United News of Bangladesh

A young couple was found dead at their house at Rajoir village in Sarankhola upazila of Bagerhat district on Thursday. The deceased were identified as Kabir Hossain Hawladar, 32, son of Abdul Majid Hawladar, and his wife Halima Begum, 27, of the village. The couple had been blessed with two children – one five-year-old and the other one-and-half-month. Krishak Dal leader killed in Bagerhat Officer-in-Charge of Sarankhola Police Station Rokeya Khanam said police recovered the bodies of the couple from the bedroom of the house around 11:00am while their infant was found lying on the bed alive. The other child used to sleep with Abdul Majid in a separate house, she said. Kabir and Halima had been in marital discord for long, the OC said, adding that they found a handwritten note on their bed stating that no one is responsible for their deaths. “It will be sent for examination,” she said. The door of the room was found locked from inside and no one except the couple and the baby was there at night, Rokeya said, adding that they were informed after getting no response from the couple in the morning. She said no injury marks were found on the bodies of the couple but a black spot was found on the left eye of Halima. “The bodies were sent to Bagerhat 250-bed Hospital morgue for autopsy.”

The body of a Bangladesh Fire Service and Civil Defence diver, who went missing after falling into the Shitalakkhya River was recovered at around 7pm near the Aricha River Fire Station in Manikganj. He was identified as Md Sadik, 26, son of Ashraf Sheikh and resident of Kumrakandi village under Goalanda upazila of Rajbari district. He went missing after falling into Shitalakkhya river while carrying out maintenance work on a speedboat at the Narayanganj River Fire Station on Thursday. The incident occurred at around 11:20 am. Immediately after the accident, rescue teams from the Fire Service, Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA), Bangladesh Navy and Bangladesh Coast Guard launched a search operation at the scene.But as of 4pm, Sadik had not been found. At last, he was recovered dead at around 7:03 pm by diver Meraj Ali of the Aricha River Fire Station, Manikganj. Abdullah Al Arefin, deputy assistant director of Narayanganj Fire Service and Civil Defence, said three Fire Service members were clearing water hyacinths that had accumulated near the Narayanganj River Fire Station jetty when the accident occurred.

At least 10 workers suffered burn injuries after a fire reportedly triggered by an electrical short circuit broke out at a salt factory in Paschim Gomdandi area in Boalkhali upazila of Chattogram on Thursday. The injured workers were rescued and taken to the Burn and Plastic Surgery Unit and other relevant wards of Chattogram Medical College Hospital (CMCH) for treatment, said Nurul Alam Ashiq, in-charge of the CMCH police outpost. Police and witnesses said the workers were on duty when the fire broke out, leaving them injured. Nurul Alam Ashiq said four of the critically injured patients were referred to the Burn Unit of Dhaka Medical College Hospital for advanced treatment.

Four children, including two siblings, drowned while taking bath in the Kakon River at Barokanda village in Raipura upazila of Narsingdi on Thursday. The deceased were identified as Jannat Islam, 9, and Asheya, 9, daughters of Rubel Mia, Tabia, 13, daughter of Shamim Mia, and Sumaiya, 10, daughter of Billal Mia, of the Barokanda village. They were students of a local madrasah. Witnesses said 6-7 madrasah students went to the river at noon for a bath after classes. Two schoolboys drown while swimming in Turag River At one stage, a child went under water in the river. Other children then tried to rescue her but four of them drowned during rescue operation. Later, locals rescued them and took them to Raipura Upazila Health Complex, where doctors declared them dead. Two other children were rescued alive, said Officer-in-Charge of Raipura Police Station Md Mujibur Rahman. Medical Officer Ashraful Rahman said the children were brought to the hospital dead.

A  warehouse of a factory was gutted in a fire broke out at Board Bazar in Gazipur early Thursday. The fire originated around 5:30 am in the warehouse of Globe Safety Factory located on the third floor of the six-storey Mansur Plaza building, according to the Fire Service. On receiving the information, six firefighting units from Bhogra Bypass Modern Fire Station, Gazipur, Tongi and nearby stations rushed to the spot and brought the fire under control after about two hours and 15 minutes, said Saidul Alam Chowdhury, deputy assistant director of Gazipur Fire Service. He said the cause of the fire and the extent of the damage would be determined after an investigation. No casualties were reported in the incident, he added.

