The interim government of Bangladesh has added 135 new medicines to the country's list of essential drugs, bringing the total number to 295. The government has also decided to set fixed prices for the sale of these essential medicines. The decision was made during a meeting of the advisory council held on Thursday.

At a press conference later in the day at the Foreign Service Academy, the chief adviser’s special assistant on health affairs, Md. Sayedur Rahman, announced the decision. He stated that sellers must sell the essential medicines at the government-fixed prices to ensure public access to treatment and medicines. However, he mentioned that sellers would be given some time to comply with the new pricing regulations.

The move aims to make essential medicines more affordable and accessible to the public, aligning with the government’s broader health policy objectives.

A Dhaka court has scheduled January 13 for the hearing of arguments in a corruption case involving former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, her niece Tulip Siddiq, Azmina Siddiq, and 15 others. The case concerns alleged irregularities in the allocation of a 10-katha plot under the Purbachal New Town Project. The date was fixed by Judge Robiul Alam of Dhaka Special Judge Court-4 after a hearing on Thursday. Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) prosecutor Zahirul Islam confirmed the development, noting that the only detained accused, Mohammad Khurshid Alam, presented a defense witness, while other accused remain absconding.

The case was filed on January 13 of the previous year by ACC Assistant Director Afnan Jannat Keya against Azmina Siddiq, later including Sheikh Hasina, Tulip Siddiq, and others. Following investigation, a charge sheet against 18 individuals was submitted on March 10. All 31 prosecution witnesses have testified before the court. The accused include several officials from the Ministry of Housing and Public Works and Rajuk, as well as a former state minister.

The upcoming hearing is expected to advance the trial process, with the court set to hear final arguments from both prosecution and defense.

Bangladesh will not play its matches in India during the upcoming T20 World Cup, Foreign Affairs Adviser Touhid Hossain announced on Thursday, January 8, 2026. Speaking at a press briefing at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he said the team will participate in the tournament but only at a neutral venue outside India.

Hossain explained that India failed to ensure the security of Bangladeshi cricketers, raising doubts about the safety of an entire team or traveling fans. As a result, Bangladesh decided to play its matches at a neutral location. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) had earlier informed the International Cricket Council (ICC) of its decision not to send the team to India following the exclusion of Mustafizur Rahman from the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Alongside the decision to avoid India, the BCB also requested that the World Cup venue be shifted to Sri Lanka, according to the adviser’s briefing.

Former Bangladesh Prime Minister and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia has had a street named after her in the United States. The city council of Hamtramck, located in Michigan’s northeast region, approved renaming a central portion of Carpenter Street—between Joseph Campau and Conant Streets—in her honor. The announcement was confirmed by the BNP Media Cell on Thursday, January 8, 2026.

According to the report, expatriate Bangladeshis view the decision by the city authorities as a unique recognition of Bangladesh’s history, leadership, and democratic values. They described the renaming as more than a symbolic act, calling it an international testament to the country’s political struggles. The move follows a previous instance in Chicago, where a street was named after former President Ziaur Rahman.

Bangladeshi expatriates have expressed widespread enthusiasm over the development, seeing it as evidence of their growing political influence abroad. Observers believe the naming will further strengthen social and cultural ties between Bangladesh and the United States, particularly in Hamtramck’s diverse community.

Leaders of the Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) have accused a business syndicate of turning public suffering into profit amid a prolonged gas supply crisis. Speaking at a protest rally on Thursday in front of the Titas Gas office in Karwan Bazar, Dhaka, CPB leaders demanded immediate resolution of gas shortages and an end to what they described as chaos in the gas cylinder market. CPB President Sajjad Zahir Chandan said gas supply disruptions across Dhaka and other regions have severely disrupted daily life, while the interim government has failed to address the issue.

Former CPB General Secretary Ruhin Hossain Prince alleged that the syndicate deliberately restricts gas supply to profit from importing and selling gas at higher prices. He also called for increased domestic production of LPG cylinders. Following the rally, a CPB delegation submitted a memorandum to the Titas Gas Managing Director, outlining seven demands including uninterrupted 24-hour gas supply, cancellation of monthly bills during supply outages, and breaking the syndicate to reduce cylinder prices.

The protest was chaired by CPB Dhaka North President Hasan Hafizur Rahman Sohel and attended by several central and student leaders.

