Iranian parliament speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf defended dialogue with the United States, saying negotiations do not signify retreat but resistance aimed at protecting national interests. His comments appeared in an open letter published by Iran’s state news agency IRNA, according to Al Jazeera.

Responding to criticism of negotiations published in the Iranian daily Kayhan, Ghalibaf said rational action and authoritative dialogue should not be wrongly defined as compromise or passivity. He argued that efforts to prevent an enemy from taking away the nation’s rights should not be portrayed as surrender.

Ghalibaf said the state must preserve and protect its instruments of power to consolidate gains from war and guide the country safely past what he described as a serious, planned disaster by the enemy. He also said it would be wrong to avoid responsibility for talks with the United States or to label every achievement by the negotiating team as betrayal.

A Jerusalem Magistrate Court on Wednesday cleared Israeli settler Yona Schreiber, who had been accused of attacking a French Catholic nun near Jerusalem’s Old City earlier this year. The court ruled that he was not criminally responsible for the assault because of mental illness.

The attack took place in April outside the Cenacle on Mount Zion. The 48-year-old nun was a researcher at the French Biblical and Archaeological School of Jerusalem. According to the report, Schreiber pushed her to the ground and kicked her in the head.

The nun required medical treatment immediately after the attack. Schreiber’s lawyer, Idan Gamliel, described the incident as unfortunate and said he had taken note of the nun’s suffering over the assault.

Forty-five of 47 Democratic members of the US Senate signed a joint letter to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, urging action to stop settler violence and mass arrests of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. The letter, seen by Reuters, voiced deep concern over a recent rise in what it described as deadly settler violence and called for clear instructions to Israeli police and military forces to curb it.

The senators said violence in the West Bank had increased significantly in recent weeks, followed by large-scale Israeli security operations and the arrest of many Palestinians. They also cited allegations of attacks on mosques by settlers. The letter urged swift intervention and prevention of violence regardless of who committed it, and called for stronger investigations into the deaths of nine US citizens killed in the West Bank since 2022 by Israeli settlers or security forces.

The letter was jointly drafted by California Senator Adam Schiff, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York and New Jersey Senator Cory Booker. It also cited a recent shooting in which an Israeli man accompanying a group of Jewish settlers allegedly fired at civilians on Palestinian land, killing a 17-year-old and a 70-year-old man. The senators stressed effective and impartial action by Israeli security forces to protect civilians.

National Citizen Party convener and opposition chief whip Nahid Islam said the 11-party alliance will continue its programmes if the government does not implement the referendum verdict. Speaking on Wednesday after an alliance meeting at the opposition leader’s official residence on 29 Minto Road in the capital, he said a long march would begin on September 5 and later be carried out in other divisions.

Nahid said the alliance would also hold a grand rally in Dhaka demanding implementation of the referendum verdict. He criticised the government’s handling of what he described as ongoing gas and electricity shortages, saying power outages were occurring even while ministers and members of parliament were speaking. He said government representatives were trying to suggest that no crisis existed.

At the briefing, Jamaat-e-Islami assistant secretary general Hamidur Rahman Azad said many people had previously been subjected to enforced disappearance and killings outside the judicial process, without justice being delivered. He said the alliance would organise a march toward the National Parliament at 3pm on Sunday, August 30, with family members of people who had disappeared.

Fisheries, Livestock and Agriculture Minister Mohammad Amin Ur Rashid said the government would support small local packaging and processing centres if needed to help livestock farmers receive fair prices for their products. He made the remarks on Wednesday at the closing ceremony of a two-day beneficiary training programme under an integrated livestock development project for riverine char areas covering seven districts, held at an upazila parishad auditorium.

The minister said farmers can suffer when they do not receive fair value for livestock products, and called for effective measures from production through packaging, processing and marketing. He also said artificial fertiliser shortages would not be tolerated despite adequate stocks, and that the government would ensure timely supplies of fertiliser and other agricultural inputs according to farmers’ needs.

He stressed the need to maintain accurate information on farmers’ production, land use and input requirements through farmer cards to improve planning and distribution. At the event, 25 beneficiaries received heifers and animal feed, while 100 farmers received 500 improved tree saplings. The minister later released 286 kilograms of carp fingerlings into a canal of the Phuldi River.

A five-member investigation committee formed by the Jessore district administration has concluded that fish deaths at AF Farm in Sonamukhi Beel, Sharsha, were not caused by load-shedding. The committee submitted its report on Wednesday, two days after the incident. It found that poor management and unscientific farming practices were among the factors behind the deaths at the 41.82-acre farm.

