald Trump had a heated dispute with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over shortages of critical ammunition during the war with Iran. According to sources cited in an August 6, 2026 report by Amar Desh Online, Trump sought an explanation from Hegseth at a cabinet meeting held last week after learning of the weapons shortage. Trump had believed the issue had already been resolved.

The report said Trump temporarily halted plans for a large-scale attack against Iran because of the shortage of key munitions. Hegseth reportedly explained his position during the meeting and placed responsibility on Deputy Defense Secretary Stephen Feinberg. Hegseth alleged that Feinberg had failed to properly inform Trump about the actual condition of ammunition stockpiles.

The White House rejected the Washington Post report. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt described it as “100 percent fake news” and said President Trump has full confidence in Hegseth. The Amar Desh report identified Middle East Eye as its source.

Heavy rainfall and upstream mountain runoff from India have pushed the Teesta River above its danger level at the Dalia point in Dimla, Nilphamari, on August 6. The Dalia Water Development Board said water was flowing 13 centimetres above the danger mark in the morning. Low-lying areas of Nilphamari and Lalmonirhat have begun to flood, raising fears among residents of river chars.

Nilphamari recorded average rainfall of 132 millimetres for the day, while 44 sluice gates were opened. Floodwater has entered low-lying parts of several unions in Dimla and Jaldhaka upazilas. Riverbank areas in Lalmonirhat also face the prospect of short-term flooding. Roads and cropland in char areas have started to go underwater, making boats and rafts the main means of travel in many places.

Residents said several days of heavy rainfall upstream in India, combined with continuous local rain over the past two days, worsened conditions. Flood-control embankments and elevated riverside roads are under pressure, with locals expressing concern over their durability because of inadequate repairs. Executive engineer Amitabh Chowdhury urged people living along the river and in char areas to remain alert.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said maintaining contact with Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is very difficult, but described his presence as a major source of strength for the country. In an interview broadcast on state television on Wednesday, Pezeshkian called Khamenei an extraordinary figure and praised his morality, humility and reasoning.

Pezeshkian said mutual understanding becomes easier when officials openly raise different issues before the supreme leader. He accused some people of using the supreme leader's message on the US-Iran memorandum of understanding as a pretext to create domestic divisions. On June 17, US President Donald Trump and Pezeshkian signed a 14-point memorandum aimed at implementing a ceasefire, lifting a naval blockade and ending ongoing military operations.

Although he initially had some reservations, Mojtaba Khamenei later publicly supported the memorandum. Pezeshkian said Iran's adversaries were trying to fuel public dissatisfaction and protests by increasing sanctions and military pressure. He described the present period as Iran's most difficult since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The memorandum was signed in June through Pakistani mediation after the United States and Iran agreed to a ceasefire in April.