Voice of Bangladesh (VOB)

Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) delivers insightful journalism and current events tailored for individuals interested in Bangladesh and South Asia.

[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

#BSS’ Abdul Hai Sikdar makes baseless claims to defame #Bangabandhu

#journalism

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

Awami League supporters set fire to the #BNP office at Patgati Bazar of Tungipara in #Gopalganj on Sunday.

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

#Gopalganj: Awami League activists unlock district office, demolish July Memorial

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

City of Fear: #BNP leaders blame police for #murder and #extortion spike in #Khulna

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

Two passengers pushed from moving #bus and crushed in #Rangpur

A shocking act of impatience and brutality claimed two lives in Taraganj, Rangpur, on Sunday morning (15 November). Police arrested the bus driver and helper after the passengers were shoved from a moving bus following an argument over the fare.

The incident occurred on the Rangpur–Dinajpur highway in the Jigatola area.

The victims were Mukul Mia, 33, son of Kalu Mia of Basuniapara in Charai Khola Union under Nilphamari Sadar Upazila, and Shakib Hossain, 26, son of Lokman Basunia from the same locality. The two were uncle and nephew. They had been working as masons in Cumilla and were returning home on Saturday night aboard a bus named “Saimun Classic.”

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

#Rizvi: #BNP activists to stay on the streets to prevent #AwamiLeague’s anarchy

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

Gopalganj: Awami League holds open procession as #BGB deploys 6 platoons

A tense atmosphere prevailed in #Gopalganj district town on Sunday after leaders and activists of the Awami League and its affiliated organisations staged an open procession to press for the success of a lockdown programme scheduled for 19 November.

From around 11 a.m., hundreds of leaders and activists entered the district town from various areas on motorcycles, vans, and trucks, many carrying local weapons.

They first gathered at the Children’s Park and BSCIC area before assembling around noon and taking out a procession from the BSCIC Bridge. Chanting slogans, the procession passed through the Launch Ghat, Women’s College, and Shilpakala Academy areas.

At one point, the protesters broke through a police barricade and entered various roads in the town. Thousands of participants, many carrying sticks and poles (lagi-baitha), chanted slogans in support of banned Awami League president Sheikh Hasina.

In response, authorities intensified security across the district town. Six platoons of the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) were deployed to maintain normalcy and ensure public safety.

During the Yunus-led interim government, the Bangladesh Army and police shot dead five people when they protested provocative remarks by the leaders of National Citizen (NCP) during a rally on July 16, 2025. The NCP declared the march to Gopalganj with the view to demolish the grave of #Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman at #Tungipara.

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

Government to issue Tk 3,000C #Sukuk at 7.50% profit rate

The government is issuing a short-term Bangladesh Government Investment Sukuk (Islamic bond) worth Tk 3,000 crore to finance rural infrastructure development projects.

The Sukuk will have a tenure of 182 days, and investors will receive a profit at an annual rate of 7.50% upon maturity. The auction is scheduled for 1 December.

According to a press release from Bangladesh Bank, the investment Sukuk will be issued under the Ijarah method (Sukuk Al-Ijarah) against the “Priority-based Important Rural Infrastructure Development Project.” The face value of the Sukuk has been fixed at Tk 3,000 crore, with the maturity date set for 2 June 2027.

Under the stated terms, investors will be paid a total profit of Tk 112.19 crore for the 182-day period. This amount will be disbursed in a single lump sum at maturity. The annual profit rate has been set at 7.50%.

#investment #inflation #Bangladesh

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

#BNP Whip Nizan stirs debate, threatening party workers of jail for land grabbing, extortion

Parliament Whip and #Lakshmipur-4 (Ramgati-Kamalnagar) MP from the ruling BNP, ABM Ashraf Uddin #Nizan, has expressed strong anger at a section of his own party leaders and activists.

Speaking on Friday evening (13 November 2026), at his residence in Lakshmipur, the MP accused them of illegally occupying others’ land, rivers, canals, and chars (newly formed river islands), engaging in #extortion (chandabaji), selling buffalo grass as part of irregularities, and acting as brokers/intermediaries at police stations.

