Nurul Islam Bulbul, MP for Chapainawabganj-3 and amir of Jamaat-e-Islami Dhaka South, criticised the government over electricity and fuel shortages, rising commodity prices, corruption and mismanagement at a student-youth gathering in Bholahat, Chapainawabganj, on Friday evening. He said a new Bangladesh should be built by implementing the referendum verdict and reforming the constitution.

Bulbul alleged that corruption, inefficiency and mismanagement had disrupted normal state operations and burdened ordinary people. He said 62,000 employees had lost jobs and 41 power plants had become inoperative, while the government had failed to ensure uninterrupted electricity. He also criticised increases in fuel, oil, gas and commodity prices, saying they had made daily life difficult.

Addressing border issues, Bulbul alleged that people in India who are Muslim and Bengali-speaking were being pushed into Bangladesh, creating an economic burden, and said people were being killed indiscriminately at the border. He called for a safe, humane and liveable country based on justice and fairness. Other speakers included MPs Dr Mu. Mizanur Rahman and local Jamaat and Islami Chhatra Shibir leaders.

Qawmi Chhatra Oikya Parishad has warned that it will not allow National Citizen Party (NCP) programmes in Brahmanbaria unless lawmaker Hasnat Abdullah publicly apologises to local residents. The warning was issued at a brief rally outside the Brahmanbaria Press Club late Friday night, following a protest march that began in the city’s Kandipara area and travelled along the main road.

Speakers at the rally strongly criticised Hasnat’s remarks in parliament concerning recent incidents in Brahmanbaria. They raised slogans against him and demanded that he apologise publicly to the people of the district over the statement.

The speakers said that otherwise they would prevent an already scheduled NCP organisational coordination meeting and political workshop from taking place at the District Shilpakala Academy on Saturday afternoon. Earlier on Thursday, Hasnat had sharply criticised the government in parliament for failing to take effective action after cultural programmes were stopped at police lines in Kishoreganj and Brahmanbaria.

The United States is paying a major diplomatic and strategic price for its war against Iran, with Washington’s influence in the Middle East, Gulf countries’ confidence and prospects for a rapid end to the conflict all damaged, analysts say. Former senior US diplomat Alan Eyre discussed the consequences of the US war against Iran in an interview with Al Jazeera from Washington.

Eyre, who played an important role in talks on the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, said US “soft power” in the Gulf region has been severely harmed. He said President Donald Trump’s decision to pursue the military operation unilaterally has pushed members of the Gulf Cooperation Council toward more balanced approaches to their strategic positions. He described the “America First” policy as having effectively become “America Alone.”

According to Eyre, Washington has lost leverage in two key areas. Its use of military force has not compelled Iran to surrender, raising questions about the effectiveness of military pressure. Iran also no longer believes that accepting US demands would ease American pressure, instead viewing regime change as Washington’s real objective. Eyre said these perceptions leave the United States with fewer diplomatic options to bring Tehran back to negotiations and quickly reach an agreement.

Chief Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury said artificial intelligence should not be used to write judgments in court cases and called for effective laws and policies governing where and how much AI can be used. He made the remarks on Saturday morning at the opening ceremony of the country’s first AI Governance Summer School at the Asiatic Society Bangladesh auditorium in the capital.

He said public awareness is needed to ensure that the use of AI does not undermine people’s fundamental rights. According to the chief justice, AI should be used with the goals of making human life easier and protecting fundamental rights.

The chief justice’s comments focused on defining limits for AI use through a legal and policy framework. He specifically identified judicial decision-writing as an area where AI should not be used, while emphasizing rights protection as a guiding principle for the technology’s application.

The family of Zakir Hossain, 35, is mourning at their home in Atkapara village of Kalikaprasad ইউনিয়ন, Bhairab, Kishoreganj, after he was killed in a gas-leak explosion at a company in Russia’s Amur area on August 25. Relatives and local residents have appealed to the government to bring his body back to Bangladesh.

Zakir, the eldest of four brothers and father of a daughter, had gone to Russia about one and a half years ago after borrowing money to improve his family’s financial condition. He joined SynaFex Company in the Amur area, and the money he sent home each month helped repay debts and support the household.

His relatives said he had recently received a promotion, raising hopes of greater financial stability for the family. The death news reached his village home yesterday, bringing grief across the area. Bhairab Upazila Nirbahi Officer K M Mamunur Rashid said he had been informed and that authorities would notify the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and seek to make every effort to return Zakir’s body.

