United News of Bangladesh

Advisers to US President Donald Trump and senior Ukrainian officials said they will meet for a third straight day on Saturday after reporting initial progress on shaping a security framework for postwar Ukraine. In a joint statement, US special envoy Steve Witkoff, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, and Ukrainian negotiators Rustem Umerov and Andriy Hnatov cautioned that genuine movement toward any agreement will depend on Russia showing “serious commitment to long-term peace.” The two sides issued the remarks after a second day of talks in Florida, where Trump is pushing both Kyiv and Moscow to consider a US-mediated proposal to end nearly four years of war. The statement said both delegations reviewed ideas for a future prosperity agenda aimed at supporting Ukraine’s reconstruction, bilateral economic initiatives and long-term recovery. They also discussed the deterrence capabilities Ukraine will need to maintain a lasting peace. Friday’s meeting was held at the Shell Bay Club in Hallandale Beach, a private luxury resort owned by Witkoff’s real estate company. The discussions followed earlier talks in Moscow, where President Vladimir Putin held a five-hour meeting with Witkoff and Kushner on Tuesday. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his delegation wanted updates from the US side about the Kremlin session. Zelenskyy and European leaders have repeatedly accused Putin of dragging out negotiations while Russian forces continue their offensive. In a video message Thursday, Zelenskyy said Kyiv wanted to know what new excuses Russia might be advancing to prolong the war and increase pressure on Ukraine. Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov, speaking to Russian journalist Pavel Zarubin on Friday, praised Kushner as potentially instrumental in ending the conflict. Ushakov, who also attended Tuesday’s Kremlin talks, said any settlement blueprint would likely bear Kushner’s imprint. His warm comments came as Putin seeks to widen divisions between Trump, Ukraine and Europe at a time when Trump’s frustration with the conflict is growing. Putin described this week’s meeting with Witkoff and Kushner as “necessary” and “useful,” though he said some proposals were unacceptable. Kushner, married to Trump’s daughter Ivanka, served as a senior adviser during Trump’s first term and led the effort to negotiate the Abraham Accords. He has taken on a more informal role during Trump’s second term but recently helped Witkoff broker ceasefire and hostage arrangements between Israel and Hamas. Trump again paired him with Witkoff to work on a possible endgame for Russia’s invasion. From Europe, reactions reflected anxiety about security guarantees and Moscow’s intentions. Ushakov, speaking during Putin’s trip to India, repeated Russia’s claims that Europe is complicating the peace effort by insisting on terms unacceptable to Moscow. Ukraine’s European partners have said security assurances must be part of any settlement, fearing the possibility of future Russian aggression. French President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday he saw signs of willingness from Chinese President Xi Jinping to contribute to peace efforts during his visit to Beijing. Macron said Ukraine needs credible guarantees that Russia will not attack again if a deal is reached and stressed the importance of a united Western approach. As diplomatic efforts continued, the conflict saw fresh violence. Russian drone strikes on Thursday night killed a 12-year-old boy in Ukraine’s central Dnipropetrovsk region and injured two women, according to regional officials. Ukrainian forces said Russia launched 137 drones of various types overnight. Ukraine’s military reported long-range drone attacks on a Russian port and an oil refinery as part of an effort to disrupt Moscow’s logistics. The strikes targeted the Temriuk sea port in the Krasnodar region and the Syzran refinery in Samara, igniting fires, Ukrainian officials said. Russia’s Defense Ministry said its air defenses intercepted 85 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions and Crimea, which Moscow illegally annexed in 2014. Talks between the US and Ukraine are expected to resume Saturday.  

Tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan escalated again after heavy cross-border fire late Friday left four Afghan civilians dead, Afghan authorities said on Saturday. Fighting erupted along the Spin Boldak–Chaman border around 10:30pm local time and continued for nearly two hours, officials and residents said. Both sides blamed each other for firing first. Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid accused Pakistani forces of launching attacks toward Spin Boldak, prompting Afghan forces to retaliate. In contrast, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s spokesman Mosharraf Zaidi said Afghan forces carried out “unprovoked firing,” adding that Pakistan remained alert to protect its territory and citizens. Ali Mohammad Haqmal, head of Kandahar’s information department, told AFP that Pakistani forces used light and heavy artillery, and mortar shells hit civilian homes. He said the clashes later subsided after both sides agreed to halt fire. Relations between Kabul and Islamabad have deteriorated sharply since the Taliban seized power in 2021, with Pakistan accusing Afghanistan of harbouring armed groups including the Pakistan Taliban (TTP), the Balochistan Liberation Army, and ISKP. The Taliban rejects the allegations, saying Pakistan is responsible for its own security. Border tensions spiked in October after Pakistan demanded the Taliban rein in fighters operating from Afghan soil, triggering a week of deadly clashes that killed about 70 people on both sides. A ceasefire was signed in Doha on October 19, but subsequent talks hosted by Qatar, Turkiye and Saudi Arabia have failed to achieve lasting progress. Despite the fragile truce, Kabul alleges Pakistan has carried out repeated air strikes in eastern Afghanistan in recent weeks — including an attack in Khost province in late November that reportedly killed nine children and a woman. Pakistan has denied any involvement. Source Al Jazeera

 Emergency teams scrambled to reach survivors on Friday after devastating floods and landslides swept through parts of Asia last week, claiming more than 1,500 lives. Relief efforts are ongoing, but the sheer scale of the disaster has overwhelmed rescue operations. Authorities reported 883 fatalities in Indonesia, 486 in Sri Lanka, 185 in Thailand, and three in Malaysia. Many villages in Indonesia and Sri Lanka remain buried under mud and debris, with nearly 900 people still missing across both countries. Thailand and Malaysia have seen more progress in recovery efforts. As floodwaters recede, survivors face a crippling reality: roads that once connected communities have been destroyed, leaving some areas accessible only by helicopter. Landslides toppled transmission towers, plunging towns into darkness and cutting off internet service. In Aceh Tamiang, the worst-hit area in Aceh province, entire villages lie buried beneath mud. More than 260,000 residents fled from farmland now devastated. For many, immediate access to clean water, sanitation, and shelter is critical for survival. Relief trucks traveling from Medan in North Sumatra to Aceh Tamiang have struggled due to debris-blocked roads, according to Abdul Muhari, spokesperson for the National Disaster Management Agency. An AP photojournalist documented overturned cars, destroyed homes, and animal carcasses scattered amid the wreckage. Residents are reminded of the 2004 tsunami, which killed around 230,000 people globally, including 160,000 in Aceh. Indonesians scramble for food and water after deadly floods; Sri Lanka reports 193 deaths On a damaged bridge over the Tamiang River, families have taken shelter under makeshift tents. Survivor Ibrahim bin Usman described clinging to a warehouse roof with his family of 21 as floodwaters carrying logs swept away six family homes. “This wasn’t a flood—it was a tsunami from the hills. Many bodies are still buried under mud,” he said. With wells contaminated and water supplies ruined, survivors like Mariana have resorted to drinking muddy floodwater. She and others sought refuge in a school building with no food or safe drinking water. Joko Sofyan, a local trader, said children were falling ill from drinking the same floodwater that destroyed their homes. Amid scarce supplies, frustration is rising. Hadi Akher, a survivor, accused local authorities of corruption and blamed deforestation for intensifying the disaster, highlighting the desperate need for basic aid such as food, water, and household equipment. Source: AP 

Pakistan’s military on Friday condemned comments by imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who recently called the country’s army chief “mentally unstable.” The army described Khan as “mentally ill” and accused him of using prison visits and social media to attack the armed forces and create divisions. Army spokesperson Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, without directly naming Khan, called him a “narcissist” whose political ambitions had become so extreme that he believed “if I am not in power, nothing else should exist.” Chaudhry claimed that those meeting Khan in prison were being used to “spread poison against the army.” The remarks came after Khan’s sister visited him and said he was angry at Army Chief Gen. Asim Munir. Khan had earlier posted on X accusing Munir of moral decline and alleging that the army orchestrated his and his wife’s imprisonment on fabricated charges. He also claimed he was in solitary confinement and subjected to psychological pressure. Khan’s spokesperson Zulfiquar Bukhari dismissed the army’s statement as anger-driven and a veiled threat, suggesting it aimed to justify a harsher crackdown on Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party and worsen his prison conditions. He added that meetings with Khan would now be banned. Sister allowed to meet Imran Khan at Adiala jail; PTI protests on Chaudhry said Khan’s social media claims were amplified by foreign media and baseless. He accused Khan of deliberately fueling hostility against the military, linking him to the May 9, 2023, attacks on army installations following Khan’s arrest. Khan has denied inciting violence. Chaudhry emphasized that while freedom of expression is constitutionally guaranteed, it cannot compromise national security, and said the decision to ban Khan’s party rests with the civilian government. Khan, 73, was ousted in a no-confidence vote in April 2022 and remains a vocal critic of the current government. Source: AP 