He said using the party’s name for personal gain is unacceptable.

Nizan warned that if they do not stop, he will take harsh action. He asked: “Should I now send them to jail?”

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

Islamists protest outside Sikh-owned Hammersmith restaurant over non-Halal policy

Hundreds of protesters gathered outside Singh’s Dining in #Hammersmith, west London, on Friday evening, demanding the closure of the Sikh-owned Indian restaurant that openly advertises it does not serve #halal meat.

The demonstration took place outside the premises on Fulham Palace Road, formerly known as Rangrez. A large crowd, predominantly men, waved Palestinian flags and chanted “Allahu Akbar,” “Shame on you,” “Free Palestine,” and “Shut them down.” One speaker with a microphone referred to the owner as a “scumbag,” prompting further chants calling for the business to be closed.

A sign on the restaurant front reads “Proudly we don’t sell Halal.” Owner Harman Singh Kapoor, who is #Sikh, has said the establishment serves jhatka meat in accordance with his religious beliefs rather than halal. Metropolitan Police officers formed a line to keep the protesters at bay.

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

BGB highlights tech-based surveillance to curb push-in and smuggling on Sherpur border

A senior Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) officer has detailed the force’s expanding use of technology-driven surveillance along the Sherpur frontier with India, following a special drill that showcased drones, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), and AI-powered cameras.

Lieutenant Colonel Md. Nurul Azim Bayezid, commanding officer of the 39 BGB (Mymensingh Battalion), addressed the initiative at Garokona Zero Point under the Haldigram Border Outpost (BOP) in Jhenaigati Upazila.

The drill, held on the morning of November 14, combined aerial drone monitoring, rapid ATV patrols in rugged terrain, and AI cameras for continuous observation.

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

Sajeeb Wazed accuses Dhaka of double standards on Sheikh Hasina’s December return

Sajeeb Wazed #Joy, son and advisor to Awami League president and former Prime Minister Sheikh #Hasina, on Saturday issued a detailed political statement accusing #Bangladesh’s ruling #BNP government of double standards over his mother’s planned return in December while praising #India’s “principled” handling of the matter.

More than two and a quarter years after Sheikh Hasina left Bangladesh on 5 August 2024, Joy said she remains firm on her earlier declaration to Reuters that she will return in December. He pointed to her recent application at the Bangladesh Mission in Delhi for a passport and national identity card as proof that the plan is serious.

“The decision to return is Sheikh Hasina’s own. She has never done politics waiting for anyone’s permission,” @sajeebwazed Joy wrote on #Facebook. @albd1971
@MEAIndia @narendramodi @bbcbangla

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

Freedom fighter named in blast case 8 months after death

#falsecase

More than seven and a half months after his death, 1971 Liberation War #FreedomFighter and local #AwamiLeague leader Shamchu Dhali has been named as accused No. 219 in a case over a road blockade, vehicle vandalism, and cocktail (crude bomb) explosions near the southern toll plaza of the Padma Bridge.

Shamchu Dhali, son of Ismail Dhali of Dhalikandi in Kutubpur Union under Shibchar upazila of Madaripur, was the acting president of the Kutubpur Union Awami League. He died on 29 March. The incident in question took place around 1 a.m. on 9 November in the Naodoba area of Zajira, in front of the Padma Bridge’s southern toll plaza.

According to the FIR, leaders and activists of the Awami League (whose activities are banned) and affiliated organisations blocked the road, carrying sticks and logi-boitha (wooden poles and oars). Vehicles were vandalised and multiple cocktails were exploded, suspending toll collection for about an hour and stranding vehicles on both sides of the bridge.

On the morning of 12 November, SI Akram of Padma Bridge South Police Station filed the case under the Anti-Terrorism Act. The FIR names 251 people and lists another 600–700 as unidentified accused. Shamchu Dhali appears at serial number 219.