The report said the farm had stocked about 1,500 pabda fish and 16 carp per decimal, exceeding the recommended capacity of 800 pabda and five to six carp. Water tests found elevated pH, excessive phytoplankton that turned the water green, and ammonia levels far above tolerable limits. The committee identified excessive stocking, phytoplankton growth and inadequate aeration as interconnected risks.

Only five two-horsepower aerators were operating at the farm, although at least 30 were needed, and the authorities had not arranged backup power. The inquiry found a 44-minute outage from 1:42am to 2:26am on the night of the incident. It said similar fish deaths did not occur at 12 nearby large enclosures. The farm owner was not interviewed after reporting illness and later switching off his phone.

Pintu Das, owner of SK Shilpalay in Chandpur town, is reportedly in hiding with his family amid financial pressure, according to relatives and people claiming to be affected. Das has reportedly been unreachable since Tuesday along with his wife Rimi Das, elder son Priyom Das, a tenth-grade student, and younger son Rupom Das.

Relative Upoma De said the family lived in a rented house in Chandpur and claimed Das was burdened by debt. She said customers had recently pressured him to return pledged gold, while a man from Patowari Bari allegedly threatened him on behalf of customers. Several affected people alleged that Das ran a business providing money against pledged gold but failed to return the items.

Customers said Das had moved his shop several times before operating from the ground floor of Madina Market. Market owner Mofiz Uddin Sarker said Das rented the shop about five to six months ago and still owed several months of rent. Chandpur Sadar Model Police Station officer-in-charge Fayez Ahmed said police had just learned that four family members were missing and would investigate and take steps to locate them.

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has agreed to a multibillion-dollar settlement over allegations brought by several US states that its platforms harmed children. Subject to court approval, the agreement would require Meta to introduce specific measures for teenage users, including daily usage limits and nighttime blocking.

Meta said it has agreed to pay $18 billion, although 30% of the amount depends on settlements involving TikTok and YouTube. The money would be distributed in annual instalments over 10 years and could fund states’ priorities, including initiatives to improve young people’s safety in online environments.

The states involved in the lawsuit would receive about 70% of the total fund, or roughly $12.7 billion, over 10 years. Meta said the remaining 30% would be released only if YouTube and TikTok introduce one-hour daily limits, night mode and age-verification systems, and each pays an equivalent share. Meta expects to record about $10 billion in legal costs in this year’s third quarter.

Disaster Management and Relief Minister Asadul Habib Dulu said Bangladesh has no shortage of fertilizer, describing concerns over supplies as driven more by rumours than an actual crisis. He made the remarks to journalists on Wednesday after visiting Lalmonirhat Sadar Hospital and attending a review meeting.

The minister said the government provides substantial fertilizer subsidies for farmers and is taking steps to prevent distribution problems. Under the plan, one additional dealer will be appointed in every union, while the number of retail sellers will also be increased to make distribution more efficient.

Dulu said strict action would be taken against dishonest dealers attempting to stockpile fertilizer and create an artificial shortage. If needed, mobile courts would be conducted to recover hoarded fertilizer and take legal action against those involved. He said farmers need not be unnecessarily alarmed, as the government is taking necessary measures to ensure fertilizer supplies meet their needs.

The anti-Israel hacker group Cyber Support Front has claimed it penetrated the internal network of Novamil Systems Limited, an Israeli supplier of military equipment, and disrupted the company’s operations. In a statement, the group said it removed critical equipment from service and effectively disabled the company. No date for the alleged operation was provided in the source.

The group described Novamil as a specialist in component assembly, high-precision sensitive parts manufacturing and reverse engineering, with extensive cooperation with Israeli defence and aerospace companies. Novamil produces precision components for fighter aircraft and military systems, including electro-mechanical and opto-mechanical assemblies used in guidance and control systems, night vision, thermal cameras and targeting technology.

Cyber Support Front said it accessed the factory network using technology developed by several teams that joined it over the past six months. It claimed to have obtained about one terabyte of sensitive data and disabled all computer numerical control machines and other critical network systems, severely damaging production capacity. The group also said it had previously targeted infrastructure at more than 10 Israeli military-sector companies.

Residents of Jyotinagar Colony in Kashipur, Kolkata Municipal Corporation’s Ward 6, say water supply has been completely cut off for nearly a month. All six taps in the colony reportedly stopped running on 29 July, affecting about 5,000 people who have lived there for around 60 years. Residents, mostly Muslim along with a smaller number of Hindu families, say they are relying on Ganges water for bathing and other daily needs.

