Bangladesh | Pakistan

Bangladesh’s first female prime minister, Khaleda Zia, died after a prolonged illness, her opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) said on Tuesday. Khaleda, aged 80, had advanced cirrhosis of the liver, arthritis, diabetes, chest and heart problems, her doctors said. “The BNP chairperson and former prime minister, the national leader Begum Khaleda Zia, passed away today at 6:00am (0000 GMT), just after the Fajr prayer,” the party said in a statement. “We pray for the forgiveness of her soul and request everyone to offer prayers for her departed soul,” it added. Interim leader Muhammad Yunus said Bangladesh “has lost a great guardian”. “Through her uncompromising leadership, the nation was repeatedly freed from undemocratic conditions and inspired to regain liberty,” the Nobel Peace Prize winner said in a statement. “I pray for the eternal peace and forgiveness of Begum Khaleda Zia’s soul,” ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina said, in a statement on social media by her now banned Awami League party. Desp...

Bangladesh police on Sunday said the alleged killers of popular student leader Sharif Osman Hadi had fled to India, in comments likely to further strain relations with its neighbour. Hadi, a vocal India critic who took part in last year’s mass uprising, was shot by masked assailants in Dhaka earlier this month and later succumbed to his injuries at a hospital in Singapore. His death set off violent protests with angry mobs torching several buildings, including two major newspapers deemed to favour India, as well as a prominent cultural institution. With protests being held across the country almost daily, pressure has been growing on Bangladesh’s interim government to arrest the killers of Hadi, who was set to contest the general elections in February next year. “The killing was premeditated. Those behind it have been identified,” Nazrul Islam, a senior Dhaka Metropolitan Police officer, said at a news conference. He added that the suspects left Bangladesh through the Haluaghat border with India shortly after...

The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) has condemned the recent surge of violence, vandalism, and arson targeting media houses in Bangladesh. A joint statement issued by PFUJ President Afzal Butt, and Secretary General Arshad Ansari on Friday said, “Silencing the press through physical intimidation is a direct violation of the constitutional right to freedom of expression and the rule of law.” The statement comes days after Bangladesh saw violent protests following the death of Sharif Osman Hadi, a key figure in last year’s student-led uprising that toppled longtime Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. was shot in the head by masked assailants in Dhaka on December 16 while launching his campaign for an election due in February. He died in Singapore on December 18. Following his death, violent protests broke out and several buildings, including those housing leading newspapers Prothom Alo and The Daily Star, were set on fire and vandalised. Protesters accused the newspapers of enabling Hadi’s killing, calli...

Bangladesh on Tuesday summoned India’s high commissioner in Dhaka to protest what it described as violent incidents targeting its diplomatic facilities in India, including vandalism at visa centres and protests outside its mission in New Delhi. Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it summoned Indian High Commissioner Pranay Verma to convey Dhaka’s grave concern over what it called “regrettable incidents” outside the Bangladesh High Commission and the ambassador’s residence in New Delhi on December 20, as well as vandalism at the Bangladesh Visa Centre in Siliguri on December 22 by “extremist elements.” The ministry condemned what it described as premeditated acts of violence and intimidation against diplomatic establishments. It said such acts not only “endanger the safety of diplomatic personnel but also undermine the principles of mutual respect and values of peace and tolerance.” Calling for a proper investigation, the ministry said: “Bangladesh expects the Government of India to immediately take ...

Bangladesh has rejected India’s dismissal of a protest outside its high commission in New Delhi as “misleading propaganda”, saying the incident was “highly regrettable“. According to Bangladeshi media, around 20 to 25 protesters gathered in front of the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi on Saturday evening. According to mission officials, the protesters raised anti-Bangladesh slogans and issued threats against the Bangladesh high commissioner, Prothom Alo reported. In response, the Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal issued a statement on Sunday saying India had taken note of “misleading propaganda in sections of the Bangladesh media on the incident”. “The fact is that about 20-25 youth gathered in front of the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi on December 20 and raised slogans in protest against the horrendous killing of Dipu Chandra Das in Mymensingh, while also calling for the protection of all minorities in Bangladesh,” he said. According to Prothom Alo, Das — a garme...

