United News of Bangladesh

Greek coast guard vessels and a helicopter continued searching for potential missing people off an eastern Aegean island Wednesday following a deadly overnight collision between a patrol boat and a speedboat carrying migrants that left at least 15 dead. Twenty-four migrants, including 11 children, were injured and hospitalized on the island of Chios, authorities said. Two coast guard officers were also injured, with one remaining hospitalized Wednesday. The bodies of 11 men and three women were recovered from the sea shortly after the collision, and one woman later died in the hospital, officials added. The total number of people on the speedboat remains unknown. Four patrol boats, two helicopters, and divers launched the search overnight, which continued Wednesday morning with a helicopter and five patrol vessels. According to a coast guard statement, a patrol boat encountered the speedboat late Tuesday night near Chios, which was traveling without navigation lights. Despite sound and visual signals to stop, the speedboat reportedly changed course, collided with the patrol boat, and capsized. Photos released by the coast guard showed abrasion marks on the right side of the patrol boat. The account could not be independently verified. Michalis Giannakos, head of Greece’s public hospital workers’ union, said hospital staff in Chios were put on alert overnight to handle the sudden influx of injured and dead. Several of the injured required surgery, he said. Greece remains a major entry point into the European Union for people fleeing conflict and poverty in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. Fatal accidents are common, as migrants often attempt the short but perilous crossing from Turkey to nearby Greek islands in overcrowded dinghies or high-speed boats operated by smugglers. Increased patrols and allegations of pushbacks by Greek authorities have reduced such attempts. The European Union has tightened migration regulations in recent years, including streamlining deportations and increasing detentions. Migration has been a contentious issue across EU member states, fueling the rise of far-right parties and hardened asylum policies, with the number of asylum-seekers now well below record levels.

Russia carried out a massive overnight assault on Ukraine, firing around 450 long-range drones and 70 missiles of different types, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Tuesday. The attack targeted at least five regions, focusing on Ukraine’s power grid, as part of Moscow’s ongoing effort to deprive civilians of electricity, heating, and running water during the coldest winter in years. At least 10 people were reported wounded. “Russia values terrorizing civilians during the coldest days of winter more than diplomacy,” Zelenskyy said. Temperatures in Kyiv fell to minus 20 degrees Celsius overnight and remained at minus 16 C on Tuesday. He urged allies to increase air defense support and maintain “maximum pressure” on Russia to end its full-scale invasion, which began on Feb. 24, 2022. The attack came a day before Russia and Ukraine were scheduled to attend U.S.-brokered talks in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, aimed at ending the war. Officials described recent discussions between the two sides as constructive, but key issues such as the status of Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories remain unresolved. US, India strike trade deal after Trump–Modi call NATO support During a visit to Kyiv, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte addressed the Ukrainian parliament, pledging rapid and consistent support as peace efforts continue. “Be assured that NATO stands with Ukraine and is ready to do so for years to come. Your security is our security. Your peace is our peace,” he said. NATO members have supplied 75% of all missiles delivered to Ukraine since last summer, including 90% of those used for air defense. Power grid and civilian impacts Despite a Kremlin pledge last week to halt strikes on Kyiv until Feb. 1 at the request of U.S. President Donald Trump, Russia continued aerial attacks. The overnight assault damaged Ukraine’s power infrastructure, including thermal power plants operated by the private company DTEK, marking the ninth major strike since October. In Kyiv, five people were wounded, and residential buildings, a kindergarten, and a gas station were damaged or set on fire. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported that 1,170 apartment buildings were left without heating, hindering ongoing repair work. Other affected areas included northeastern Kharkiv and southern Odesa. Trump claims Russia will spare Kyiv during freezing winter spell The attacks also hit the Hall of Fame at the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War, near the Motherland Monument. Culture Minister Tetiana Berezhna condemned the strike as both symbolic and cynical, saying, “The aggressor state strikes a place of memory about the fight against aggression in the 20th century, repeating crimes in the 21st.”

Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre on Monday said he agreed with Crown Princess Mette-Marit’s admission that she had shown “poor judgement” in maintaining contact with disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, as newly released US court files revealed extensive past communications between them. The acknowledgement came after documents released by the US Department of Justice showed the crown princess appeared hundreds of times in Epstein-related records between 2011 and 2014, triggering fresh scrutiny of Norway’s royal family. In a statement issued earlier, Crown Princess Mette-Marit said she regretted having any contact with Epstein, calling it “simply embarrassing”, and expressed deep sympathy and solidarity with the victims of abuse linked to him. Støre’s public agreement with the princess’s admission is seen as unusual, as Norwegian prime ministers rarely comment critically on members of the royal family. He also said former prime minister Thorbjørn Jagland had exercised “poor judgement” after it emerged that Jagland once planned, but later cancelled, a family holiday on Epstein’s private island. The revelations have surfaced at a sensitive time for the monarchy, just ahead of a seven-week trial of the crown princess’s son, Marius Borg Høiby, who faces 38 charges including rape and sexual assault. Høiby, 29, who is not a member of the royal family, denies the most serious allegations. If convicted, he could face a lengthy prison sentence. According to the newly disclosed files, Crown Princess Mette-Marit spent several days at Epstein’s residence in Palm Beach in January 2013, and email exchanges suggested a warm tone in their correspondence, including references indicating awareness of his earlier conviction in 2008. Norwegian commentators have expressed shock at the nature of the communications, raising questions about how the risks of maintaining contact with Epstein were assessed and the role of royal advisers at the time. The royal family has faced a series of controversies in recent years, adding to public unease. No member of the family is expected to attend the upcoming trial in Oslo district court, which begins on Tuesday. Crown Prince Haakon said last week that the family’s thoughts were with everyone affected by the case, adding that while his stepson is not a royal, he remains an important part of their family.   With inputs from BBC

Veteran British politician Lord Peter Mandelson has resigned from the Labour Party, saying he does not want to further embarrass the party following renewed controversy over his past links to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. In a letter to Labour’s general secretary, Mandelson said he was “regretful and sorry” after being named in newly released documents by the US Department of Justice. The files, made public on Friday, appear to reference three payments of $25,000 each allegedly connected to Mandelson in 2003 and 2004. Mandelson said allegations that Epstein made financial payments to him around two decades ago were false, adding that he has no record or recollection of receiving such money. He said he would look into the matter but decided to step down from party membership in the meantime to avoid causing further damage to Labour. In his letter, Mandelson again apologised to the women and girls abused by Epstein, saying their voices should have been heard much earlier. He said his resignation was taken in what he believed to be the Labour Party’s best interests, stressing his long-standing commitment to its values. Earlier, Mandelson said he could not confirm the authenticity of the newly released documents but repeated his regret for having known Epstein and for maintaining contact after Epstein’s 2008 conviction. He offered an “unequivocal” apology to the victims. Labour MP Gordon McKee said Epstein’s victims would be “rightly outraged” by the latest revelations and said Mandelson had taken the correct step by resigning. The Conservative Party criticised Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, saying Mandelson should have been expelled rather than allowed to resign, while Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch called for his suspension and a formal investigation. Housing Secretary Steve Reed said the government had not been aware of the alleged financial links when questioned by the media. Mandelson, a prominent Labour strategist and former cabinet minister, was appointed UK ambassador to the United States in December 2024 but was removed from the post less than a year later following earlier disclosures about his association with Epstein. He has remained on leave from the House of Lords since his ambassadorial appointment. The newly released files include bank records, first reported by the Financial Times, that appear to show three payments referencing Mandelson. One payment in May 2003 was sent to a Barclays account linked to Reinaldo Avila da Silva, identified as Mandelson’s partner at the time, while two further payments were made to HSBC accounts in June 2004. It is unclear whether the funds were ultimately received. The documents also include redacted images showing Mandelson standing next to a woman, as well as emails indicating he remained in contact with Epstein after his conviction. Mandelson has said he cannot recall the circumstances of the photograph and stressed that being named or pictured in the files does not imply wrongdoing. Epstein was convicted in 2008 in the United States on charges including soliciting underage girls and later died in a New York jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. The latest disclosures form part of the largest release so far of Epstein-related records under a US law mandating their publication.   With inputs from BBC