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

34 citizens protest attempt to forcibly occupy Dhirendranath Dutta’s house

As many as 34 prominent citizens of the civil society have protested the attempt to forcibly occupy the house of language activist and freedom fighter #DhirendranathDutta in Jhautala area of ​​#Cumilla city.

In a joint statement sent to the media on Saturday (November 14), they said the media reported that a special group (National Citizen Party #NCP) was trying to forcibly occupy the house by putting up a signboard reading “Memorial Museum.” The citizens have expressed deep anger and concern over the incident.

The statement said that in 1948, Dhirendranath Dutta was the first to raise a proposal to make Bengali one of the state languages ​​in the then Constituent Assembly of Pakistan. After the massacre of March 25, 1971, Pakistani soldiers took him from his house, tortured him and killed him. His youngest son was also killed at the same time.

In the statement, the citizens demanded that the government immediately remove the signboards put up by the squatters from the house and return it to the control of the family. At the same time, they also demanded that a national institution be named after Dhirendranath Dutta and a road near the National Assembly be named after him.

The signatories to the statement include Professor Anu Muhammad, Advocate Sultana Kamal, Khushi Kabir, Dr. Iftekharuzzaman, Abu Sayeed Khan, ZI Khan Panna, Rasheda K Chowdhury, Shaheen Anam, Dr. Shahidul Alam and Shamsul Huda.

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

#Dengue: Death toll rises to 491 as 8 more people die

#Bangladesh #DGHS

Eight more people have died of dengue across the country in 24 hours until 8 am on Saturday (November 14).

In addition, 1,674 people have been newly admitted to hospitals due to dengue during this period.

This information was given in a notification issued by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) of the Health Ministry.

Of the newly admitted patients in the previous 24 hours till 8 am on Saturday, 714 were infected in Dhaka division, 50 in Mymensingh division, 311 in Chittagong division, 190 in Khulna division, 115 in Rajshahi division, 60 in Rangpur division, 213 in Barisal division and 21 in Sylhet division.

Since January 1 of this year, as many as 160,557 people have been admitted to hospitals due to the dengue outbreak. Of these, 154,151 dengue patients have been discharged from the hospital. Currently, 5,915 people are undergoing treatment in hospitals.

The spike in dengue deaths has become a matter of concern despite drives to destroy mosquito breeding grounds, clean drains and remove waste.

The authorities have urged residents to keep their homes, rooftops, balconies, yards and workplaces clean and prevent water from accumulating anywhere. They also called for developing the habit of removing stagnant water and destroying potential mosquito breeding grounds at least once a week.

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

#BNP: Hasina has no legal scope to obtain a passport

#Rizvi #SheikhHasina #DecemberReturn #India

BNP Acting Secretary General and Prime Minister’s Political Adviser Advocate Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Saturday said fugitive Awami League President Sheikh Hasina has no legal scope to obtain a passport.

He said Hasina must serve all the punishments handed down to her for crimes against humanity, killings of people, students and workers, while she must also face the ongoing trials against her.

Rizvi made the remarks after a protest procession organised by Dhaka Metropolitan South Jubo Dal against the alleged terrorism and anarchy of the banned Awami League. The procession started from the National Press Club and ended at Shahbagh intersection, BSS reported.

The BNP leader said Sheikh Hasina’s father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, had also established fascist rule through the formation of BAKSAL.

Referring to the International Crimes Tribunal Act of 1973, he described Sheikh Hasina as a fugitive accused of crimes against humanity, saying she could not return to the country and must serve the punishment imposed on her under the law.

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

China masses over 100 naval vessels around Taiwan ahead of Trump-Xi summit

#China staged large unannounced naval drills across the western Pacific and around #Taiwan in early November, massing more than 100 naval and coastguard vessels at the peak—one of its largest such deployments—ahead of Donald #Trump’s arrival in China for the #APEC economic summit.​

According to a senior Taiwanese security official speaking anonymously, Chinese forces conducted simulated attacks on foreign militaries and cities, including Taiwan’s. During the exercises, a Chinese submarine launched an intercontinental ballistic missile from the Yellow Sea toward the Chinese mainland.​

The drills were larger than China’s last formally named exercise around Taiwan (“Justice Mission 2025”) and involved forces from multiple commands.

