Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said Tehran will not reopen the Strait of Hormuz until the United States fulfills its commitments. He said no vessel would be allowed to pass through the waterway without Iranian coordination and permission. The remarks did not specify when the commitments were suspended or what actions Washington must take.

Gharibabadi said Iran has reached an understanding with Oman concerning vessel traffic, but that arrangement will not be implemented until the United States meets its obligations. He said Iran is prepared to take further steps regarding the strait if Washington takes the necessary measures first.

The Iranian official said recent US sanctions are not new for Tehran and that Iran is prepared to confront them. He accused the United States of withdrawing from diplomatic understandings for the third time in 16 months. On mediation by Qatar and Pakistan, he said both countries are examining the possibility of implementing commitments under the Islamabad memorandum of understanding. He reiterated that Iran will not take the first step to reopen the strait.

President Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said those involved in enforced disappearances would face justice regardless of their power, describing disappearance as a crime against humanity and a grave human-rights violation. He made the remarks on Sunday at an International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances 2026 event at the Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre in Agargaon, Dhaka.

The president said disappearances violate constitutional guarantees of life, personal liberty, legal protection and human dignity. He alleged that disappearances, secret detention sites known as Aynaghar, and killings occurred during the past one and a half decades under a “fascist” government. He remembered named victims and said many people who disappeared have not returned, while some survivors had been held for years in harsh conditions.

Citing the final report of the commission investigating disappearances, he said it identified 1,569 cases, including 287 people listed as missing and dead. He said the Prevention and Remedy of Enforced Disappearance Bill, 2026 has been placed in parliament, Bangladesh has signed the international convention against enforced disappearance, and trials are proceeding through the International Crimes Tribunal. He also called for state support, rehabilitation, healthcare, education and livelihoods for affected families.

Climate change is increasing water scarcity, reducing agricultural output and raising the risk of higher food prices across the Arab world, experts say. The region, already among the world’s most water-stressed areas, could face a larger food and humanitarian crisis as desertification expands and water supplies needed for farming decline.

According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, arable land accounts for less than 5 percent of land in Arab countries. The region is heavily dependent on food imports, with nearly two-thirds of total food demand expected to be met through imports by 2031. Several Gulf countries already import more than 90 percent of the food they need. Egypt imports about half of its wheat, and higher wheat prices can increase subsidy costs and pressure spending in other sectors.

WFP regional director Samer Abdeljaber said excessive dependence on imports leaves the region highly vulnerable to disruptions in global food markets. WFP identified serious food-security conditions in Yemen, Syria, Palestine, and parts of Iraq and Libya. Experts called for early warning systems, effective water management, climate-resilient agriculture, reliable groundwater sources and stronger local disaster-response capacity.

Human rights organisation Odhikar held a rally and human chain in Mymensingh on Sunday to observe the International Day Against Enforced Disappearances and remember people subjected to disappearance. The programme was moderated by Odhikar Mymensingh coordinator and Mymensingh Press Club general secretary Abdul Qayum. Speakers included NCP Mymensingh district convenor Advocate ATM Mahbubul Alam, disappearance survivor Golam Mostafa, journalist Abdul Awal and Abdul Bari of the city Jamaat youth wing.

Golam Mostafa said he was taken away by people in plain clothes despite being a factory worker. He alleged that RAB kept him disappeared for 96 days and subjected him to inhuman torture to force a confession branding him a militant. He demanded that disappeared people be traced, their families’ safety and rights ensured, and those involved be tried through an impartial investigation.

Speakers alleged that enforced disappearance was used to suppress dissent and political opponents during the Awami League government’s more than 15-year rule. They said expectations of justice and remedy after its fall have not been fully realised under the BNP government. They also criticised the failure to pass the 2025 ordinance on preventing and remedying disappearances, and voiced concern over allegations of new cases after the July mass uprising.

The United States has announced more than $3.6 million in humanitarian assistance for flood-hit Nepal after devastating floods killed hundreds of people and left nearly 3,000 missing. The US State Department said on Saturday that the funding would address the urgent needs of people affected by the disaster.

In a post on social media platform X, the State Department said the United States stood with the people of Nepal and was providing more than $3.6 million in life-saving humanitarian assistance. The announcement followed reports of extensive casualties and damage caused by the recent flooding.

The assistance package will provide emergency food support to 10,000 flood-affected families for up to three months. With many people still missing, concerns remain that the number of deaths and casualties could rise further, according to the report.

BNP standing committee member and Dhaka-3 lawmaker Gayeshwar Chandra Roy said drug traders and criminals would have no place in the BNP associated with martyred president Ziaur Rahman and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. He made the remarks on Saturday as chief guest at a sports-equipment distribution event at Chunkutia Girls School and College in South Keraniganj for the 2026–27 fiscal year.