Two people were killed after an ambulance carrying a body collided with bus at Saradangi area under Ataikula upazila on Dhaka-Pabna highway in Pabna on Thursday morning. The deceased were identified as Bulu Khatun, 35, a relative of the deceased whose body was being transported in the ambulance, and Raj Sheikh, 30, the ambulance driver. Madhpur Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Mahbubur Rahman said the ambulance was returning to Sathia in Pabna with the body of a girl from Rajshahi Medical College Hospital and it crashed into the Pabna Express bus coming from the opposite direction around 6 am. Several other people were injured in the accident and admitted to hospital. Police recovered the two bodies along with the body and sent them to the morgue of Pabna General Hospital for autopsy. The damaged ambulance and the bus were seized and taken to the police station, while further legal action is underway, the OC added.

Police recovered the body of a local Awami League leader from the bank of the Betrabati River in Jhikargacha upazila of Jashore on Wednesday afternoon. The deceased was identified as Sakhawat Hossain Saka, 55, a resident of Bausha village under Nirbashkhola Union. He served as the organising secretary of Ward No. 5 Awami League in the union. ‘Top terror’ found dead in Savar According to police and local sources, residents spotted the body around 5:30 pm near the house of Hafizur Rahman in Bausha village and informed Jhikargacha Police Station. Locals said Saka had long been suffering from various health complications following a stroke. Police rushed to the scene, prepared an inquest report and recovered the body. Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Jhikargacha Police Station Golam Kibria said the body was sent to Jashore General Hospital morgue for an autopsy. "The exact cause of death will be known after the post-mortem examination report is received," the OC said. He added that police have launched an investigation into the incident and legal proceedings are underway.

Police on Wednesday arrested a boy on charges of raping an 11-year-old child in Sharsha upazila of Jashore district. The arrestee, identified as Tamim Iqbal,16, son of Harunur Rashid of Goga Bazar area under the upazila. He was apprehended from the staff quarters of Afil Jute Mill in Sharsha on Wednesday afternoon. According to the case statement filed by the victim’s family, the child’s mother is an employee at Afil Jute Mill. On the night of June 26, taking advantage of the mother's absence, Tamim lured the child into opening her room door. Then, Tamim  threatened and forcibly raped her. Upon learning of the ordeal, the victim's mother filed a written complaint with Sharsha Police Station, which was subsequently recorded as a rape case. Following the filing of the case, a smart police team launched an operation and arrest him from the Afil Jute Mill staff quarters in the afternoon. Shaminur Rahman, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Sharsha Police Station, said police took swift action immediately after receiving the complaint. "The accused has been arrested in a rapid drive and is being produced before the court today”  the OC added.

The Bangladesh Coast Guard rescued 19 fishermen alive along with their disabled fishing boat after it drifted in the deep sea for two days following an engine failure. According to a Coast Guard press release, the fishing boat FB Ma-2, carrying 19 fishermen, left Hatiya on July 8 for fishing in the Bay of Bengal. On July 13, the boat's engine broke down, leaving it adrift at sea. After drifting for two days, the fishermen came within mobile network coverage on Wednesday morning and informed the Coast Guard about their situation. Acting on the information, the Coast Guard Station Bhasan Char and BCGS Kutubdia, which was deployed under Operation Suraksha, immediately launched a rescue operation. The rescuers recovered the disabled fishing boat along with all 19 fishermen alive from the deep sea west of Norman's Point off the Chattogram coast. The rescued fishermen were provided with primary medical treatment and necessary food. The process of handing over the fishermen and the fishing boat to the owners is currently underway. Sabbir Alam Sujan, Lieutenant Commander, said the Coast Guard would continue conducting such rescue operations in the future as part of its emergency response efforts.

HSC examinees of the 2026 batch on Wednesday submitted a written complaint to Rangpur Metropolitan Kotwali Police Station against Education minister Dr. A.N.M. Ehsanul Hoque Milon and others, alleging that HSC examinations were held despite heavy rain and waterlogging, protesters were assaulted and students were subjected to rude behaviour. A delegation of students submitted the complaint to Duty Officer Arzina Khatun at around 5:30 pm after bringing out a protest procession in the city. HSC examinees block Uttara road again The complaint was signed by Md Mahdi Hasan Anik on behalf of the HSC 2026 batch examinees. According to the complaint, police, allegedly acting on the instructions of the education minister  and some unidentified individuals, assaulted students who were staging a peaceful demonstration in front of the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban on July 14 and verbally abused the protesters. Speaking to reporters, Mahdi Hasan Anik said many students were allegedly assaulted by police during the protest in front of the parliament building in Dhaka and were subjected to verbal abuse. They had been in contact with students in Dhaka and would coordinate their future programmes accordingly, he added. Nazmul Kader, Officer-in-Charge of Rangpur Metropolitan Kotwali Police Station, said students had visited the police station, held discussions with police and submitted a written complaint.