BANGLADESH has been rocked by spasms of violence after a student leader, who was shot in Dhaka recently, succumbed to his injuries while receiving treatment in Singapore. Sharif Osman Hadi was a key figure in last year’s uprising — which sent Sheikh Hasina Wajed’s regime packing — a spokesman for the Inqilab Morcho political platform, and a candidate for next year’s elections scheduled for February. After news of his death spread on Thursday, protests in various parts of Bangladesh spiralled out of control, as rampaging mobs resorted to rioting and arson. Among the institutions attacked were two of the country’s leading newspapers, Prothom Alo and The Daily Star. Staffers of the latter publication survived a terrifying ordeal when a mob torched their building, and they had to be rescued by security personnel. As per local media, Hadi’s funeral on Saturday drew hundreds of thousands of mourners, including Bangladesh’s interim leader Muhammad Yunus. Inqilab Morchohas termed the murdered leader a “martyr … again...

Tens of thousands of Bangladeshi mourners, including the country’s interim government leader, attended the funeral on Saturday of a slain youth leader and election candidate amid tight security. Sharif Osman Hadi, 32, a key figure in last year’s student-led uprising that toppled longtime Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, was shot in the head by masked assailants in Dhaka last week while launching his campaign for an election due in February. He died on Thursday in Singapore after six days on life support. His death has prompted a wave of unrest in the South Asian nation that included coordinated mob attacks on major newspapers and cultural institutions. Police and paramilitary forces were deployed across the capital for Saturday’s funeral, but there were no reports of any renewed violence. A convoy carrying the body of Sharif Osman Hadi, a student leader, who died after being shot in the head, moves along the crowd after the funeral prayer, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, December 20. — Reuters Interim government leader Mu...

The body of a popular student leader who was assassinated returned home to Bangladesh on Friday, as the country’s interim government urged people to resist violence as protests erupted across Dhaka and other cities. In a post on X, the interim administration wrote that a Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight carrying Sharif Osman Hadi’s remains landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka at 5:48pm local time (4:48pm PKT) after departing from Singapore, where he was undergoing medical treatment. Sharif Osman Hadi, 32, the youth leader who died, was a spokesperson for the Inquilab Mancha (Platform for Revolution) and participated in the protests that overthrew Hasina. He was shot in the head by masked assailants in Dhaka last Friday while launching his election campaign. Hadi, an outspoken critic of India, was initially treated at a local hospital before being flown to Singapore for advanced medical care, where he died after spending six days on life support. Meanwhile, the United States Embassy in Dha...

Pacer Abdul Subhan spearheaded a dominant all-round display as Pakistan Under-19s cruised into the final of the ACC Men’s U-19 Asia Cup with an emphatic eight-wicket victory over defending champions Bangladesh at The Sevens Stadium in Dubai on Friday. The rain-hit second semi-final was reduced to 27 overs a side, and Pakistan skipper Farhan Yousaf’s decision to field first proved decisive as Bangladesh were bundled out for 121 in 26.3 overs. Subhan led the charge with a probing spell of 4-20, accounting for key batsmen Azizul Hakim and Kalam Siddiki to leave Bangladesh reeling. Huzaifa Ahsan offered excellent support with figures of 2-10, while Ali Raza and Mohammad Sayyam chipped in with a wicket apiece. Samiun Basir was the lone resistance for Bangladesh with a 33-run knock before being run out at the close of the innings. Pakistan’s chase was briefly checked when wicket-keeper-batter Hamza Zahoor fell for a duck, but opener Sameer Minhas ensured there were no further alarms. The right-hander anchored the i...

Bangladesh police on Thursday stopped protesters from marching towards an Indian diplomatic mission, a day after India’s foreign ministry conveyed its concerns over the “deteriorating” security environment in the country. Ties between the two countries have been frosty since former Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina fled to India following a student-led uprising last year. Dhaka has repeatedly asked for her extradition so that she could stand trial for her alleged crimes, with Delhi responding that it was examining the requests. On Thursday, dozens of demonstrators began marching towards the assistant Indian high commissioner office in Rajshahi district, which borders India. Miftahul Jannat, one of the protesters, said the plan was to carry out a sit-in, demanding the “repatriation of all the killers including Sheikh Hasina”. The protest was stalled by the police, who said they “listened to their demands and promised to forward them to the authorities”. “We are not aware of any further plans (for demonst...