The Calcutta High Court on Friday declined to step in amid a growing dispute over the foundation-laying of a Babri Masjid replica in West Bengal’s Murshidabad district. The bench, led by acting Chief Justice Sujoy Paul, said it is the state government’s responsibility to maintain law and order, according to a PTI report. The ceremony, scheduled for December 6 at Beldanga, is being spearheaded by Trinamool Congress MLA Humayun Kabir, who has since been suspended by the party for moving ahead with the plan. The date also marks the anniversary of the Babri Masjid’s demolition by the BJP-lead India government in Ayodhya, where a Ram Temple was built following a Supreme Court verdict. The West Bengal government told the court it has deployed adequate police personnel to prevent any breach of peace. The Union government informed the bench that 19 companies of Central Armed Police Forces, stationed in Murshidabad since communal violence in April, remain available for immediate deployment if required. A petition before the court sought a stay on the programme, arguing that Kabir’s remarks and the proposed event could disturb communal harmony. The petitioner accused the MLA of using inflammatory language online and urged action to prevent tensions in the region. Following the court’s refusal to intervene, petitioner’s counsel Sabyasachi Mukherjee said the state would now be accountable for any deterioration in law and order. He added that the Centre had already committed CAPF support and forces were conducting route marches. Kabir, who submitted an undertaking that he would not incite violence, welcomed the court’s stance, calling it a “victory for the Constitution.” He claimed thousands were expected to attend the programme and that 2,000 volunteers would assist in maintaining order. However, the TMC leadership criticised Kabir for choosing a communally sensitive area for the project and suspended him for what it called “communal politics.” Kabir announced he would resign from the party and launch his own political outfit on December 12. Meanwhile, BJP leader Arjun Singh launched a sharp attack, warning Kabir against proceeding with the event and alleging that invoking the name “Babri” was an affront to the Constitution. Source: Hindustan Times 

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to examine the constitutionality of President Donald Trump’s order denying birthright citizenship to children born in the United States to parents who are in the country illegally or on temporary status. The justices will hear Trump’s appeal of a lower-court decision that struck down the policy. The order has not taken effect anywhere in the nation. The case is scheduled for arguments in the spring, with a ruling expected by early summer. Trump signed the birthright citizenship directive on Jan. 20, the start of his second term, as part of a broader Republican-led push to tighten immigration enforcement. Other measures include ramped-up enforcement operations in several major cities and the first use of the 18th-century Alien Enemies Act during peacetime. The administration faces numerous legal challenges, and the Supreme Court has delivered mixed rulings on related issues. The justices temporarily blocked use of the Alien Enemies Act for fast-tracking the deportation of alleged Venezuelan gang members, yet allowed immigration sweeps to resume in the Los Angeles area after a lower court halted them over profiling concerns. The Court is also reviewing the administration’s emergency request to deploy National Guard units in the Chicago area for immigration operations — a move currently frozen by a lower court. This is the first of Trump’s immigration policies to reach the Supreme Court for a final decision. The directive challenges more than a century of interpretation of the 14th Amendment, which has long been understood to guarantee citizenship to nearly all individuals born on U.S. soil, except for children of foreign diplomats or occupying forces. Several lower courts have struck down the order as unconstitutional — or likely unconstitutional — even after the Supreme Court limited the use of nationwide injunctions earlier this year. However, the Court left open the possibility of nationwide relief through class actions or state-led suits. Each lower court considering the issue has ruled that Trump’s directive violates the 14th Amendment, which was enacted to guarantee U.S. citizenship to Black Americans, including formerly enslaved people. Under long-standing practice, anyone born in the United States — including children of undocumented mothers — is automatically a U.S. citizen. The case now before the Court originated in New Hampshire, where a federal judge in July blocked the order in a class-action suit covering all affected children. The American Civil Liberties Union is representing the children and families challenging the policy. “No president can rewrite the 14th Amendment’s core guarantee of citizenship,” said Cecillia Wang, national legal director of the ACLU. “We look forward to resolving this issue definitively at the Supreme Court.” The administration also asked the justices to review a July ruling from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which held that Democratic-led states challenging the policy needed a nationwide injunction to avoid a patchwork of citizenship rules. The Supreme Court did not act on the 9th Circuit case. The administration argues that children of noncitizens are not “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States and therefore do not qualify for citizenship. “The Citizenship Clause was intended to secure citizenship for newly freed slaves — not for children of individuals in the U.S. illegally or temporarily,” Trump’s solicitor general, D. John Sauer, wrote in urging Supreme Court review. Twenty-four Republican-led states and 27 GOP lawmakers, including Senators Ted Cruz and Lindsey Graham, are supporting the administration’s position.