UN Security Council members are backing Lebanon’s request to extend the mandate of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, UNIFIL, according to diplomatic sources cited by Al Jazeera. The United States is the only council member opposing the request, while UNIFIL’s current mandate is due to expire later this year. The force operates in southern Lebanon, particularly near the Israeli border, to help preserve peace and stability.

The United States and Israel oppose extending the mission, arguing that UNIFIL has not played an effective role in restraining Hezbollah. Other council members support Lebanon’s position, diplomatic sources said. UNIFIL has also monitored conditions along the border area adjacent to Israel as part of its role in southern Lebanon.

In August 2025, the Security Council voted to phase out UNIFIL and close the mission by the end of 2026. Lebanon has sought an extension after major changes in its security situation, including ongoing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. The US objection has become the main obstacle to the mission’s future, as the conflict intensifies debate over UNIFIL’s necessity.

Nepal has reversed its initial decision and will allow foreign rescue teams and specialists to work in selected areas after devastating flash floods. The decision came hours after the Foreign Ministry said on Friday afternoon that outside rescue assistance was not needed. A senior ministry official said the government changed course amid pressure from the international community.

The floods began on 26 August after a barrier lake on the Bhotekoshi River and its tributary, the Lehende River, burst. The disaster struck Nepal’s northern border district of Rasuwa and Gyirong district in Tibet, China. The released water carried mud, rocks and debris, covering wide areas in both districts.

According to figures from Kathmandu and Beijing, 1,924 people are missing in Nepal and another 558 in Tibet. Nearly 800 foreign nationals from 35 countries are among those missing, including citizens of India, the United States, Australia, New Zealand and South Korea. India, South Korea, Australia and other countries had offered assistance, while Nepal had initially said its own rescue forces were sufficiently capable. The government now plans to admit a limited number of specialists into designated areas.

The Bangladesh Jewellers Association, known as BAJUS, lowered prices for all categories of gold and silver in the domestic market after local acid gold prices declined. The revised rates took effect at 10am on Saturday, August 29. Under the decision, 22-carat gold now costs Tk240,636 per bhori, down Tk7,109 from the previous price of Tk247,745.

BAJUS’s Standing Committee on Pricing and Price Monitoring set the new prices at a meeting on Saturday morning, considering declines in acid gold and silver prices. The new per-gram gold rates are Tk20,630 for 22-carat, Tk19,700 for 21-carat, Tk16,920 for 18-carat, and Tk13,820 for traditional-method gold.

Silver prices were also reduced. Per gram, 22-carat silver is now Tk455, 21-carat Tk435, 18-carat Tk375 and traditional-method silver Tk285. The 22-carat silver rate fell Tk15 per gram from Tk470. VAT is included in the fixed selling prices, though labour charges may be added depending on jewellery design. The rates will remain effective at jewellery outlets nationwide until further notice.

Malaysia’s Immigration Department detained 528 foreign nationals in a nationwide operation called Ops Sasar from August 25 to 27 over alleged immigration-law violations. The department said the campaign was conducted using public complaints, available information and intelligence surveillance. A total of 678 foreign nationals were questioned and checked during the three-day operation.

The Putrajaya Immigration Department also conducted raids at two locations: a construction site in Jalan Wangsamaju, Setapak, and a business establishment in Dato Keramat. Officials checked 83 foreign nationals at those sites and detained 73 for alleged immigration offences, including 30 Bangladeshis, 37 Indonesians and two Nepalis.

The detainees also included one national each from Togo, Burkina Faso, Myanmar and India. JIM said most of those arrested were working when the operation took place, and some attempted to flee after noticing law-enforcement personnel. Allegations include lacking identity cards or valid immigration documents, overstaying approved periods and working without valid permission. The department said action would be taken under relevant immigration-law provisions.

Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem has rejected an agreement described as a framework deal between Israel and Lebanon, saying his group opposes it and wants it to collapse. In a speech broadcast on Hezbollah’s Al-Manar television channel, Qassem also said Hezbollah fighters would not surrender.

Qassem called the framework agreement illegal, unlawful and humiliating, and said it was destructive to Lebanon’s sovereignty. He pledged that Hezbollah would keep its head high and would not capitulate, according to the speech carried by the group’s television channel.

He said Hezbollah had supported implementation of a ceasefire in November 2024, which was intended to end the previous war with Israel. The source does not provide further details about the agreement, its terms, or any response from Israel or Lebanese authorities.

Aaron Sorkin is returning to cinemas with ‘The Social Reckoning,’ a sequel to his 2010 film ‘The Social Network.’ Rather than focusing on Facebook’s rise, the new film centers on crises, controversies and allegations surrounding the company and its founder, Mark Zuckerberg. Jeremy Strong plays Zuckerberg, while the film is scheduled for worldwide release on October 9.