IT IS strategically possible for Dhaka to join a regional bloc with Paki­stan at some point — one that does not include India — unlike other South Asian states, a top Ban­gladeshi official said on Wednesday. The state-owned Bang­ladesh Sangbad Sangstha news agency quoted Dha­ka’s Foreign Adviser Md Touhid Hossain as saying: “It is possible for us (Bang­ladesh) strategically … (but) it is not possible for Nepal or Bhutan to form a grouping with Pakistan excluding India”. His remarks are being interpreted as a response to a statement by Pakis­tan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar at the recent ‘Islamabad Conclave’, where he had said a trilateral initiative involving Bangladesh, China and Pakistan had begun and may expand to include countries within and beyond the region. According to the Bang­ladeshi outlet, Mr Hossain said Mr Dar “has said something, and perhaps at some point this could see some progress”. In August, Foreign Minister Dar visited Bangladesh for the first time in 13 years. PM Shehbaz Sharif and Bangl...

The lowest price offered in the tender from the Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) to purchase 100,000 metric tonnes of rice for supply to Bangladesh was estimated at $394.95 CIF liner out, European traders said on Friday. CIF liner out terms include cost, insurance, and freight shipping to a port in Bangladesh, as well as the seller’s unloading costs. No purchase has been reported and offers are still being considered, they said. Reports reflect traders’ assessments, and further price and volume estimates are still possible later. The lowest offer was reportedly submitted by the company Jhulay Lal. There were 11 participants in TCP’s tender, with other prices ranging from $397.25 to $424.80 a tonne CIF liner out, traders said. Bangladesh has been undertaking a series of import tenders in the past weeks to cool local prices. The TCP tender seeks long-grain white rice to supply to Bangladesh. Price offers have to be valid for 21 working days after submission. The rice must be available for shipment within 4...

A court in Bangladesh sentenced ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday to 21 years in prison for corruption, a week after she was given the death penalty for crimes against humanity. Hasina, 78, is currently residing in India and has defied court orders that she return to Bangladesh. She was sentenced in absentia on November 17 to be hanged for crimes against humanity after ordering a deadly crackdown against a student-led uprising last year that eventually ousted her. But three other cases had been brought against the ex-leader by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) over land grabs of lucrative plots in a suburb of the capital Dhaka. Hasina received seven years’ imprisonment in each of the three cases, Dhaka Tribune reported. Several other accused were also handed varying prison terms, it added. It is unclear if the sentences will run concurrently. Hasina’s conduct “demonstrates a persistent corruption mindset rooted in entitlement, unchecked power, and a greedy eye for public property”, ruled judg...

Anti-corruption authorities in Bangladesh have seized approximately 10 kilogrammes of gold, worth around $1.3 million, from bank lockers belonging to ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, officials said on Wednesday. Officials from the Central Intelligence Cell (CIC) of the National Board of Revenue said the discovery was made after opening lockers that had been seized in September. “Following a court order, we opened the lockers and found about 9.7 kilogrammes of gold belonging to the former prime minister,” a senior CIC official told AFP, requesting anonymity. The haul included gold coins, bars and jewellery. Investigators said Hasina had failed to deposit some of the gifts she received while in office at the state treasury, known as the Toshakhana, as required by law. The National Board of Revenue is also probing alleged tax evasion and examining whether Hasina declared the recovered gold in her tax filings. Bangladesh has been in political turmoil since the end of Hasina’s rule, and violence has marred cam...

The Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) has issued a tender to purchase 100,000 tonnes of rice for supply to Bangladesh, it emerged on Monday. After decades of troubled relations, Islamabad and Dhaka have seen improved ties and increased bilateral engagement since the August 2024 ouster of ex-premier Sheikh Hasina. The deadline for submission of price offers is 11:30am on November 28, according to the TCP tender issued on November 20, which was seen by Dawn. The tender invites “separate sealed bids” from companies, partnerships and sole proprietors for buying 100,000 tonnes of long grain white rice (IRRI-6) “for export to Bangladesh in the shape of break bulk cargo” through Karachi ports. Price offers have to be valid for 21 working days after submission. The rice must be available for shipment within 45 days after the contract award. The bids shall be submitted for a minimum quantity of 25,000 tonnes, or multiples thereof, and a maximum quantity of 100,000 tonnes, +/- 5 per cent MOLSO (5pc variance margin)...

