Israel has created an artificial fuel shortage in the occupied West Bank through border controls, restrictions on currency transfers and barriers to geographic movement, the report says. All fuel used in the West Bank is imported from Israel, giving Israeli authorities full control over the supply system.

Palestinians mainly use the Israeli shekel because they have no currency of their own. Under the stated arrangement, Israel’s central bank is required to take back excess cash held by Palestinians, but Israeli authorities have recently refused to accept cash deposits from Palestinian banks. As a result, businesses cannot use banking channels to pay for essential goods such as fuel despite having sufficient money.

The report says new roads linking illegal Israeli settlements have cut Palestinian cities off from main roads. Palestinians are forced to take longer routes, while hundreds of vehicles face severe congestion at Israeli military checkpoints. Longer journeys and extended engine use have sharply increased fuel consumption. Analysts cited in the report link the measures to Israel’s upcoming election and say right-wing politicians use checkpoint scenes to appeal to voters while worsening Palestinian hardship.

Former Union Parishad member Ilias Hossain died while receiving treatment at Kushtia General Hospital after an alleged attack by rivals in Shailkupa, Jhenaidah. Police said he died on Monday evening after being seriously injured in an assault in the Haji Market area of the town.

The incident followed an argument and scuffle on August 20 between Ilias Hossain’s son, Risalat Hossain, and Majedul Islam of Chatura village. The dispute occurred at Malipara village in Shailkupa municipality, police said. Later that afternoon, opponents allegedly beat Ilias Hossain, a resident of Khondokbaria village, leaving him seriously injured.

He was first taken to Shailkupa উপজেলা Health Complex and was later admitted to Kushtia General Hospital, where he died during treatment. Shailkupa police station Officer-in-Charge Humayun Kabir Molla said legal procedures were underway. Multiple police teams are working to identify those involved in the incident.

The United States Navy faces pressure meeting global military demands despite operating 11 aircraft carriers, compared with China’s three, retired US Navy Vice Admiral John Miller said in an interview with Al Jazeera. Miller said that only a small number of carriers are operational or ready for deployment at any particular time, limiting the apparent advantage of the larger US fleet.

He identified routine maintenance, repairs and training as key reasons why carriers are unavailable. Nuclear-powered carriers also require extended refuelling and overhaul work, with at least one carrier undergoing the multiyear process at all times. Miller said fleet readiness can be understood by dividing the total number of carriers by three.

Using an example of nine available carriers, Miller said three would be deployed in combat zones, three would have recently returned from operations and three would be preparing for their next mission. He said this helps explain Washington’s decision to remove USS George Washington from the Asia-Pacific to join USS George H.W. Bush in the Middle East and replace USS Abraham Lincoln. Miller warned that deploying two carrier strike groups in the Middle East imposes security costs on other regions.

Thirty-nine of 41 government Chandina Vhita plots beside the Water Development Board in Shashiganj Bazar, Tazumuddin, are reportedly still occupied by Awami League leaders and supporters. The plots were intended for genuine traders, but the report says political figures, pro-Awami League teachers and government employees are retaining them and collecting rent. Government rules reportedly do not permit renting out the houses or constructing buildings, yet some occupants have built two-storey structures and rented them out.

According to the Tazumuddin Upazila Land Office, the 41 plots in the upazila headquarters were last allocated for one year in 2014. No new allocation has been made since then, and the names of previous allottees continue to be renewed annually. The office said it could not provide information about renting or construction. A review of the allocation list named several Awami League leaders, affiliated figures and public employees among the 2014 allottees.

Traders in Tazumuddin Bazar have expressed anger and demanded that the plots be reallocated to genuine businesses. They submitted an application to the upazila executive officer on April 2 seeking reallocation. Executive Officer Bani Amin said the allegations had been received and the assistant commissioner for land and a union surveyor were directed to investigate and submit a report.

Khulna Metropolitan BNP has demanded that Khulna be declared a pandemic area and that emergency health services be launched immediately amid a severe rise in dengue infections. From January 1 to August 24 this year, 4,604 dengue patients were admitted to hospitals across Khulna division and 16 died, according to the report. A further 215 patients were admitted in the past 24 hours, while public and private hospitals, including Khulna Medical College Hospital, struggle with overcrowding.

At an emergency meeting at the party office on KD Ghosh Road on Monday afternoon, BNP leaders said authorities had failed to take effective action in time. They alleged that government hospitals lack the infrastructure to handle the patient load and that bed shortages are forcing patients to stay on dirty floors, verandas and in other wards. They also criticised what they described as showpiece fogging, saying action against mosquito larvae has been inadequate.

The leaders called for regular larvicide application in alleys, drains, water bodies and breeding sites in every city ward, alongside stronger cleanup drives to remove stagnant water. They also demanded free dengue tests, platelet arrangements and necessary treatment at government and private hospitals. The meeting praised volunteer wing activists for conducting mosquito-control work with their own funding.

