In memory of legendry mystic bard Fakir Lalon Shah, a two-day Lalon festival begins at Lalon Akhra of Cheuria village in Kushtia today. Titled ‘Lalon Smaran Utsab’ Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy, in association with the Lalon Academy and Kushtia district administration, has organised the event. On the occasion, the shrine of Fakir Lalon Shah has worn a festive look and hundreds of devotees from home and abroad has gathered at the Akhra (shrine). The organisers will provide visitors with mea

Six members of a family were returning to Chattogram by Udayan Express last night after burying one of their family members in Sreemangal of Moulvibazar. On Thursday, Md Muslim, 50, was killed in an accident at a ship breaking yard. The grief-stricken family went to their ancestral village in Sreemangal from Chattogram and buried him. Muslim’s wife Jahera Khatun, 48, along with her four children and mother took the train, Udayan Express, to return to their home. When they reached Brah

In their long hunt for Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Iraqi intelligence teams secured a break in February 2018 after one of the Islamic State leader’s top aides gave them information on how he escaped capture for so many years, said two Iraqi security officials. Baghdadi would sometimes hold strategy talks with his commanders in moving minibuses packed with vegetables in order to avoid detection, Ismael al-Ethawi told officials after he was arrested by Turkish authorities and handed to the Iraqis.

A Dhaka court today placed contractor SM Golam Kibria Shamim and expelled Jubo League leader Khaled Mahmud Bhuiyan on a seven-day remand each in two separate corruption cases. Dhaka Senior Special Judge (in-charge) Md Al Mamun passed the order after investigation officers of Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) produced them before the court with a 10-day remand prayer for each of them. The court also rejected bail petitions filed by them. On October 21, Shamim and his mother were sued by t

Over 19 million children -- a quarter of them under 5 -- spread across Bangladesh are at the front line of climate change disasters, a UN report says mentioning that climate change threatens child nutrition here. In 2018, 58.7 million children under 5 were stunted and almost 25.9 million were wasted in South Asia, the report says adding that more children and young people are surviving, but far too few are thriving. The government of Bangladesh will begin the second phase of its ‘Climate

Former Jubo League Dhaka South president Ismail Hossain Chowdhury Samrat, an alleged kingpin of illegal casino business in the city, was taken to Dhaka Central Jail after he was released from National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD) today. He has been released from the hospital and shifted to the central Jail in Keraniganj, its jailer Mahbubul Islam confirmed The Daily Star. A vehicle from the jail was sent to the hospital to bring Samrat back, the Jailer added. WHY WAS HE

The UGC probe committee, formed to investigate the irregularities and corruption allegation against the VC, today submitted its report to its chairman with the recommendation. A member of the investigation committee, seeking anonymity, confirmed the development to The Daily Star. UGC chairman Professor Dr Kazi Shahidullah told The Daily Star that he received the probe report from the inquiry team at his office this morning. On September 24, the UGC formed the five-member committee to in

  The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulator Commission has ordered mobile phone operators to ensure in seven days that the Rohingya refugees do not get access to mobile phones. The telecom regulator wrote to the operators on Sunday regarding the issue, BTRC Senior Assistant Director Md Zakir Hossain Khan told bdnews24.com. “You were instructed to ensure that the Rohingya people do not get access to the mobiles for the sake of state security and importance, law and order and publ