Pakistan Shaheens defended a modest 125 to beat Bangladesh ‘A’ in a nerve-shredding Super Over thriller and successfully defend their Asia Cup Rising Stars title at the West End Park International Cricket Stadium in Doha on Sunday night. In a final that swung wildly in the space of 40 minutes, Pakistan were bowled out for 125 after yet another top-order meltdown, only for their spinners to rip through Bangladesh ‘A’ and leave them reeling at 53 for 7. A gritty 43-run eighth-wicket stand between Rakibul Hasan and SM Meherob threatened the unthinkable, before three huge sixes in the 19th over from Abdul Gaffar Saqlain took the game to a Super Over. Ahmed Daniyal lean-bowled both batters in the first four balls of the Super Over to restrict Bangladesh to just six. Ripon Mondol, Bangladesh’s hero with the ball in the main game, started superbly with two yorkers but Saad Masood’s flicked four off the third legitimate delivery sealed a famous victory for Pakistan Shaheens. Earlier, Shaheens’ batting woes resurfaced...

Pakistan on Friday said that the recent death sentence for former Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina was an “internal matter” for the country and that its people were fully capable of solving their own issues. A Bangladesh court had sentenced Hasina to death on Monday, concluding a months-long trial that found her guilty of ordering a deadly crackdown on a student-led uprising last year. The ruling came months ahead of parliamentary elections expected to be held in early February. Addressing his weekly press briefing today, Foreign Office (FO) Spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said several queries were received regarding the development, on which he said: “This is an internal matter of Bangladesh. The people of Bangladesh are fully capable of addressing their issues in accordance with their own democratic and constitutional processes.” Hasina was found guilty of ordering lethal force by a tribunal in the capital Dhaka, 15 months after resigning and fleeing to India in the face of a student-led uprising that kil...

At least five people, including a child, were killed and around 100 injured when a magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck Bangladesh on Friday, the government said, with buildings damaged in many areas including the densely populated capital Dhaka. Tremors were felt in eastern states in neighbouring India that border Bangladesh, but there were no immediate reports of major damage there, authorities said. View this post on Instagram Muhammad Yunus, the head of Bangladesh’s interim government, said the injured included students from Dhaka University, factory workers in the city of Gazipur and residents of Narsingdi, the epicenter of the earthquake. His statement gave no details of how the five died. Police said earlier three people had been killed when the railing of a six-storey building collapsed during the earthquake. Several of the injured taken to hospital from Narsingdi, about 40 kilometres east of Dhaka, were in a critical condition, health adviser Nurjahan Begum told reporters. Dhaka residents rushed out of th...

Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Tuesday said that Pakistan had moved past “bitter memories” and urged the forging of a new future with Bangladesh amid the recent warming of ties between the two countries. Ever since a popular uprising in Bangladesh toppled Sheikh Hasina’s government in August last year, there has been a thaw in ties between Islamabad and Dhaka, with trade and bilateral relations seeing a marked improvement. Fazl is currently on a visit to the country and called for stron­ger ties, telling a large religious gathering that a shared “unity of faith was a stronger bond between the two nations that cannot be abolished”. Addressing a gathering of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam members today at Dhaka’s Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre as the chief guest with several other Bengali political parties in attendance, Fazl said: “Pakistan wants Bangladesh’s prosperity and stability, has forgotten the bitter memories of the past.” He reiterated that the people of Pakista...

A Bangladesh court sentenced ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to death on Monday, concluding a months-long trial that found her guilty of ordering a deadly crackdown on a student-led uprising last year. The ruling comes months ahead of parliamentary elections expected to be held in early February. Hasina’s Awami League party has been barred from contesting and it is feared that Monday’s verdict could stoke fresh unrest ahead of the vote. The International Crimes Tribunal, Bangladesh’s domestic war crimes court located in the capital Dhaka, delivered the guilty verdict amid tight security and in Hasina’s absence after she fled to India in August 2024. View this post on Instagram Hasina, 78, defied court orders that she return from India to attend her trial about whether she ordered a deadly crackdown against the student-led uprising that ousted her. She called the guilty verdict and death sentence in her crimes against humanity trial “biased and politically motivated”. “The verdicts announced against me hav...