A recently released trailer shows Jeremy Allen White as Wall Street Journal journalist Jeff Horwitz, who investigates Facebook’s influence on modern life and its negative consequences. Mikey Madison plays Frances Haugen, whose character brings internal Facebook documents and the company’s disputed actions into the story. The trailer portrays Zuckerberg as tougher, harsher and more aggressive than in the earlier film.

Sorkin said he had long struggled to find a suitable story for a sequel, despite suggestions that he write about Brexit, Cambridge Analytica and other Facebook-related controversies. He said a film must offer more than relevance or importance; it also needs a compelling narrative that holds audiences from beginning to end. ‘The Social Network’ was released on October 1, 2010, nearly 16 years before this follow-up.

Local residents and members of affected families held a human chain outside the National Press Club in Dhaka on Saturday, demanding an impartial investigation into allegations of land grabbing, extortion, assault, drug dealing, harassment through cases and illegal sand filling on agricultural land in Kaliganj, Gazipur. Speakers sought protection for complainants and victims and called for legal action if allegations are proven.

Participants raised allegations involving Kaliganj upazila BNP member secretary Khalekuzzaman Bablu, his brothers Anisur Rahman Ripon and Sohel, and several others. They alleged that political identity and local influence were being used to control markets, land, sand filling and construction work. They also claimed that people who protested or filed complaints faced cases and other forms of harassment.

The demonstrators cited Dubai expatriate Alamgir Kabir’s claim that nearly four bighas of his land had been occupied, while the family of Bayezid Hasan Shibli alleged he was beaten and handed to police after yaba was placed in his pocket. Their six demands included recovering occupied land, investigating the allegations, stopping illegal sand filling, examining claimed political influence and ensuring victims’ safety.

Bangladeshi film actor Apu Biswas has returned safely to Dhaka with the full shooting team of the film “Shikar” after facing severe flood and landslide conditions in Nepal. Speaking to journalists on Friday after returning, she described frightening moments near Kathmandu and said the team had narrowly avoided a major danger.

Biswas said the group had been scheduled to travel back to Kathmandu by the same route on August 27, one day after the disaster struck nearby. She said the road has been declared completely closed to traffic for the next 15 to 20 days because of the scale of the calamity. Her fans had been concerned after reports of flooding and landslides in Nepal.

The team decided to suspend filming in Nepal, saying continuing work amid the humanitarian crisis would have been inappropriate. Biswas said filming romantic-song scenes while local residents were suffering would have felt discourteous and uncomfortable. She had been in Nepal for several days with co-artists for “Shikar,” in which Kolkata actor Kharaj Mukherjee appears opposite her. Mukherjee had earlier said he was safe.

Agriculture and Fisheries and Livestock Minister Mohammad Amin Ur Rashid said Bangladesh faces no fertiliser shortage and warned that action will be taken against retailers found creating an artificial scarcity or charging higher prices. He made the remarks on Saturday as chief guest at a meeting with onion and jute growers in Faridpur district at the Faridpur Sadar উপজেলা পরিষদ auditorium.

The minister said the country imports about 1.5 million tonnes more fertiliser than total demand and also maintains an equivalent security stock, leaving no scope for a national shortage. He alleged that some wrongdoers and conspirators were deliberately attempting to keep fertiliser prices high. Some retailers, he said, claim fertiliser is unavailable but supply it when customers pay extra.

Rashid said the government is working to reduce agricultural import dependence, including by developing domestic sources of jute and onion seeds. He said the wider goal is to meet demand through local output and eventually export agricultural products rather than import them. The government is also pursuing self-sufficiency in essentials including green chillies, ginger and garlic.

Ronjina Parvin, 55, head teacher of Bagbari Girls Government Primary School in Bogura, died after falling from a rickshaw during an alleged bag snatching near the South Plaza of Bangladesh’s Parliament Building in Dhaka. The incident occurred at about 6:30am on Saturday while she was travelling toward an eye hospital in the Farmgate area.

Hospital and family sources said Parvin had arrived at Gabtali Bus Terminal at dawn after travelling overnight from Bogura to see a doctor at Islamia Eye Hospital. As her rickshaw reached the South Plaza, alleged snatchers on a motorcycle came from behind and pulled her bag. She fell from the rickshaw and sustained a head injury.

She was rescued from the scene and taken to Suhrawardy Hospital, where the duty doctor declared her dead. Tejgaon zone Deputy Commissioner of Police Ibn Mizan said police were working to identify the motorcycle and those involved in the incident.