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MNA Editorial Desk: Recalling the barbaric carnage, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said it was not possible to carry out an attack like that of August 21, 2004 had there been no direct patronage from the then BNP-Jamaat government. “Had there been no patronage from the [then] government, it was not possible to carry out the August-21 grenade attack this way,” she said. Sheikh Hasina made the allegation while addressing a discussion marking the August 21, 2004 grenade attack on Friday. Awami League organised the event at its Bangabandhu Avenue central office. The Prime Minister attended the event virtually from ...

MNA Editorial Desk: The four-member committee formed by the home ministry started holding a public hearing over the killing of Major (retd) Sinha Md Rashed Khan this morning. The hearing started at 11:00am at the office of Shamlapur Rohingya Camp in-charge in Teknaf of Cox’s Bazar, our Cox’s Bazar correspondent reports from the spot. Rafiq Uddin, chairman of Baharchhara union in Teknaf, told our correspondent that the probe committee has already listed the names of 12 people for recording their witness accounts. Hundreds of people thronged the Shamlapur Rohingya camp and its surrounding areas, added our correspondent. On August 12, ...

MNA Editorial Desk: The head of a UN investigative body on Myanmar said Facebook has not released evidence of “serious international crimes”, despite vowing to work with investigators looking into abuses in the country including against the Rohingya Muslim minority. Nicholas Koumjian, head of the Independent Investigative Mechanism on Myanmar (IIMM), told Reuters the social media giant was holding material “highly relevant and probative of serious international crimes” but had not shared any during year-long talks. He declined to give details of the material the IIMM had asked for. Facebook did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Myanmar ...

MNA Editorial Desk: A Cox’s Bazar court issued warrants for the arrest of nine policemen including officer-in-charge of Teknaf Model Police Station Pradeep Kumar Das in a case over the killing of Major (retd) Sinha Md Rashed Khan in Teknaf. Senior Judicial Magistrate Tamanna Farah issued the arrest warrants against them after taking the case into cognizance on Wednesday. The other accused in the case are inspector of Baharchara Police outpost Liakat Ali, sub-inspector Nandolal Rakkhit, Sub-inspector Tutul, assistant sub-inspector Liton Mia, constable Shafanur Karim, constable Kamal Hossain, constable Abdullah AL Mamun, and constable Mohamamd Mostafa. Earlier, a case was ...

MNA Editorial Desk: Chief of Army Staff of Bangladesh Army General Aziz Ahmed and Inspector General of Police Benazir Ahmed have described the recent killing of former major Sinha Md Rashed Khan in police firing as ‘an isolated incident’. The army chief and the IGP also reassured the citizens that the two forces have confidence in each other. They came up with the statement during a press conference at an army bungalow in the Cox’s Bazar district on Wednesday. Former major Sinha was killed in police firing at Baharchhara police check-post on Marine Drive road in Teknaf of Cox’s Bazar ...

MNA Editorial Desk: Retired Major Sinha Md Rashed was killed in police firing at Baharchhara police check-post on Friday night The authorities have closed 16 police personnel, including the in-charge, of Baharchhara police outpost in connection with the killing of a retired major of Bangladesh Army on Marine Drive road in Teknaf. All 16 members of the police were attached to the Cox’s Bazar Police Lines before being closed from the Baharchhara police outpost, confirmed Cox’s Bazar Superintendent of Police ABM Masud Hossain. Earlier in the day, a probe committee was formed by the Home Ministry over the killing of ...

MNA Editorial Desk: Middle-East-based militant organisation Islamic State (IS) has claimed the responsibility for Wednesday’s bomb explosion in the capital’s Pallabi police station, said terrorism watchdog SITE Intelligence Group. Five including an officer-in-charge were injured in the blast at 7am on Wednesday. However, Saiful Islam, deputy commissioner of Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime unit of DMP said that the claim is fake. OC Nazrul Islam said, “A team recovered a bomb-like object from Kalshi graveyard early today. They brought it to the police station.” “We informed the Bomb Disposal Unit to neutralise it. However it exploded before the unit could ...

MNA Editorial Desk: Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal has said that the country’s law enforcement agencies have established great control over militants but are yet to completely rout them out. “Their (militants’) existence is now limited to scattered small cells in different areas. They have no activity now. “Sometimes they try to do things to make their presence felt. But law enforcement agencies are alert regarding such activities,” he said. The minister made the remarks talking to the media at his office in Dhaka on Tuesday afternoon. He said the government can’t take any chances on this issue. Security forces, ...

MNA Editorial Desk: A Dhaka court on Sunday placed Regent Group and Regent Hospital Chairman Mohammad Shahed alias Shahed Karim who was arrested over various irregularities, including the issuance of fake coronavirus certificates from his hospital, on a 28-day fresh remand in four cases. The judge of the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court passed the order after the fraudster was produced before his court seeking a 10-day remand in each case. After the hearing, the court put Shahed on a seven-day remand in each case. Earlier, he was produced before the court in the morning on expiry of his 10-day remand. ...