By mid-November, the number of active vessels had fallen to around 70 within the first island chain. Taiwanese officials described the activity as “silent intimidation” timed before major international meetings. Beijing has not publicly announced or named the drills and has described related carrier movements as routine.​

The activity comes as China, which claims Taiwan as its territory and has not ruled out the use of force, continues stepped-up military pressure. Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to meet at the APEC summit hosted by China in Shenzhen.

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

#FAA ground stop exposes crumbling #US #airtraffic system

The Federal Aviation Administration’s decision Friday to impose a nationwide ground stop on all departing US flights produced the longest such disruption since the September 11, 2001 attacks, grounding the system for more than four hours and leaving a multi-day trail of cancellations, delays, and stranded passengers.

The order, issued around 3:36–3:54 p.m. Eastern Time on November 13 after communication failures affected all Air Route Traffic Control Centers, halted every domestic departure while more than 3,500 aircraft already airborne were directed to land safely.

Officials attributed the outage to the FAA’s decades-old analog telecommunications infrastructure: switches and routers became overloaded with data, producing inconsistent signals. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy described the equipment as relying on “1980s little copper lines” that “got overloaded.”

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said there was no evidence of a cyberattack and that safety was never compromised. The stop was lifted around 8:15 p.m. ET, but recovery proved slow.

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

Next week’s meeting between Trump, Putin, and Xi in China raises hope

The White House has said that US President Donald #Trump, Russian President Vladimir #Putin and Chinese President #Xi Jinping are expected to hold a joint meeting late next week on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (#APEC) summit in Shenzhen, southern China.

Trump is scheduled to arrive in Shenzhen late on Wednesday for the two-day gathering of the 21 APEC members. He is also set for bilateral talks with Xi on Thursday — their fourth meeting since Trump returned to office in 2025 — before the trilateral session at the end of the visit.

#WhiteHouse spokeswoman Olivia Wales said Trump has indicated he will raise the issue of reducing nuclear weapons, which he views as a serious global danger. Officials have indicated that Iran could also come up, but #Ukraine is not expected to be on the agenda. A senior US official told news agencies that no concrete agreement is anticipated from the talks.

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

Dhaka airport's third terminal to open on Victory Day with four flights

The #thirdterminal of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (#HSIA) is scheduled to start partial operations on December 16, initially handling two arriving and two departing flights, Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister M Rashiduzzaman Millat announced on Saturday.

Speaking at a preparatory meeting on the terminal’s inauguration at the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) conference room, the minister said: “If everything proceeds according to plan, the third terminal will become partially operational on December 16. Initially, operations will begin with two arriving and two departing flights.”

He added that further steps would follow to bring the terminal to full operational capacity under a phased plan.

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[Voice of Bangladesh (VOB) @GlobalVoiceBD]

PM Tarique Rahman features in The Muslim 500 Political category

Jordan’s Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre (RISSC) has published its latest list of the world’s 500 most influential Muslims. Bangladesh’s Prime Minister and #BNP Chairman #Tarique Rahman appears on the list in the “Political” category of #TheMuslim500.

In the national parliamentary election held on 12 February 2026, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) led by Tarique Rahman secured a two-thirds majority and returned to power. He assumed office as prime minister after the interim government ended its term. His inclusion recognises his role in the country’s political and administrative leadership as head of the new government.

Also listed is Dr. #Hamida Hossain, the well-known Bangladeshi human rights activist, researcher, and co-founder of Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK). She appears regularly on the list for her long-standing work on women’s rights and democratic values.

Nobel Peace laureate and former managing director of Grameen Bank, Dr. Muhammad #Yunus, was also included among the top Muslim leaders two times while serving as chief adviser of the interim government.

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