Russian forces have captured the village of Toretsk in Donetsk and Petrovka in Zaporizhzhia, the Russian Defense Ministry said Saturday. In a statement, the ministry said the Russian army also targeted Ukrainian transport infrastructure, ammunition depots, and temporary deployment sites of Ukrainian forces and foreign mercenaries at 138 locations. Russian air defense reportedly shot down four guided aerial bombs, one U.S.-made HIMARS rocket, and 47 fixed-wing drones in the past 24 hours.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Kyiv aims to inflict losses on Russian forces at a scale that exceeds Moscow’s monthly reinforcements, outlining a strategy he believes could weaken Russia’s military capacity and shift the balance in the nearly four-year-old war. Addressing military personnel, Zelenskyy said Ukrainian units should ensure Russian losses surpass the number of troops Moscow can deploy each month, describing 50,000 losses as the optimal level to achieve that goal. He said recent battlefield assessments showed a steady rise in Russian casualties, including killed and severely wounded soldiers no longer able to return to combat. Ukraine’s military leadership estimates tens of thousands of Russian troops were killed or incapacitated in December alone. Kyiv claims Russia has suffered more than one million casualties since launching its full-scale invasion in 2022, though such figures cannot be independently verified. The war remains largely stalemated, with Russian forces struggling to make significant territorial gains despite sustained offensives in eastern Ukraine. Ukrainian commanders say their troops continue to hold key cities in the Donetsk region, while countering Russian attempts to advance using small assault groups. Zelenskyy said drone warfare has become central to Ukraine’s strategy, with unmanned systems now striking the majority of targets on the battlefield. He said domestic drone production has expanded rapidly, supported by incentive schemes that reward operators and frontline troops for confirmed hits and the destruction of Russian equipment. The president recently appointed a new defence minister with a background in digital innovation, tasking him with accelerating drone manufacturing and strengthening international technological cooperation. Meanwhile, Russia has continued heavy drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure, leaving large numbers of households without electricity and heating during winter. Ukrainian authorities said repair crews were working around the clock, while international partners have provided generators and emergency support. Ceasefire talks involving Russia, Ukraine and the United States have so far failed to produce a breakthrough, with Moscow showing no willingness to compromise on territorial demands. Zelenskyy has warned that without stronger military pressure and firm security guarantees, prospects for a negotiated settlement remain remote.   With inputs from ALJAZEERA

Health authorities in Spain’s Basque Country have launched an investigation after 253 patients, mostly infants, received expired doses of the childhood hexavalent vaccine, officials said Thursday. The Basque public health service, Osakidetza, detected the issue on January 15 and has begun contacting the affected families. Basque Health Minister Alberto Martinez said consultations with the national medicines agency AEMPS, the Basque Vaccine Advisory Council, and the manufacturer confirmed that the expired vaccines pose no health risk. However, Martinez acknowledged the incident as “serious” and issued an apology to families. He added that an internal probe has been opened to identify the supply chain lapse and implement measures to prevent recurrence. The hexavalent vaccine protects children against six diseases, including diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, polio, Hepatitis B, and Haemophilus influenzae type B. While the Basque Country manages local health services, the central Spanish government oversees national medicine regulations through AEMPS. Officials stressed that day-to-day management and responses to local incidents remain under Basque control, and corrective actions are being taken to maintain vaccine safety standards.   With inputs from ALJAZEERA

Spain plans to grant legal status to around 500,000 undocumented migrants, a move drawing attention from countries including Bangladesh as it contrasts sharply with tougher immigration policies in parts of Europe and the United States. Spanish Migration Minister Elma Saiz said beneficiaries will be able to work in any sector across the country and emphasized the “positive impact” of migration. “We are talking about estimations, probably more or less the figures may be around half a million people,” she added, saying the government was “recognising” and giving dignity to people already in Spain. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez cited the country’s need for migration to fill workforce gaps and support an ageing population, which places pressure on pensions and social welfare. Laetitia Van der Vennet, of the Platform for Undocumented Immigrants NGO, praised Spain’s approach as a humane alternative amid rising anti-migrant sentiment in Europe and the US, reports Al Jazeera . Starmer and Xi seek closer UK-China relations as global order faces strain Ousman Umar, a Ghanaian migrant who overcame perilous journeys to Spain and now runs an NGO for children in Ghana, said the policy will benefit both migrants and Spanish society.  “It will allow people to work legally, pay taxes, and contribute to the pension system in a country with a low birthrate and a growing elderly population,” he said.