Roy said the party was alert to drug-related offences and pledged that even a senior party leader involved in such activity would be handed to police. He said political identities are often used to conceal crimes and called for a strong social movement involving community elders and residents, arguing that parental and social resistance would help the administration take legal action quickly.

He said Keraniganj’s population had risen from 400,000 to nearly 2 million over the past 20–30 years while playgrounds had become scarce because of encroachment and plot trading. Roy and reserved-seat lawmaker Advocate Nipun Roy Chowdhury later distributed sports equipment allocated by the prime minister to local schools, colleges and sports organizations.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei accused “enemies” of trying to create division and disunity in the Muslim world, pointing to the United States and Israel. He said they were seeking to exploit ethnic, cultural, social, economic, political and geographical differences among Muslim populations in Iran and other countries.

Khamenei said the alleged adversaries were watching for fragmentation within the Islamic Ummah and a weakening of its strength, waiting for an opportunity to impose their dominance. He called on Muslims to avoid any activity that could generate division, arguing that greater unity would have prevented Palestinians from becoming so vulnerable to oppression and crimes by occupiers.

Addressing leaders of Muslim countries, Khamenei said they should identify the “real enemy,” understand its plans and take a position against it. He described the US governing establishment and the “fake Zionist regime” as sworn enemies of unity and friendship, adding that they were hostile not only to Iran, its people and the Islamic resistance front, but to the entire Muslim Ummah, including people in West Asia and North Africa.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford unveiled a large shoreline sign declaring “Lake Ontario—now and always” after US President Donald Trump ordered federal agencies to use the name “Lake America” for the lake. Ford unveiled the sign on Saturday at Fifty Point Conservation Area near Grimsby, Ontario, saying the lake would remain Lake Ontario long after Trump is gone.

The approximately 24-by-12-foot sign, nearly the height of a two-storey building, carries the message in both English and French. Canada has not accepted the proposed new name. Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew mocked Trump’s initiative, comparing it to an aging rock band trying to replay an old hit.

The name Ontario is linked to Indigenous history, deriving from the Huron word “Onyatarío,” meaning “lake of shining waters.” Prime Minister Mark Carney rejected Trump’s decision, saying the name predates both Canada’s founding and the US Declaration of Independence. The dispute comes amid worsening US-Canada relations over trade and tariff policy, after recent trade talks failed and Canada announced retaliatory tariffs from next month.

Bangladesh’s government wants to elevate its longstanding friendly relationship with Malaysia, Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Minister Dr Abdul Moin Khan said. He discussed expanding cooperation in labour export, renewable energy, infrastructure, education, health and trade during a meeting at the Secretariat with Malaysian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Mohammad Shuhada Bin Othman. State Minister for Local Government Mir Shah Alam also attended.

The Malaysian high commissioner expressed satisfaction over the Bangladeshi prime minister’s recent visit to Malaysia, describing the visit as successful. The two sides then held detailed talks on bilateral relations, including the export of Bangladeshi workers to Malaysia and registration of undocumented workers. They also discussed creating employment opportunities in Malaysia for Bangladeshi engineers.

Other issues included joint construction of hospitals, wider higher-education opportunities in Malaysia for Bangladeshi students, renewable-energy investment and cooperation in producing sports equipment. Discussions also covered electric vehicle imports, the construction sector and halal food. Both sides expressed interest in turning the countries’ longstanding friendship into a more effective economic partnership. Local Government Division Secretary Md Shahidul Hasan and senior ministry officials were present.

A platinum necklace set with 673 diamonds, once worn by former Egyptian Queen Nazli, was stolen from Vienna’s Museum of Applied Arts (MAK) on Thursday afternoon. Police said two men who had entered with tickets smashed the display case with hammers during an exhibition and left the museum with the necklace. Security cameras recorded images of the suspects, who remain sought by police.

The necklace contains diamonds weighing a combined 200 carats. Queen Nazli wore it at her daughter Fawzia’s wedding in 1939, according to exhibition records. The piece sold for US$4.3 million at a Sotheby’s auction in New York in 2015. It was included in a Van Cleef & Arpels jewellery exhibition that had been running at MAK since June.

Police searched central Vienna after the theft and used a dog to help find the suspects. Austria’s Krone newspaper reported that investigators suspect the theft may have been commissioned by a criminal network. Several people were in the exhibition room, but nobody was injured. A guided tour scheduled for Friday afternoon was cancelled and the exhibition was temporarily closed; it had been due to end on September 27.

Control of a roughly 350-kilometre highway linking Khartoum, Omdurman and El-Obeid could alter the course of Sudan’s war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The road connects central Sudan with Kordofan, Darfur and the western border, making it vital for moving fuel, food, livestock, commercial goods and military equipment. Fighting between the SAF and RSF has continued since April 2023.