FIFA has long maintained that political messages have no place in football, frequently penalising players who display them. Yet on Friday, the organisation’s president Gianni Infantino handed US President Donald Trump the first-ever FIFA Peace Prize, prompting fresh questions about the body’s stance on neutrality. The announcement came less than a day after the Trump administration carried out another lethal air strike in the Caribbean, a timing that drew sharp criticism from rights advocates and football commentators. Craig Mokhiber, a former UN official who has pushed for Israel’s suspension from world football over its war in Gaza, called the award a “truly shameful development”. He argued that Infantino has consistently refused to hold Israel accountable, insisting that football “cannot solve geopolitical” problems. “Not satisfied with two years of FIFA complicity in genocide in Palestine, Infantino and his cronies have now invented a new ‘peace prize’ in order to curry favour with Donald Trump,” Mokhiber told Al Jazeera. He said the move helps “obscure” Trump’s “disgraceful record” on Israel, the deadly boat strikes in the Caribbean, and “gross violations of human rights” inside the United States. Infantino praises Trump’s global deals While presenting the award, Infantino lauded Trump’s international agreements, including the Abraham Accords that normalised relations between Israel and several Arab countries without addressing Palestinian statehood. The gesture appears at odds with Infantino’s previous insistence on keeping politics away from sport. “There’s no more powerful tool than sport to unite the people,” he said in 2023. “Now we have to protect the autonomy of sport: the political neutrality of sport and to protect the values of sport.” Critics noted the contrast between that message and the decision to honour a president who days earlier referred to people from Somalia as “garbage”. Football journalist Zach Lowy quipped on social media, “Giving Donald Trump a prize for peace is like giving Luis Suarez a prize for not biting people’s ears off.” Infantino has built a close relationship with Trump as the US prepares to co-host the 2026 World Cup with Mexico and Canada. He has been a frequent visitor to the White House and joined Trump in October at a ceremony in Egypt marking the Gaza truce. FIFA did not respond to Al Jazeera’s request for comment. The Democratic Party also criticised the move, saying, “Trump couldn’t win a Nobel Peace Prize so FIFA made one up for him.” Trump’s record under scrutiny Despite brokering some international agreements, including between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Trump has consistently pushed for higher military spending among Western allies. He also ordered the bombing of Iran’s nuclear facilities in June and continued supplying arms to Israel amid its abuses against Palestinians. In the Americas, his administration has carried out 22 air strikes on vessels it claimed were transporting drugs, killing at least 86 people. Legal experts have broadly condemned the operations as unlawful extrajudicial killings. The US president has also deployed additional military assets near Venezuela, fuelling speculation of a possible intervention aimed at ousting President Nicolas Maduro. Domestically, Trump has intensified immigration crackdowns, detaining and attempting to deport non-citizens. Some advocates say they have been targeted over criticism of Israel, despite such speech being protected by the First Amendment. “US President Donald Trump was just awarded the newly created ‘FIFA Peace Prize’,” Human Rights Watch posted on X. “But his administration’s appalling human rights record certainly does not display ‘exceptional actions for peace and unity’.” Mokhiber said the “vulgar” award should be withdrawn. “FIFA rules do not allow play on a muddy pitch. They certainly shouldn’t play on a bloody pitch. But that’s precisely where Infantino is leading FIFA,” he said.    