Lawmakers in the eastern German state of Saxony-Anhalt on Wednesday elected Sven Schulze as the new governor, aiming to prevent a victory for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in a regional election due in September. Schulze, 46, a member of Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), replaces long-serving governor Reiner Haseloff, 71, who has led the state of about 2.2 million people since 2011. Haseloff had originally planned to serve his full term. But with rising support for the AfD, he announced he would step down early, allowing Schulze, the state’s former economy minister, to gain visibility ahead of the Sept. 6 election. The AfD, Germany’s second-largest party in the federal parliament, is strongest in the poorer eastern states. Its main focus is opposition to migration, but it also taps into frustration over economic issues. Mainstream parties refuse to cooperate with AfD. In past elections, popular incumbent governors in eastern states, including Haseloff in 2021, managed to defeat AfD challenges. By stepping down early, Haseloff gives Schulze a better chance to consolidate support before the vote. So far, AfD has led in one state election, in Thuringia in 2024, but has not yet taken power at the state level.

A court in the Netherlands on Tuesday sentenced an Eritrean man to the maximum 20 years in prison after convicting him of leading a people-smuggling and extortion network that subjected migrants to what judges described as cruel and degrading abuse. The Overijssel District Court found Tewelde Goitom, also known as Amanuel Walid, guilty of running a criminal organization that transported migrants from Libya across the Mediterranean toward Europe and extorted large sums of money from their families, including relatives living in the Netherlands. Judges dismissed Goitom’s claim that he had been mistaken for another person, rejecting arguments from the defense that witnesses had wrongly identified him as a key figure in the smuggling network. Presiding Judge René Melaard said the case was “exceptionally serious,” citing both the scale of the crimes and the suffering inflicted on vulnerable migrants. “On the one hand, because of the gross undermining of Dutch and European immigration policy, but on the other, and especially, because of the particularly cruel, violent and degrading treatment to which you and your accomplices subjected the migrants,” Melaard said. “You, along with your accomplices, were merciless, unscrupulous, and devoid of regard for human dignity in your treatment” of migrants, he added, saying the abuse was carried out “apparently solely to extort as much money as possible from vulnerable and helpless people seeking a better future.” North Korea fires suspected ballistic missiles into sea, regional officials say Goitom, 42, was also ordered to pay more than 30,000 euros, about $35,000, in compensation to victims. He has two weeks to file an appeal. According to the court, migrants were held in camps in Libya, where they were abused and forced to contact family members who were pressured to send money to secure their relatives’ passage to Europe. Only after payments were made were migrants allowed to leave the camps and continue their journeys. The International Criminal Court prosecutor’s office welcomed the ruling in a post on X, noting that it had shared evidence in the case as part of a joint investigation into crimes against migrants in Libya. The ICC is conducting an ongoing probe into alleged crimes committed there. At the start of the trial in November, Goitom told judges he was the victim of mistaken identity. He was extradited to the Netherlands in 2022 from Ethiopia, where he had previously been convicted of similar offenses. Proceedings against Goitom were delayed due to the extradition of another suspect, Kidane Zekarias Habtemariam, who fled during a trial in Ethiopia in 2020. Often described as one of the world’s most wanted human traffickers, Habtemariam was extradited from the United Arab Emirates to the Netherlands in late December and is expected to face trial at a later date. Habtemariam had been convicted in absentia and sentenced to life imprisonment in Ethiopia after escaping from custody while on trial for people-smuggling charges. Dutch prosecutors say both men can be tried in the Netherlands because parts of their alleged criminal activities took place there, including the extortion of money from relatives of migrants living in the country. At least 6,126 killed in Iran protests, activists say Goitom’s defense lawyers disputed that claim. “There is no clear connection to the Netherlands,” lawyer Simcha Plas argued, saying payments were made in Eritrea or through the UAE and that Dutch courts lacked jurisdiction. The judges rejected that argument, convicting Goitom on multiple counts of complicity in people smuggling and extortion. He was acquitted in relation to two migrants after the court found the evidence insufficient.