The Mongla Coast Guard has arrested Masum Mridha, 23, the leader of a forest robber gang, and his associate Ifaz Fakir, 25, for abducting a resort owner and two tourists in the Sundarbans. The arrests were made following intelligence surveillance in the Dhankhali area under Terokhada police station in Khulna on January 7. Acting on information provided by the detainees, the Coast Guard conducted a search near Gazi Fisheries in the Sundarbans and recovered firearms, ammunition, sharp weapons, and items belonging to the abducted victims.

According to Coast Guard media officer Lieutenant Commander Siam-ul-Haq, the abduction took place on January 2 when the victims were traveling by boat near Kanur Khal from the Golkanan Resort. The gang demanded ransom, prompting the resort authorities to inform the Coast Guard. Using intelligence, drone surveillance, and financial tracing, the Coast Guard rescued the hostages safely after a 48-hour operation. Several other gang members were also detained from different areas of the Sundarbans, Dacope, and Khulna.

Legal proceedings regarding the arrested individuals and seized evidence are currently underway, the Coast Guard confirmed.

Police in Teknaf, Cox’s Bazar, recovered the body of Malaysia expatriate Zahid Hossain from a remote hilly area on Thursday morning. He had gone missing after being called from his home in Hoikyang Union’s Kombonia village on January 6. Local woodcutters discovered the body in a garden belonging to a man named Nuru and informed his relatives, who later notified police and local authorities. Three suspects have been detained in connection with the killing.

According to police and local sources, Zahid Hossain, a mason by profession, was allegedly killed over a longstanding land dispute. His family members claimed that local rivals were behind the murder. Teknaf Model Police Station’s officer-in-charge Md Saiful Islam confirmed the incident and said preliminary investigation suggests the killing stemmed from the land conflict. The body was sent to Cox’s Bazar District Hospital morgue for autopsy.

Police said the detained individuals are being interrogated, and legal procedures are underway as part of the ongoing investigation.

Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh has expressed deep concern over recent killings, assaults, and attacks on minorities ahead of the 13th national election. In a statement issued Thursday, Secretary General Allama Sajedur Rahman condemned the shooting death of volunteer leader Azizur Rahman Mushabbir in Tejgaon, as well as incidents of rape and violence against women, children, and Hindu minorities across the country. He alleged that a fascist group is deliberately destabilizing the nation to obstruct the election process.

The Hefazat leader claimed that these attacks are part of a plan to tarnish Bangladesh’s image abroad and embarrass the interim government. He urged the authorities to identify those behind the violence and take strict measures against them. Rahman also accused elements within the law enforcement agencies and ruling party of complicity, saying they were attempting to silence “July revolutionaries.”

He called on the administration to increase surveillance, ensure proper investigation and justice for the recent incidents, and release detained Islamic scholars and activists whom he described as innocent.

Legal adviser Asif Nazrul has stated that enacting a law granting immunity to participants of the July uprising is entirely legitimate. He said the Ministry of Law has already prepared a draft of an indemnity ordinance for the July fighters. Nazrul shared this information on Thursday, January 8, 2026, through a post on his Facebook page.

According to Nazrul, the July fighters risked their lives to free the country from fascist rule and therefore deserve immunity. He argued that such legislation is necessary to protect those who took defensive actions during the uprising. He further explained that similar indemnity laws were enacted in other countries following revolutions or popular uprisings, such as during the Arab Spring.

Nazrul added that Article 46 of the Constitution of Bangladesh provides legal grounds for indemnity laws, citing the 1973 indemnity law for freedom fighters as precedent. He said the draft ordinance will be presented for approval at the next meeting of the advisory council, emphasizing that safeguarding the July movement is a sacred duty.

Over the past 35 years, the amount of saline-affected land in Bangladesh has increased by about 26 percent, now totaling approximately 1.056 million hectares. Around 30 percent of the country’s coastal arable land is affected by salinity, while 41 to 50 percent of the total area experiences drought at some point. In response to these growing climate-related challenges, a team from Bangladesh Agricultural University (BAU) has begun research on seaweed-based biostimulants to enhance crop resilience.

The research was presented at a workshop held at BAU’s Faculty of Agriculture under the project “Higher Education for Agricultural Transformation (HEAT),” jointly organized by the University Grants Commission and the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Researchers highlighted that Bangladesh’s coastal areas host abundant seaweed resources, including 47 green, 59 brown, and 94 red species, which contain compounds that promote plant growth and tolerance to salinity and drought.