Pakistani and Afghan forces traded gunfire late Friday along their tense shared border, though officials on both sides said no one was injured and no damage occurred. Each country accused the other of breaking a fragile, two-month ceasefire. Talks between Islamabad and Kabul meant to ease tensions and maintain the truce collapsed in November, although the Qatar-brokered agreement from October has largely remained in place. The latest exchange occurred a day after Pakistan agreed to let the United Nations move relief supplies into Afghanistan through the largely closed Chaman and Torkham crossings. Mohammad Sadiq, a Pakistani police official, said Afghan forces fired first near the vital Chaman crossing, prompting Pakistan to respond. In contrast, Afghan Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid claimed Pakistan initiated the shooting in Kandahar’s Spin Boldak district, forcing Afghan forces to return fire. Afghan border police spokesman Abidullah Farooqi also alleged that Pakistani troops threw a grenade into the Afghan side before the clash, adding that Afghanistan still supports the ceasefire. Meanwhile, Mosharraf Zaidi, speaking for Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, wrote on X that the Afghan Taliban fired “unprovoked shots” earlier in the evening and that Pakistan’s military remains vigilant in defending its territory and citizens. Border tensions have been running high since deadly clashes in October left dozens dead and hundreds injured on both sides following explosions in Kabul that the Taliban blamed on Pakistan. The violence marked the worst confrontation between the neighbors in years. Although the Qatar-mediated ceasefire helped reduce hostilities, follow-up talks in Istanbul failed to reach a lasting solution. Pakistan continues to accuse the Pakistani Taliban (TTP) — a group separate from but closely linked to the Afghan Taliban — of carrying out most militant attacks inside Pakistan. Many TTP fighters are believed to have found refuge in Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover in 2021, further straining relations.   

Russia has warned that it will take action if the European Union moves to seize its frozen assets, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Thursday. Zakharova described any Russian response as a “surprise” for the EU but did not provide further details. She also criticized European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s behavior as “inappropriate.” The remarks follow von der Leyen’s revised proposal on Wednesday to use frozen Russian assets to aid Ukraine. The updated plan reduced the potential funding from a maximum of $186 billion to about $105 billion. Belgium has opposed the EU initiative, citing unresolved financial and legal risks. Most of the frozen Russian assets are held at Euroclear, a securities depository based in Brussels.

A 12-year-old boy was killed when Russian drones struck a house in central Ukraine, officials said Friday, as Ukraine carried out long-range attacks on a Russian port and oil refinery amid quiet U.S.-led diplomatic efforts to end the nearly four-year war. U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner were expected to meet a Ukrainian delegation in Miami on Thursday, though neither side confirmed whether the talks took place. The meeting was planned shortly after the envoys held discussions with President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin earlier in the week. Officials have said little publicly about the latest peace efforts, and past attempts to break the stalemate have failed. Trump’s 28-point proposal was leaked earlier, but progress remains unclear. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his team in Miami sought updates from U.S. representatives about their conversations in Moscow. He and European allies have long accused Putin of using diplomacy to buy time while Russian forces push ahead on the battlefield. In a video address late Thursday, Zelenskyy said Ukraine wants to know “what other pretexts Putin has come up with to drag out the war and to pressure Ukraine.” Meanwhile, Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov, speaking during Putin’s visit to India, repeated Moscow’s criticism of Europe’s position in the talks. He said Ukraine’s European partners were setting conditions that Russia would never accept, arguing that their demands hinder negotiations between Washington and Moscow. In Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region, local authorities said a Russian drone destroyed a house Thursday night, killing the boy and injuring two women. Ukraine’s air force reported that Russia launched 137 drones of multiple types overnight. Ukraine also carried out its own strikes. Drones hit the Temryuk sea port in Russia’s Krasnodar region, sparking a fire and damaging infrastructure, officials said. Ukrainian drones also targeted the city of Syzran on the Volga River. Local media reported, without official confirmation, that an oil refinery there was hit. Russia’s Defense Ministry said its air defenses intercepted 85 Ukrainian drones over several regions and occupied Crimea during the night.