Others
Jamaat, which was behind killings of intellectuals in 1971, BNP's main associate: Info Minister
Jamaat and Al-Badr forces, who were behind the killings of intellectuals in 1971, are the main associates of BNP, Information and Broadcasting Minister Hasan Mahmud said today.
“It is sad but true that leaders of Jamaat-e-Islami and Al-Badr led the killings of intellectuals, and the leaders of those groups are now the main associates of BNP... Many of those who were involved in the killings of intellectuals are now BNP leaders,” he said.
The minister came up with the remarks while talking to reporters while paying tribute to the martyrs on the occasion of Martyred Intellectuals Day at Rayerbazar memorial in Dhaka.
“We have noticed that the process to kill intellectuals had begun on December 10 and journalist Shaheed Siraj Uddin Hossain and many others had been picked up on that day. On December 10 this year, BNP called their Dhaka divisional rally. Their love for and attachment to Pakistan are being revealed again,” he said.
Hasan said “Those who were against the independence and were involved in the killing of intellectuals did not want this country but they are doing politics in the country even after 51 years of independence.”
Rights experts decry advocacy of Jamaat’s British legal adviser to impose sanctions
A number of Bangladesh’s leading rights activists decried the advocacy by British lawyer Toby Cadman – who was engaged by Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami as its legal advisor in 2011 – to impose sanctions.
The admission of Toby Cadman, as reported by Al Jazeera on December 6, 2022, points to yet another plot “to mislead the world on Bangladesh on the human rights issue” through lobbyists, they added.
Read: Toby Cadman, who was Jamaat's legal advisor, tells Al Jazeera he was part of team asking US, UK govts for Rab sanction
Cadman admitted to Al Jazeera to his efforts to get the UK to impose sanctions against Bangladesh’s law enforcement officials and expressed disappointment that it did not work out.
“I filed the request for sanctions and whilst I am not in a position to discuss the substance, I can confirm that I discussed the request with the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO),” Cadman was quoted as saying, referring to the UK Foreign Office.
Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami engaged Toby Cadman as its legal advisor in London in 2011, after the trials of several top Jamaat leaders started – over war crimes committed during the 1971 Liberation War.
Advocate Rana Dasgupta, general secretary of Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Oikya Parishad, commented that after four decades of wait “the current troublesome situation, as regards to Cadman’s requests for sanction, points to a larger conspiracy overseas by Jamaat against the Sheikh Hasina-led government.”
Referring to huge public support behind the trials of war criminals, as materialised by the Awami League government, Dasgupta, who leads the country’s largest minority rights platform, said, “Top war criminals, who were brought to justice, belonged to Jamaat and the trial, that offered some solace for millions of victim families who lost their loves ones during the violent war crimes campaign, surely upset that entire cabal. The desperate group hired lobbyists in powerful countries to unsettle the Sheikh Hasina-led government so that these war criminals can evade justice.”
Read: Can a British legal adviser for Jamaat be considered an ‘independent voice’ for human rights?
“Since the beginning of the trials, Jamaat waged a wave of conspiracy including hiring lobbyists overseas to run a disinformation campaign to defend these war criminals overseas. Among a series of such campaigns, Cadman’s move for sanction is another pointer,” he added.
Dr Mizanur Rahman, Professor of Law at the University of Dhaka and former chairman of the National Human Rights Commission of Bangladesh, said, “Since the war crimes trial started, Jamaat appointed Cadman in London, and he scoured to serve the interests of his client. Thus, began smear campaigns against the war crimes trial. In doing so, this group saw Bangladesh as its enemy and the recent appeal for sanction by such a lobbyist clearly demonstrates that their objective has little to do with rights issues.”
Days after Cadman’s admission, Jamaat announced to launch a new movement with demands including ousting the Sheikh Hasina-led government, in sync with Bangladesh Nationalist party.
Fire engulfing 2 oil tanker trucks at Dhaka Airport’s 3rd terminal doused
The fire that engulfed two oil tanker trucks at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport’s 3rd terminal this morning has been doused.
Shahjahan Shikdar, Deputy assistant director of Fire Service and Civil Defense headquarters’ media cell, said the two oil tanker trucks caught fire at 10:12 am today (December 14, 2022).
Also read: Fire breaks out at BM container depot in Chattogram
On information, four firefighting units rushed to the spot and had the fire under control at 10:52 am.
The firefighters managed to fully douse the fire at 11:28 am. However, what caused the fire could not be known immediately.
Read More: APBn detains man with gold worth Tk 69 lakh at Dhaka Airport
Italy contributes €3mn to UNHCR for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, has welcomed the generous contribution of Euro 3 million by the government of Italy for the continued protection and humanitarian assistance for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.
The announcement was made today by Enrico Nunziata, Ambassador of Italy in Bangladesh, and Johannes van der Klaauw, UNHCR Representative.
This contribution from the government and the people of Italy will help UNHCR continue providing lifesaving protection and assistance for almost one million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh who remain reliant on humanitarian assistance for survival. This includes access to health, water and sanitation, as well as crucial protection services, and also support for refugees’ education and skills development, particularly for women and children, said Johannes van der Klaauw.
