Author: Asian Bangla

Asianbangla, Dhaka : Bangladesh would have been the Switzerland of the East if Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was still alive, said Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed yesterday. He had two goals: one was the independence of the nation and another building a prosperous and poverty-free Bangladesh. “But, he was assassinated just as he put the country on the path of development,” Ahmed said at a seminar styled “how far would have Bangladesh’s economy and society advanced had Bangabandhu been alive?” The Bangladesh Economic Association organised the seminar at the CIRDAP to commemorate Bangabandhu’s 43rd death anniversary. Affectionately christened the Father of…

Asianbangla Desk : Authorities in northern China delayed the demolition of a massive mosque on Saturday after thousands of people demonstrated to stop its destruction, local residents said, amid a nationwide government drive to tighten restrictions on religious activities. Afp, Weizhou Across China, officials have sought to limit religious freedoms for Muslims as part of a widespread attempt to bring believers in line with the dictates of the ruling Communist Party. Protesters began gathering Thursday ahead of a deadline to demolish the grand mosque in the town of Weizhou in the northern Ningxia region, local residents said. Videos posted on…

Asianbangla Desk : The leaders of the five states bordering the resource-rich Caspian Sea signed a landmark deal yesterday on the legal status of the inland sea which boasts a wealth of oil and gas reserves and sturgeon. Afp, Aktau The leaders of Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkmenistan signed the agreement on the status of the inland sea, which has been disputed since the collapse of the Soviet Union rendered obsolete agreements between Tehran and Moscow. The host, Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, said before the signing that the leaders were “participants in a historic event.” Russian leader Vladimir Putin,…

Asianbangla Desk : An explosion in a residential building thought to be storing weapons and ammunition in Syria’s rebel-held Idlib killed at least 39 people including 12 children on Sunday, a war monitor said. The explosion happened in the town of Sarmada, which is near the Turkish border and north of the provincial capital Idlib city, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said, adding that 12 children were among the 39 dead. Syrian civilians, displaced during the country’s seven-year long war, were living in the building which was also used by an arms dealer, the Observatory said. The Syrian White…

Asianbangla Desk : The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has been allotted 28 reserved seats for women and five for non-Muslims by the election commission, taking the party’s tally to 158 in the National Assembly — just 14 short of the number required for simple majority. The Election Commission of Pakistan on Saturday distributed the reserved seats among the parties on the basis of their final tally of elected members. There are 60 seats reserved for women and 10 for minorities in the NA. Khan’s party, which is just 14 short of the number required for simple majority, will depend on smaller…

Asianbangla Desk : Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday demanded a “total” ceasefire from Gaza’s Hamas rulers in his first public comments on another deadly flare-up between the two sides. Afp, Jerusalem There have been efforts by UN officials and Egypt to secure a long-term truce between Israel and Hamas, though Israeli officials have not commented on them. Since July, there have been three major flare-ups of violence. “We are in the midst of a campaign against terror in Gaza,” Netanyahu said at the start of a cabinet meeting. “It will not end with one blow. “Our demand is clear:…

Asianbangla, Dhaka : The quota reformists yesterday threatened the government with tougher agitation if their three-point demand, including; unconditional release of their leaders and exemplary punishment of the attackers, is not met by August 31. They further urged the government to publish the gazette notification on bringing reforms to the quota system immediately, in line with their earlier five-point demand. “We will announce a tougher programme if the government does not respond to our demands by August 31,” Bin Yeamin Mollah, joint convener of Bangladesh Sadharan Chhatra Odhikar Sangrakkhan Parishad said at a rally in Shahbagh yesterday. They also demanded…

Asianbangla Desk : Former Bangladesh captain Mohammad Ashraful’s five-year ban from international cricket for involvement in match-fixing and spot-fixing during the 2013 Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) will officially come to an end today. The cricketer will be eligible to take part in the BPL in the upcoming season and is also available for selection to the national team. However, according to chief selector Minhajul Abedin, it will not be easy for Ashraful to return to the national team anytime soon. “He [Ashraful] has not been in the international circuit for a long time now. So he now has to play…

Asianbangla, Dhaka : The rapid bus service, much touted as a way to ease the capital’s chronic traffic congestion, may be implemented only in part, and that too not before 2024, as arbitrarily built flyovers block its proposed route, said officials and transport experts. The city’s transport master plan recommended the rapid bus service as a means to ease the perennial traffic jams. But the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) implemented in part would not serve the purpose envisioned in the plan, they said. So, the promise of being able to hop on a bus at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport and…

BSS : The holy Eid-ul-Azha, the second biggest religious festival of the Muslims, will be celebrated across the country on August 22 (Wednesday) with due solemnity and religious fervour. The National Moon Sighting Committee came up with the decision at a meeting held at the national mosque Baitul Mukarram in the city since the moon of the holy month Zilhaj was sighted yesterday, an official of Islamic Foundation told BSS. Religious Affairs Minister and committee chairman Principal Matiur Rahman presided over the meeting. The Eid-ul-Azha is celebrated on the 10th of Zilhaj month of the Hizri calendar as Hazrat Ibrahim…