The government is investigating allegations that nearly 19,000 police personnel were recruited from Gopalganj, Faridpur, Madaripur, Shariatpur and Kishoreganj during the Awami League’s 15-year rule. The report says the recruitment included about 15,000 constables, sub-inspectors and assistant sub-inspectors, 3,700 inspectors, and 300 assistant and additional superintendents of police. Allegations emerged after the 2024 mass uprising that applicants used land purchases and altered permanent addresses to qualify under district quotas.

Police sources alleged that political affiliation, district considerations, recommendation letters and financial transactions influenced recruitment, with priority given to Chhatra League leaders and activists. The investigation is examining false addresses, manipulation of written and oral examination marks, question-paper leaks and political influence. It is also reviewing whether recruits or their families were connected to Awami League politics.

Two investigation committees have been formed in each district, with DIGs serving as chief coordinators and local additional superintendents and Special Branch personnel assisting. The committees have collected relevant records and are verifying field-level information. Their final reports will go through range offices and police headquarters to the Home Ministry, which will take legal action. Police headquarters spokesperson Shahadat Hossain said proven illegal appointments would face departmental and legal measures.

The Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceutical Industries (BAPI) has called for government intervention to ensure life-saving medicines reach people at affordable prices. At a discussion in Tejgaon, Dhaka, on Monday, the association also urged the government-owned Essential Drugs Company Limited (EDCL) to take responsibility for producing essential medicines.

BAPI leaders said domestic companies supply 98 percent of the country’s medicine demand but face challenges from gas shortages and rising prices of raw materials and packaging materials. They warned that if medicine prices are fixed, many companies could lose interest in production, causing necessary drugs to disappear from the market and creating treatment difficulties.

The association said private companies find it difficult to remain viable while producing many essential medicines, and EDCL should therefore play a larger role in their production and supply. Speakers also called for keeping adequate stocks of essential medicines in markets and health facilities, updating the essential-medicines list according to current needs, and ensuring quality medicines remain within public reach.

Bangladesh’s Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister M Rashiduzzaman Millat said the government will form a joint taskforce with the Culture Ministry to promote cultural tourism. He made the announcement on Monday at an inter-ministerial meeting in the Culture Ministry conference room on linking tourism development with historic structures and archaeological artifacts.

Millat said the government is working to raise tourism’s contribution to gross domestic product to 7–8 percent, describing the sector as inclusive. The two ministries also decided in principle to sign a memorandum of understanding for joint work. After it is signed, they will begin drafting a common policy framework.

Culture Minister Nitai Roy Chowdhury said the government wants to preserve and present the country’s millennia-old heritage globally, while developing historic sites with tourism themes in mind. He said there are 554 archaeological institutions that the ministry will inspect gradually before taking development decisions. State Minister for Cultural Affairs Ali Newaz Mahmud Khaiyam proposed promotion of Nazrul Year for foreign arrivals at airports, and the tourism minister said necessary promotional initiatives would be taken.

Dhaka Metropolitan Police said it arrested 440 people and filed 46 cases during regular operations across the capital over the past 24 hours. Additional Deputy Commissioner Niaz Mehdi provided the information on Monday in a press release. The operations were conducted in areas under different police stations in Dhaka.

Police reported 29 arrests in Ramna, 45 in Lalbagh, 50 in Wari, 36 in Motijheel, 67 in Tejgaon, 127 in Mirpur, 31 in Gulshan, 50 in Uttara and five by the Detective Branch. Mirpur recorded the highest number of arrests among the listed areas.

During the operations, police recovered a foreign pistol, a magazine, six rounds of ammunition, a sword, a dagger and a grenade. They also seized 12 kilograms and 500 grams of cannabis, 39,127 yaba tablets, 3.2 grams of powdered yaba, a motorcycle, nine mobile phones and Tk3,000 in cash. Two victims were rescued, and legal action against those arrested is under process, police said.

Noakhali authorities removed the controversial “Rickshaw Puller’s Embankment,” also known as the Farakka embankment, from Algeer canal in Kabirhat উপজেলা on Monday, August 24. BNP Vice Chairman and Noakhali-4 lawmaker Md Shahjahan said resolving waterlogging and drainage problems would free Noakhali from a long-standing burden and support its prosperity. The embankment was cut to restore the canal’s natural water flow.

The earthen embankment was originally built to stop saline water from the Bamni River from entering the area. It later became a major obstruction to water drainage in Noakhali Sadar, Kabirhat and Companiganj. Noakhali-5 lawmaker Mohammad Fakhrul Islam, former district BNP president Golam Haider BSc, local party leaders, officials, public representatives and residents attended the removal.

Authorities decided to remove the embankment after construction of a closure and a 19-vent regulator on the Bamni River. They are also re-excavating a combined 10.5 kilometres of Algeer and Jaliar canals. The administration said the work could relieve waterlogging for about 900,000 people across 150 square kilometres, while supporting agriculture and fisheries and helping protect immovable assets valued at about Tk 2.8 billion.