MNA Editorial Desk: The new director general (DG) of Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) Prof Abul Bashar Khurshid Alam has said the government alone is not responsible for corruption in the health sector. He made the remarks after paying homage to the portrait of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman at Dhanmondi Road 32 on Saturday. “There is no way to prevent corruption if we ourselves are not honest,” he said. “If we talk about corruption, I would say that we are all responsible for it. If we only point our fingers at the government, that would ...

MNA Editorial Desk: The United States has taken an initiative to re-investigate the case of the political asylum of MA Rashed Chowdhury, the fugitive killer of Bangladesh’s Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. The country’s attorney general, William Barr, has reopened the case, according to a report published by US political web magazine ‘Politico’ on Friday (July 24). Last month, William Barr secretly decided to reopen the much-discussed case, the report says. Politico says that the Trump administration wants to hand over Rashed Chowdhury to Bangladesh by reopening the case which was settled about 15 years ago. Rashed ...

MNA Editorial Desk: The government has appointed Dr ABM Khurshid Alam as the director general (DG) of the Directorate General of Health Services following the resignation of its former chief amid a series scams related to Covid-19 test. Public Relations Officer of the Health Ministry Maidul islam Prodhan told Dhaka Tribune that the appointment of Alam, who heads the Surgery department of the Dhaka Medical College, has been finalized. The new appointment comes hours after the government said on Thursday that it has scrapped the contractual agreement and appointment of Abul Kalam Azad as the chief of the DGHS, a ...

MNA Editorial Desk: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s daughter Saima Wazed Hossain Putul has been chosen as a ‘Thematic Ambassador’ by Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF) under the thematic domain of ‘Vulnerability’, a foreign ministry statement said on Wednesday. Saima Wazed is also serving as the Chairperson of the National Advisory Committee on Neurodevelopmental Disorders and Autism. CVF has nominated four ambassadors. Apart from Saima, the CVF also made Speaker and former President of Maldives Mohamed Nasheed, Deputy Speaker of the Parliament of the Philippines Loren Legarda and Lead Climate Change Specialist of DR of Congo Tosi Mpanu-Mpanu as its “Thematic Ambassadors” ...

MNA Editorial Desk: Abul Kalam Azad has resigned as the chief of the Directorate General of Health Services, a key agency in the fight against the pandemic, amid a series of scams related to COVID-19 tests. The director general of health services submitted the resignation letter to the public administration ministry on Tuesday, Health Secretary Abdul Mannan told media. Prior to his appointment as director general in 2016, Azad was the additional director general for planning and then administration at the DGHS. The government extended his appointment on contract after the end of his tenure. He had also worked as ...

MNA Editorial Desk: A coronavirus vaccine developed by the University of Oxford appears safe and trains the immune system, reports BBC. Trials involving 1,077 people showed the injection led to them making antibodies and white blood cells that can fight coronavirus. The findings are hugely promising, but it is still too soon to know if this is enough to offer protection and larger trials are under way. The UK has already ordered 100 million doses of the vaccine. The vaccine – called ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 – is being developed at unprecedented speed. It is made from a genetically engineered virus that ...

MNA Editorial Desk: Bangladesh Medical Research Council (BMRC) on Sunday approved the icddr,b to conduct the phase-3 human trial of Covid-19 vaccine developed by a Chinese company. “The approval to conduct the Phase-3 clinical trial of Covid-19 vaccine, developed by Chinese company Sinovac Research and Development Co Ltd, will be informed formally within two to three days,” BMRC Director Dr Mahmood-uz-Jahan told media. About a month ago, icddr,b applied to BMRC for permission to conduct Covid-19 vaccine’s phase-3 clinical trial in Bangladesh, he said adding that their application has been approved on Sunday. “We went through their application and reviewed ...

MNA Editorial Desk: Victims allegedly defrauded by Regent Group’s Chairman Mohammad Sahed alias Sahed Karim filed 92 complaints against him with RAB media cell in last 24 hours. RAB officials said the victims will be provided legal assistance. RAB Media Wing Director Lt. Col. Ashiq Billah on Saturday night told that a complaint cell was launched on Friday. Since, victims contacted there and filed 92 complaints in written. The complaints will be sent to investigation agency and the victims will be provided legal assistance. The complaints include- unpaid debt money, fake coronavirus test certificate, not paying money by selling goods ...

MNA Editorial Desk: A Dhaka court has placed JKG Healthcare Chairman Dr Sabrina Arif Chowdhury on two-day fresh remand in a case lodged over issuing fake coronavirus test reports. Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Masudur Rahman passed the order on Friday as investigation officer and detective branch inspector Liyakat Ali produced the suspended registrar doctor of National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases before the court and pleaded to place her on five-day fresh remand, reports BSS. Earlier on July 13, Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Shahinur Rahman had placed her on three-day remand in the case. During her remand, police brought Sabrina and her husband, ...