BAU Vice-Chancellor Professor A.K. Fazlul Haque Bhuiyan emphasized that climate change poses multidimensional challenges to agriculture and that sustainable, eco-friendly technologies like seaweed-based biostimulants could play a vital role in ensuring the sector’s future resilience.

A severe shortage of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has gripped Fatullah in Narayanganj, where consumers are unable to buy 12-kilogram cylinders even at double the government-fixed price of 1,306 taka. The crisis, ongoing for about 15 days, has forced many residents to search for firewood as an alternative fuel source. Retail shops have run out of stock, and those with limited supply are reportedly charging arbitrary prices.

Local residents and business owners expressed frustration over the situation, saying the artificial shortage and price hikes have worsened their daily lives and business operations. Some reported that LPG cylinders are available only on the black market, where prices range from 2,200 to 2,500 taka per cylinder, delivered by rickshaw. Retail sellers said they too face supply shortages and cannot meet customer demand.

Residents have urged the authorities to take immediate action to restore normal LPG supply and control illegal trading practices that have intensified the crisis.

The International Crimes Tribunal-2 has scheduled January 18 for the hearing to frame formal charges against two top leaders of the banned organization Chhatra League. The accused are its president, Saddam Hossain, and general secretary, Sheikh Wali Asif Inan, who face allegations of crimes against humanity committed during the July Revolution. The tribunal fixed the date on Thursday.

Alongside them, five others are accused in the same case, including the banned Awami League’s general secretary and former bridge minister Obaidul Quader, joint general secretary A F M Bahauddin Nasim, former state minister for information and broadcasting Mohammad Ali Arafat, Jubo League president Sheikh Fazle Shams Parash, and general secretary Mainul Hossain Khan Nikhil. The tribunal had earlier issued arrest warrants on December 18 after the prosecution filed formal charges the same day.

As the accused did not appear in court despite a newspaper notice on December 30, the tribunal appointed state defense lawyers to represent them in absentia. The prosecution, led by Chief Prosecutor Mohammad Tajul Islam and Gazi Tamim, read out individual charges, including three specific counts against Obaidul Quader for instruction, provocation, and incitement.

The Bangladesh Army detained a man named Billal Hossain, aged 42, from Jatarpur village in Mujibnagar upazila of Meherpur district during an early morning raid on Thursday. The operation led to the recovery of an illegal 7.65 mm pistol, a magazine, and two rounds of American-made bullets from a wardrobe in his bedroom. Billal Hossain is the son of the late Madar Ali Biswas of the same village.

According to Mujibnagar Police Station Officer-in-Charge Zahidul Islam, Billal Hossain is a known criminal accused of involvement in smuggling, money laundering, online betting, casino operations, and extortion. Legal proceedings against him are currently underway.

The arrest and recovery operation highlight ongoing law enforcement efforts in Meherpur to curb illegal arms possession and organized crime activities in the region.

The government has ordered an investigation into allegations of indiscriminate hill cutting for landfilling at the Ramgarh land port in Khagrachhari. Following a report published in the daily Amar Desh, Brigadier General (Retd.) Dr. M Sakhawat Hossain, Adviser to the Ministry of Shipping and the Ministry of Labour and Employment, took the matter seriously and directed the immediate formation of a three-member investigation committee. The committee has been instructed to conduct an on-site inspection and submit a detailed report within three working days.

According to the adviser, the government attaches the highest importance to protecting the environment, maintaining ecological balance, and safeguarding national interests. He stated that any illegal hill cutting or landfilling would not be tolerated and that those found responsible would face legal action. He also noted that the Ramgarh land port, built during a previous government, had already been reviewed for its geo-economic significance, and a separate expert committee had been formed to reassess the project's costs and benefits.

The government emphasized its commitment to ensuring transparency and accountability in this public interest matter.

U.S. President Donald Trump has called for increasing the country’s defense budget to 1.5 trillion dollars for 2027, describing the current period as “extremely troubled and dangerous.” The proposed amount would represent a more than 50 percent rise from the 901 billion dollars approved by Congress for the current year. Trump announced the plan on social media, saying it would help build a “dream military” and ensure safety against all enemies.

In a separate post, Trump warned that he would take strict action against defense contractors and shareholders if companies failed to accelerate weapons delivery and establish new production facilities. Following his announcement, shares of major U.S. defense manufacturers Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Raytheon rose by more than five percent.

Economists have previously cautioned that the gap between U.S. spending and revenue has reached an unsustainable level. Trump, however, asserted that Washington could “easily reach” the proposed defense budget through revenue generated from tariffs.