Read: More Rohingya female teachers need training for increasing literacy among their community
“This generous contribution from Italy, which comes from its foreign policy budget, highlights the longer-term nature of this commitment and is all the more welcome now that we anticipate significant reduction in financial support from the international community,” he added.
The grant of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation is a contribution to the activities of the Government of People’s Republic of Bangladesh and UNHCR on Rohingya’s protection as set up in the Joint Response Plan, in line with the commitment of the Italian government to maintain access to critical and life-sustaining services for refugees living both in Cox’s Bazar camps and on Bhasan Char.
Italy praises the efforts and generosity of the Government of People’s Republic of Bangladesh in hosting hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees within its territory. “Since the beginning of the Rohingya refugee crisis in August 2017, Italy has constantly given its contribution through main international organizations and UN agencies," said Enrico Nunziata.
Read: UK continues to push for a long-term solution through safe repatriation of Rohingyas: Dickson
The contribution from Italy will enable UNHCR to provide protection services such as registration, access to justice, support for survivors of gender-based violence, community-based protection and child-friendly spaces, said UNHCR in a media release on Wednesday.
It will also empower the refugee communities, through education, by training teachers to implement the Myanmar curriculum in the camps, and through skills development for women, to improve their resilience until they can return to Myanmar.
The funds will also support the delivering of essential services, such as shelter, health, nutrition, water and sanitation, as well as the provision of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) as a safe and clean source of cooking energy, a key contributor in the prevention of degradation of the environment in and around the camps.
Five years after being forced to flee violence in Myanmar, some 920,000 Rohingya refugees are currently hosted in densely populated camps in Cox’s Bazar, with an additional 30,000 refugees residing on Bhasan Char.
Defeated forces resurrected to avenge: Obaidul Quader
Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader on Wednesday said the defeated forces of 1971 are now active again to retaliate.
“The defeated forces of 1971 now want to take revenge and that’s why they have become active now,” he said while talking to reporters after paying tributes to the martyred intellectuals on the occasion of the Martyred Intellectuals Day.
Quader, General Secretary of the ruling Awami League, also urged the pro-liberation forces to resist all conspiracies by getting united.
Earlier on Wednesday, President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina paid tributes to the martyred intellectuals.
Flanked by the party's central leaders, Hasina, also the President of Bangladesh Awami League, laid another wreath at the Martyred Intellectuals Memorial as the party chief.
Also read: Martyred Intellectuals Day: President, PM pay tribute to 1971 heroes
Awami League presidium members Begum Matia Chowdhury, Abdur Razzaque, Jahangir Kabir Nanak, Abdur Rahman, Shahjahan Khan, joint secretary Mahbubul Alam Hanif MP, AFM Bahauddin Nasim and organising secretary Ahmed Hossain, among others, were present there. On the night of December 14, 1971, over 200 intellectuals including educationists, journalists, litterateurs, writers, physicians, scientists, lawyers, artists, philosophers and political thinkers had been picked up in Dhaka by the Pakistani occupation forces, aided by their local collaborators.
The intellectuals were taken blindfold to torture cells in Mirpur, Mohammadpur, Nakhalpara, Rajarbagh and other locations in different parts of the city and later executed en masse at different killing grounds, most notably Rayerbazar and Mirpur.
Since then, the day has been observed as the Martyred Intellectuals Day.
Nation remembers illustrious sons and daughters on Martyred Intellectuals Day
Bangladesh is observing Martyred Intellectuals Day today (December 14, 2022) to honour the intellectuals brutally killed by the Pakistani occupation forces and their local collaborators in 1971.
In the morning, President M Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina paid tributes to the martyred intellectuals.
The President and then the Prime Minister placed wreaths at the Martyred Intellectuals Memorial at Mirpur.
They stood there in solemn silence for a while as a mark of profound respect to the memories of the illustrious sons and daughters of the soil.
Read: Martyred Intellectuals Day: President, PM pay tribute to 1971 heroes
The government has chalked out elaborate programmes to commemorate the December 14 tragedy.
Apart from the family members of the martyred and freedom fighters, the general public also placed wreaths at Martyred Intellectuals Memorial in the morning.
To mark the day, various cultural organisations have arranged several cultural programmes and paid floral tributes to the brightest minds killed by the Pakistani forces and their collaborators during the Liberation War.
Bangladesh Television and private television channels are also airing special programmes highlighting the significance of the day.
On December 14, 1971, many of the country’s renowned academicians, doctors, engineers, journalists, artists and teachers were dragged out of their homes across the country, blindfolded and taken to unknown places. They were brutally tortured and killed.
Among the martyred intellectuals were Prof Munier Chowdhury, Dr Alim Chowdhury, Prof Muniruzzaman, Dr Fazle Rabbi, Sirajuddin Hossain, Shahidullah Kaiser, Prof GC Dev, JC Guhathakurta, Prof Santosh Bhattacharya, Mofazzal Haider Chowdhury, journalists Khandaker Abu Taleb, Nizamuddin Ahmed, SA Mannan (LaduBhai), ANM Golam Mustafa, Syed Nazmul Haq and Selina Parvin.