MNA Editorial Desk: The Anti-Corruption Commission on Thursday appointed an officer to investigate JKG Health Care chairperson Dr Sabrina Arif Chowdhury’s alleged illegal wealth and breach of service rules. The ACC assigned its deputy director Selina Aktar to conduct the inquiry, said ACC director for Public Relations Pranab Kumar Bhattacharya. Earlier on Monday, the ACC decided to launch an enquiry against JKG Healthcare chairperson Dr Sabrina Chowdhury for her alleged involvement in private business despite being a government physician, Paranab said adding that the inquiry officer would examine the physician’s wealth. Dr Sabrina is a suspended cardiac surgeon at the ...

MNA Editorial Desk: More than 100,000 workers, who are in the pipeline of going abroad, remain in uncertainty as the visas of many of them have already been expired, said manpower recruiters on Wednesday. They also sought necessary fund from the government to realise the losses. The leaders of Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (BAIRA) were speaking at a virtual meeting with journalists on the current situation of overseas employment sector and way forward. According to the apex body of the manpower recruiters, so far, it has received a list of 85,405 workers’ visas from the 320 recruiting agencies. ...

MNA Editorial Desk: The flood situation worsened further marooning over five lakh people in seven northern districts with significant improvement in Nilphamari during the last 24 hours ending at 9:00am in the Brahmaputra basin. Officials of Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) and district administrations said major rivers were flowing above danger marks (DM) at 10 points of Rangpur, Lalmonirhat, Kurigram, Gaibandha, Jamalpur, Bogura and Sirajganj at 9:00am today (Tuesday). The flood situation deteriorated in these districts following rise in water levels of major rivers due to an increase in the rate of onrushing water from the upstream inundating fresh areas ...

MNA Editorial Desk: Although 4,998 people tested positive for coronavirus from March 8 to April 25, only 113 of them or 2.26 per cent, recovered during the period, showing one of the lowest recovery rates in the world. Health experts have attributed this to a lengthy recovery period of the disease, lower follow-up tests, weakened immune system of elderly and other people with underlying health conditions and mismanagement in treatment. Talking to UNB, IEDCR Director Prof Meerjady Sabrina Flora, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) Vice-Chancellor Prof Kanak Kanti Barua and Dhaka Medical College Prof Khan Abul Kalam Azad said ...

MNA Editorial Desk: A segment of export-oriented readymade garment factories will reopen on Sunday in a limited capacity with a minimum number of workers, especially those who are living in the adjacent areas. Industry insiders said that they will go for the gradual reopening of factories while maintaining the strict compliance of COVID-19 suggested by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS). Senior vice president of Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) Mohammed Hatem said knitting, dying and sample segments of the knitwear factories will reopen from Sunday with the workers living in the adjacent areas of their respective ...

MNA Editorial Desk: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday underscored the need for taking an approach of collective responsibility and partnership from everyone to fight COVID-19 and its impacts on economies across the world. “The world is perhaps facing the biggest crisis in the last 100 years. So, we need to face the crisis together. We need an approach of collective responsibility and partnership from every society,” she said. The Prime Minister said this while delivering her inaugural remarks at a virtual conference arranged by the World Economic Forum (WEF) on ‘Enhancing regional cooperation in South Asia to combat Covid-19 ...

MNA Editorial Desk: As both the death toll and infections from coronavirus continue to surge in Bangladesh, the government is likely to extend the ongoing general holidays in a bid to tackle the worsening situation. There might be official announcement in this regard within a couple of days, said State Minister for Public Administration Farhad Hossain. “Of Course. Time has not come yet to resume offices. Coronavirus is passing through its final stage,” he told UNB when asked whether the holidays will be extended. “However, no instruction has yet been received about extending the holidays. Directives might come by tomorrow ...

MNA Editorial Desk: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said the government has a plan to allow the reopening of some export-oriented industries on a limited scale if the guidelines on health and safety are properly maintained and protective measures taken for their workers. “It’s true the month of Ramadan is approaching. We can’t keep everything (industries) shut. We’ll have to reopen some areas gradually,” she said while exchanging views with the local administration of Gazipur district through a videoconference from Ganabhaban, reports UNB. The Prime Minister talked to the government officials and public representatives of eight districts –-four under Dhaka division ...

MNA Editorial Desk: The whole of Bangladesh is at risk of coronavirus infection now that COVID-19 patients have been detected in 43 of the 64 districts, the Directorate General of Health Services has said. The authorities put 28 districts on lockdown until Thursday evening as the daily rate of known infections and the death toll continued to jump. The whole of Bangladesh is at risk of coronavirus infection now that COVID-19 patients have been detected in 43 of the 64 districts, the Directorate General of Health Services has said. Abul Kalam Azad, director general of health services, made the announcement ...