Residents allege that taps in Hindu-majority colonies on the same road remain functional, while authorities did not provide a positive response after complaints to police and municipal offices. They also say street electricity was disconnected the day after the water outage. Families reported children suffering fever, headaches and skin diseases after using polluted river water, while slippery ghat steps have caused injuries.

A local CPI(M) leader said the party is arranging a KMC water tanker for 700 rupees every three to four days, but said one tanker cannot serve 5,000 people. Residents also raised eviction fears. The West Bengal Bustee Unnayan Samiti has approached court, and CPI(M) leader Shamim Ahmad said it obtained a stay order against eviction, though the water crisis continues.

Police in Durgapur, Netrokona, detained a 22-year-old man named Hridoy after recovering 480 bottles of Phensedyl allegedly concealed using a special method inside a battery-operated auto-rickshaw. The operation was conducted on Wednesday in the Shimultali area of Noapara Union in Durgapur upazila. Police estimated the seized drugs’ market value at Tk 19.2 lakh.

Hridoy is the son of Abul Mia of the Markas Mor area in Durgapur town, police said. A team led by Sub-Inspector Md Mohibur Rahman was returning to the police station after duty at the Jhanjail night checkpoint when officers noticed a person with an auto-rickshaw in suspicious circumstances at Shimultali.

Police said Hridoy attempted to flee with the auto-rickshaw after seeing officers. He was later detained, and officers searched the vehicle in the presence of local residents, recovering the bottles. Police calculated the value at about Tk 4,000 per bottle. Netrokona district police spokesperson Additional Superintendent of Police Hafizul Islam confirmed that legal action was being taken against the detainee.

Police in Shreepur, Magura, detained seven people accused of posing as Criminal Investigation Department members and attempting to abduct a woman. The arrests were made around 1:50am on Tuesday night in Nakol Paschimpara of Nakol union, according to a briefing by Magura district police on Wednesday afternoon.

Police recovered four jackets marked “CID”, a toy pistol, a Noah microbus allegedly used for the attempted abduction, and eight mobile phones from the detainees. A patrol team from Nakol Police Camp received confidential information that a Noah microbus was moving suspiciously in the Nakol Paschimpara area.

The patrol team’s officer in charge, Sub-Inspector Abdul Malek, informed Magura Superintendent of Police Molla Azad Hossain. The superintendent ordered surveillance and directed Additional Superintendent of Police Thandar Khairul Hasan to verify the matter and take legal action. When police reached the location, the suspects tried to flee but were detained. Police said the seven initially admitted they had gone there to abduct a woman.

Forty-two of the 47 members of the US Senate Democratic caucus urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to act over rising settler violence and mass arrests of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. The letter, sent Wednesday and seen by Reuters, also called for stronger investigations into the deaths of nine US citizens killed by settlers or Israeli security forces since 2022.

Drafted by Senators Adam Schiff, Chuck Schumer and Cory Booker, the letter said violence had increased significantly in recent weeks. It cited Israeli security operations, arrests of many Palestinians and allegations that settlers had attacked mosques. Senators asked Netanyahu to give police and the military clear instructions to prevent violence and intervene when necessary regardless of those involved.

The lawmakers also called for an end to approvals for new Jewish settlements and illegal outposts in the West Bank, and for steps to remove existing outposts. Human rights groups say Israeli forces often fail to act quickly against settler violence, while Israeli officials say authorities, including the president and prime minister, have condemned violence against Palestinians.

An elderly couple in South Hanubaish village of Bhadur Union, Ramganj upazila in Lakshmipur, allege that their three sons have refused to give them a place to stay because they did not transfer their property to the sons. Ator Mia, 115, and Shamsunnahar, 90, said they had spent the previous three days moving between their sons’ homes in search of shelter, sleeping in front sitting rooms and sometimes going without food.

The couple have three sons and three married daughters. They said their sons Ibrahim, Rahim and Taslim had pressured them for about a year to register the property in their names. After being forced from their home, the parents stayed with their eldest daughter, Lucky Begum, for eight months. They returned home on Sunday, August 23, but said the sons again denied them accommodation.

Eldest son Mohammad Ibrahim Mia said the brothers had received no support from their parents and alleged that the parents had instead supported their daughters. He said they had told the parents they would not provide space in their homes unless the property was transferred. Ramganj Upazila Nirbahi Officer Kazi Atikur Rahman said he had learned of the incident and would investigate and take appropriate action.