Health and Family Welfare Minister Sardar Md. Sakhawat Hossain has directed the rapid formation of an effective committee for infection prevention and control. He issued the instruction on Monday at a seminar on infection prevention and control at the National Burn Institute in the capital.

The minister said treatment of infections cannot rely solely on antibiotics and that greater emphasis is needed on prevention. He said sustained work is required to prevent major diseases and infections, alongside increased public awareness about infection prevention.

At the seminar, the Prime Minister’s Special Assistant Dr. Ziauddin Haider said personal hygiene and improved hospital cleanliness have no alternative in preventing infections. He also said private hospitals, as well as government facilities, must be brought under waste-management measures. SingHealth infection prevention department director and associate professor Ling Moi Lin delivered a scientific presentation. Professor Dr. Nasir Uddin, director of the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery, chaired the event.

Interest among Chinese students in learning Bengali and studying Bangladeshi culture at the University of Dhaka is increasing. Enrollment in the university’s special Bengali language course at the Institute of Modern Languages rose from 15 students in 2024 to 26 this year, an increase of about 73 percent. The number of participating Chinese universities has also grown.

In 2024, 15 students from Guangdong University of Foreign Studies and Yunnan Minzu University joined the course. The following year, participation rose to 19 students from Yunnan Minzu University, Yunnan University and Beijing Foreign Studies University. This year’s cohort includes students from Yunnan Minzu University, Yunnan University, Communication University and Guangdong University of Foreign Studies.

On Monday, Chinese students studying Bengali paid a courtesy call on Dhaka University Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr A B M Obaidul Islam. They discussed their study experiences as well as facilities and problems. The vice-chancellor stressed language and cultural exchange to strengthen bilateral friendship and said necessary facilities for international students, including food, Wi-Fi and accommodation, would be improved.

The High Court has ordered authorities in Muradnagar, Cumilla, to submit a progress report on implementing measures to stop the extraction of fertile soil from agricultural land. The order was issued on Monday by a division bench of Justice JBM Hasan and Justice Aziz Ahmed Bhuiyan following a public-interest writ petition filed by Advocate Md Abul Kalam Azad.

The court directed the Upazila Nirbahi Officer and Assistant Commissioner (Land) to seize dredgers and equipment used to excavate fertile soil, shut illegal brickfields, and investigate cultivated land and sand pits damaged by dredging. It also called for a time-bound action plan to protect farmland and measures to restore pits created through soil cutting and dredging to their previous agricultural condition.

The order requires progress reports from the Cumilla deputy commissioner, police superintendent, Muradnagar UNO, AC Land, and officers-in-charge of Muradnagar and Bangra Bazar police stations. The petitioner, who heads the Agriculture and Environment Foundation, said local residents had long sought action against illegal dredgers and brickfields, while local journalists had reported on the issue.

Bangladesh’s Department of Narcotics Control detained two Indian nationals at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka on Monday, August 24, after allegedly recovering 5 kilograms and 40 grams of kush, 3 litres of foreign liquor and 24 Indian sarees. The detainees were identified as Sanaowar Ali, 36, and Imtiaz Ahmed, 36, both residents of North 24 Parganas, India.

According to the DNC, a special team led by Assistant Director Dr Md Abu Sayeed Mia of the airport office of DNC Dhaka Metro North took position at the arrivals hall’s green channel around 1pm following intelligence information. The two men had arrived from Bangkok on Thai Airways flight TG-321 and were held as suspects. Officials searched their travel trolleys in front of witnesses and members of airport agencies.

The DNC said the items were concealed beneath clothing using a special method. Two Indian passports, two boarding cards, four smartphones, $400, 1,170 Thai baht and 1,170 Indian rupees were also seized. A case was filed at Airport Police Station under relevant provisions of the Narcotics Control Act, 2018. The agency said it had identified several Bangladeshi associates and would bring them under the law.

Sixteen fishermen were rescued by a Bangladesh Navy team on Sunday night after their vessel drifted for three days near the Pashur River adjoining the Bay of Bengal. The fishermen had left Rayenda in Sarankhola upazila of Bagerhat on 19 August to fish at sea. Their boat’s engine failed on 21 August after two days of fishing, leaving them unable to control the vessel.

The group could not contact relatives or authorities because the boat remained outside mobile network coverage. On the night of 23 August, the vessel entered an area with network access. A fisherman named Lokman then called the national emergency service 999 and reported their situation.

Constable Fazle Rabbi Mia received the call, while 999 police dispatcher SI Md Robiul Islam coordinated with Bagerhat river police, Mongla Coast Guard and the Navy control room. A Navy rescue vessel began searching for the fishermen, though network problems initially delayed identification of their exact location. After a lengthy search, rescuers located the vessel near the Pashur River and recovered all 16 fishermen along with the disabled boat.