The Sudanese army has recently captured several towns near the highway, strengthening its position in North Kordofan. Conflict researcher Ali Mahmoud Ali said control of the route and the seizure of large RSF weapons and drone depots could consolidate army control there and open a route toward RSF bases in Darfur and West Kordofan. If the RSF cuts the road, El-Obeid could be isolated and army supplies disrupted.

Holding the route does not ensure safe passage, as RSF drone attacks remain a risk. More than 50 drone attacks were documented across Kordofan in June, including attacks targeting fuel facilities and power infrastructure. On 20 August, the army said it struck an arms convoy for the RSF in northeastern Chad, prompting concern from the United States and African Union.

UNICEF has warned that malnutrition in Afghanistan has reached alarming levels, with 3.7 million children suffering from acute malnutrition and nearly one million facing life-threatening severe conditions. The agency said the rise in child malnutrition in 2026 began several months earlier than in other years, raising concern that Afghanistan is heading toward one of its most serious recent nutrition crises.

Children aged six months to two years are particularly affected by a lack of dietary diversity. UNICEF research found that these children receive food from only two of the required main food groups, putting their normal physical and mental development at risk. Long-standing poverty, food and water shortages, climate impacts, displacement and reduced international humanitarian assistance are cited as major drivers.

More than six million people have returned to Afghanistan from Iran and Pakistan since 2023, adding pressure to weak health and social services. Droughts and floods have damaged farmland, while falling groundwater levels have worsened access to safe water and contributed to disease. Afghanistan's 2026 nutrition programme needs about $180 million, but only 22 percent has been funded, forcing some nutrition centres to close or limit operations.

Former Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Moin Khan has called on current and former Pakistani cricketers to raise their voices in support of imprisoned former prime minister and World Cup-winning captain Imran Khan. In a video posted on his X account, Moin urged the Pakistani government to ensure Imran receives proper medical treatment and his rights as a former prime minister and Pakistani citizen.

Imran is being held in a prison in Rawalpindi, and concerns have been raised over his health. Several former Pakistan captains have sought improved treatment for him and sent letters on the matter, according to the report. Australia Test captain Pat Cummins has also expressed concern. Javed Miandad was the first Pakistani cricketer mentioned as speaking publicly on the issue and has demanded Imran’s release.

Moin said players who played alongside Imran learned much from him and that he gave a great deal to Pakistan cricket. The issue also drew attention during a Pakistan-England Test at Lord’s after Sky Sports aired an interview with Imran’s two sons. The Pakistan Cricket Board objected and threatened not to resume after the break, but the broadcast continued and Pakistan remained in the match.

Eleven Jamaat-e-Islami members of parliament have filed a writ petition with the High Court challenging the legality of assigning ministers, state ministers and whips responsibility for specific districts. The petition names the cabinet secretary as a respondent, according to petitioners’ lawyer Mohammad Shishir Monir, who confirmed the matter on Sunday morning.

Monir said a similar allocation of district-based responsibilities to ministers, state ministers and whips was made in 2001. When that decision was challenged through a writ petition, the High Court Division declared the responsibility-allocation decision unconstitutional, he said.

A Cabinet Division notification issued on August 27 assigned 30 ruling-party lawmakers, ministers and state ministers to the country’s 64 districts. Cabinet Secretary Nasimul Gani signed the notification by order of the president. It said those assigned would oversee and coordinate overall government activities without undermining the legal authority of local government bodies and other constitutional and statutory institutions. The notification cited sustainable development, good governance, transparency, accountability, anti-corruption efforts, law and order, and national security among government priorities.

Mohammad Selim Uddin inaugurated a canal-cleaning activity beside Rupayan City at Khidir Khal in Uttara Sector 12, Dhaka, on Sunday morning, August 30, 2026. The event was held under the “Clean Dhaka” programme. Selim Uddin, chairman of the Urban Development Forum and a Jamaat-nominated DNCC mayoral candidate, said waste had been removed from hundreds of locations across 54 wards of Dhaka.

He questioned why garbage could not be removed despite the city corporation having necessary resources and said the initiative was driven by responsibility to solve public problems. He alleged that a leader of the ruling party objected to his group cleaning a canal bank in Uttara. Selim Uddin said the country belongs to everyone and called on political groups to work together on public problems.

Addressing the city administration, he said an unelected urban administration may struggle to understand public suffering. He called for city elections to be held before village elections and demanded swift implementation of the public verdict and referendum. The programme also installed a smart bin for separating three types of waste, which he said would be recycled into pens for distribution to schools on Literacy Day.