Covid-19: Global cases near 655 million
The overall number of global Covid-19 cases is gradually nearing 655 million.
According to the latest global data, the total case count mounted to 654,792,648 while the death toll from the virus reached 6,661,735 on Wednesday morning.
The US has recorded 101,419,853 cases so far, while 1,110,561 people have died from the virus in the country, both highest counts around the world.
The Chinese mainland on Tuesday reported 2,249 locally transmitted confirmed COVID-19 cases, the National Health Commission said Wednesday.
Read: China students return home amid COVID travel spread fears
Tuesday saw no new deaths from COVID-19, with the total death toll at 5,235.
Meanwhile, India's federal health ministry said on Tuesday the country's daily COVID-19 caseload decreased to 114, with no related death reported during the past 24 hours.
This is the second straight day that no death due to COVID-19 was reported.
South Korea recorded 84,571 new COVID-19 cases as of midnight Tuesday compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of infections to 27,925,572, the health authorities said Wednesday.
The daily cases stayed above 80,000 for the second straight day amid rising worries about the resurgence in winter.
Covid in Bangladesh
Bangladesh registered 20 more Covid cases in 24 hours till Tuesday morning.
Read: 4th dose of Covid vaccine to be administered from Dec 20
With the new numbers, the country's total caseload rose to 2,036,845, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
However, the official death toll from the disease remained unchanged at 29,437 as no new fatalities were reported.
Martyred Intellectuals Day: President, PM pay tribute to 1971 heroes
President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday paid rich tributes to the martyred intellectuals on the occasion of the Martyred Intellectuals Day.
The President and then the Prime Minister placed wreaths at the Martyred Intellectuals Memorial at Mirpur.
They stood there in solemn silence for a while as a mark of profound respect to the memories of the illustrious sons of the soil.
A smartly-turned-out contingent of the Bangladesh Armed Forces gave a state salute.
Flanked by the party's central leaders, Hasina, also the President of Bangladesh Awami League, laid another wreath at the Martyred Intellectuals Memorial as the party chief.
Later, the Prime Minister talked to the war-wounded freedom fighters and the family members of the martyred intellectuals.
Hasina then went to Dhanmondi in the capital and placed a wreath at the portrait of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in front of Bangabandhu Memorial Museum marking the Martyred Intellectuals Day.
After placing the wreath, she stood there for some time as a mark of profound respect to the memory of Bangabandhu, the architect of independence of Bangladesh.
On the night of December 14, 1971, over 200 intellectuals including educationists, journalists, litterateurs, writers, physicians, scientists, lawyers, artists, philosophers and political thinkers had been picked up in Dhaka by the Pakistani occupation forces, aided by their local collaborators.
The intellectuals were taken blindfold to torture cells in Mirpur, Mohammadpur, Nakhalpara, Rajarbagh and other locations in different parts of the city and later executed en masse at different killing grounds, most notably Rayerbazar and Mirpur.
Since then, the day has been observed as the Martyred Intellectuals Day.
Two dead in Kalabagan road accident
At least two people were killed and two others also injured as a speeding covered van ran over some rickshaws in Russell Square area under Kalabagan police station of the capital early Wednesday.
However, identities of the casualties could not be ascertained immediately.
Saiful Islam, officer-in-charge of Kalabagan police station, said the accident happened around 12.30am when the speeding covered van ran over the rickshaws after its driver lost control on steering nearby traffic police box in Russell Square area, leaving the duo dead on the spot and two others injured.
Read more: Schoolboy killed in Dhaka road crash
The injured were rushed to Dhaka Medical College Hospital where they have been undergoing treatment, he said.
Though the covered van could be detained its driver and helper managed to flee, the OC added.
Read more: Couple among three killed in Cumilla road accident
Former VC of JU Alauddin passes away
Former vice-chancellor of Jahangirnagar University (JU) Alauddin died at a hospital in the city on Tuesday. He was 74.
Alauddin, also a freedom fighter, breathed his last at United Hospital in the city at 3:25 pm, said a media release of Jahangirnagar University.
He served as VC of the JU from July 18, 1998 to December 9, 1999. Before that he was the deputy vice-chancellor of the university.
He was also elected as the member of Parliament in 2001 from Kishoreganj-1 constituency.
Read more: Former DU VC AKM Siddiq passes away
Alauddin served as the education, social development and political affairs advisor to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina from 2009 to 2013.
Born in 1947 at Pakundia upazila of Kishoreganj, Alauddin obtained MSc in 1971 from Dhaka University.
He also served as the deputy magistrate and deputy collector of Bangladesh Government from 1973-1977.
Alauddin joined as a professor of Chemistry Department of Jahangirnagar University in 1975.
JU VC Dr Mohammad Nurul Alam expressed deep shock at the demise of Alauddin. He also expressed deep sympathy to the bereaved family members.