A four-member BNP delegation is set to travel to China in early November at the invitation of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The delegation will participate in a programmme scheduled to be held in Beijing from November 7 to 16, said BNP Organising Secretary Anindya Islam Amit. The delegation comprises BNP Vice Chairman Asaduzzaman Ripon, Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, Organising Secretary Anindya Islam Amit, and Jatiyatabadi Krishak Dal Joint Secretary Mahmuda Habiba. A letter signed by BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said an event titled "Political Party Plus" Cooperation will be held in China’s capital Beijing with representatives from Southeast and South Asian countries. It also said the Communist Party of China has invited BNP and other political leaders from around the world to take part in the event.

A three-member BNP delegation, led by party Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, had a closed-door meeting with visiting US Deputy Assistant Secretary at the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, Afreen Akhter, on Saturday. The hour-long meeting that began at 3pm was held at the Westin Hotel in the capital’s Gulshan area. US Ambassador to Bangladesh Peter Haas was also present at the meeting. After the meeting, a post on the Facebook page of the US Embassy in Dhaka said, “We welcomed a fruitful discussion with BNP’s Secretary General about the current political landscape in Bangladesh and the thousands of opposition members in prison. Looking forward to continued engagement.” It also said engaging in constructive dialogue is key to understanding different perspectives and finding common ground. The embassy also shared a photo of the meeting. Read more: Bangladesh wants to become Sectoral Dialogue Partner of ASEAN by its next Summit in October The other member of the BNP delegation includes party Standing Committee member Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury and Organising Secretary Shama Obaid. Talking to reporters about the meeting, Amir Khosru said they joined the meeting at the invitation of the US and talked about various issues. “That's all I can say... I don't have anything more to say." Asked what they discussed at the meeting, he parried the questions saying he is not willing to say anything about it. Replying to another question about whether they talked about the last national election in Bangladesh, he also preferred to remain tight-lipped, saying he had nothing to say. No one from the US side briefed reporters on the outcome of the meeting. Read more: Story of Bangladesh’s economic growth, development an inspiration for many countries: World Bank MD This was the first meeting of BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul and Amir Khusro with foreigners after being released from prison. Fakhrul and Khosru were arrested in connection with the violence on the streets ahead of the 12th National Assembly elections centring the party's grand rally in the capital on October 28. They were recently released on bail after spending three and a half months in jail. Meanwhile, a three-member high-level US delegation arrived in Dhaka on a three-day visit on Saturday morning to discuss with the government of Bangladesh ways to "strengthen diplomatic ties, address challenges, and promote a shared vision for the advancement of mutual interests in the Indo-Pacific region." Their visit will also include meetings with youth activists and civil society leaders, labour organizers, and those engaged in developing a free and uncensored media, said the US Embassy. After the January 7 election, the US in a statement on January 8 said, "Looking ahead, the United States remains committed to partnering with Bangladesh to advance our shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific, to supporting human rights and civil society in Bangladesh, and to deepening our people-to-people and economic ties." Read more: US to work with Bangladesh to ‘enhance economic investment’ in next 50 years and beyond

A two-member BNP delegation is going to Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) commissioner's office to try to end the impasse over the party's  December 10 rally in Dhaka. BNP vice chairman Dr AZM Zahid Hossain and law affairs secretary Kayser Kamal will go to DMP office at 2pm to finalise the venue for the rally on Saturday. Read more: ​​​​​​​BNP to hold press conference this afternoon BNP sources said their party is now thinking of holding the rally at Dhalpur ground while the government is willing to permit holding it at Mirpur Bangla College. The delegation will talk to the DMP Commissioner Khandker Golam Faruq seeking permission to hold the rally at Dhalpur ground or any other ground in Dhaka south city. To decide their next course of action regarding the detention of two top leaders of the party by detectives, the leaders of the BNP standing committee have sat for an online meeting that started at 11:40am. Meanwhile, Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, the most senior member of the BNP's standing committee, will address a conference at the party chairperson's Gulshan office at 3pm, said Sayrul Kabir Khan, a BNP media cell member. Read more: Mirza Fakhrul, Mirza Abbas picked up by detectives: BNP BNP in the early hours on Friday claimed that plainclothes police picked up its Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and Standing Committee member Mirza Abbas from their homes in separate raids in the capital city. Earlier on Thursday night, a BNP delegation had a six-hour meeting with the DMP commissioner where they talked about holding the rally on Saturday (December 10) either at Kamalapur Stadium or Mirpur Bangla College ground. Later, Abbas with some BNP leaders visited the two venues. At that meeting, police authorities assured of reopening the BNP office at Nayapaltan. On Wednesday, a Swechchasebak Dal leader was killed and around 50 others were injured in a clash between police and the BNP activists in front of the party’s Nayapaltan central office ahead of its December 10 rally. Read more: Police control of BNP office at Nayapaltan continues amid mounting tension Following the clash, police raided the BNP office and arrested around 300 party leaders and activists from there. With only 24 hours left of the Dhaka rally on December 10, it becomes totally uncertain to hold the rally at the designated timeframe as the venue has not finalised yet as well as the detention of the party's two top leaders.

A BNP delegation on Wednesday met Rory Mungoven, the head of UN Human Rights Commission's (OHCHR) Asia-Pacific section, at a city hotel and discussed the country’s human rights situation. The four-member BNP delegation, led by the party’s human rights affairs secretary Advocate Asaduzzaman Asad, had around an hour-long meeting starting at 1:30pm with Mungoven at Hotel Intercontinental. The other members of the delegation are Shyama Obaid, Tabith Awal and Barrister Abrar Ilias. Read:BNP renews call for Khaleda’s unconditional release Taking to reporters after the meeting, Asad said they talked about the human rights situation in Bangladesh at the meeting. “We have explained the human rights situation in Bangladesh and talked about different incidents of human rights violation that were reported in the media,” he said. Asked whether Mungoven made any comment about the human right situation in Bangladesh, he said, “He heard our speeches, but didn’t give any feedback. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights may talk about it during her press conference today (Wednesday).” Shyama Obaid said they talked about the overall human rights situation of the country. “We met Mungoven and gave our observations about the human rights condition. As UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet did not meet any politician in Bangladesh, we met her team member Mungoven,” he said. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet arrived in Dhaka on August 14 on a four-day visit as Bangladesh looks forward to having a "constructive dialogue" with her for the promotion and protection of human rights.