At least 10 people were injured when a clash broke out between ready-made garments (RMG) workers and law enforcers in Ashulia area of Savar upazila on Tuesday (May 23, 2023) as the workers blocked Baipail-Abdullahpur highway, police said. According to the workers, the authority of Fashion Forum Limited Garment declared the garment closed indefinitely as they went on a strike and stopped working from Monday on various demands. Read more: Bangladesh-Australia have huge opportunities to expand trade: BGMEA President  Observing the notice put at the gate last night, the workers started to block the Baipail-Abdullahpur highway and police intercepted them. Ashulia Police Station Officer-in-Charge Kamruzzaman confirmed the matter and said that additional police have been deployed in front of the factory to avoid any untoward incident. Read more: Dip in US market fails to dent apparel sector's growth momentum.

Two cases were filed against 450 leaders and activists of BNP, including the district presidents and general secretaries of Jubo Dal, Chhatra Dal, and Sramik Dal, in relation to a recent clash between Awami League and BNP in Patuakhali.  The clash occurred during a peace rally organized by the Awami League at the Muslimpara intersection in the municipality. Two Awami League leaders filed the two cases at the Sadar police station.  Also Read: AL-BNP clash leaves 30, inclucing policemen, injured in Patuakhali No arrests have been made thus far by the police. AL leader Raihan Hossain filed a written complaint on the night of May 20. According to the complaint, while the peace rally was underway, BNP supporters allegedly ambushed the participants, vandalizing houses and shops, resulting in several activists being injured and subsequently admitted to the hospital. The main defendant, in this case, is Monir Munshi, the General Secretary of the district Sramik Dal, along with 29 other leaders and workers. Additionally, 150-200 unidentified individuals have been named as defendants.  In another case filed at the same police station on May 21, District Jubo League Joint General Secretary Nasir Uddin, the plaintiff, stated that Jubo Dal members had launched an attack during their peace rally at the Muslimpara intersection, causing similar damages.  District Jubo Dal President Monirul Islam was made the main defendant in this case, listing 16 individuals by name and 200-250 others as unnamed defendants. Md. Moniruzzaman, the Officer-in-Charge of the Patuakhali Sadar Police Station, said that both plaintiffs had made identical complaints.  He said, "The accused are currently evading arrest. Our efforts to arrest them are ongoing."  District Juba Dal President Monirul Islam Liton expressed that the BNP would also file a case against the Awami League attackers at the police station. He further stated that if the police failed to take action, they would approach the court. A rally held in front of the Patuakhali district BNP office on Saturday morning, demanding the government's resignation, was disrupted by an attack from Jubo League and Chhatra League members.  The clash escalated into a violent confrontation, with both sides engaging in brick-throwing and vandalizing the BNP offices. Police resorted to firing tear gas to disperse the activists from both parties.  District Chhatra Dal president Ujjal Talukder and 30 leaders and activists from the BNP and Awami League reportedly sustained injuries during the clash.    

At least 30 people, including activists of Awami League (AL), Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and police personnel, were injured in clash between the two parties over holding rally in Sadar upazila of Patuakhali today. Police used teargas to disperse the fighting groups while an additional number of law enforcers have been deployed in the area to avert any untoward incident. Local BNP leaders said there was a scheduled rally to press home their 10-point demand, including resignation of the incumbent government and holding the next parliamentary election under a neutral government, in front of the party office in Patuakhali's town's Banani intersection area at 10 am. BNP activists and leaders from different parts of the district started gathering with processions since early morning, they said, adding that they were barred by the ruling party activists on their way to the rally venue. A clash broke out between the activists of the parties when an AL procession was passing by, witnesses said. Brickbats were thrown targeting each other, while BNP’s district office was also vandalised. The rival groups chased each other several times in the area, causing panic among the commuters and locals. BNP Central leader ABM Mosharraf Hossain said at least 25 BNP activists were injured in the attack by AL men. Md Saidul Islam, superintendent of police (SP), said, the situation is now under control and an additional number of policemen have been deployed in front of the BNP office in the town. The SP said they used teargas to bring the situation under control but instantly could not inform how many rounds were used.   Additional Superintendent of Police Mohammad Mainul Hassan said several policemen were injured in the clash.  Sadar Police Station’s Officer-in-Charge, Md Moniruzzaman, said a process was underway to file cases against those who attacked law enforcers and tried to deteriorate the law and order situation. The district unit of BNP held an emergency press conference in favour of their 10-point demand and protested the "attack" on their rally at a hotel this afternoon. At the press conference, BNP Vice Chairman Abdul Awal Mintoo said the next national polls won’t be free and fair without a caretaker government.  Meanwhile, local AL leaders and activists held a peace rally in the morning. AL's district unit President and freedom fighter Kazi Alamgir and Vice President Sultan Ahmad Mridha, among others, spoke at the rally. The district AL president said they will file a case against BNP men for "attacking" their rally.  

Gunmen attacked villages in troubled north-central Nigeria, killing 29 people and razing houses, survivors and authorities said Tuesday. Many villagers remained unaccounted for Tuesday evening after the attack in Plateau state, residents said. It was the latest incident in a spiral of violence mainly targeting remote communities in the West African nation. The gunmen targeted three villages in Plateau state’s Mangu local government area late Monday night and killed several people either with gunfire or after setting their houses ablaze, resident Philip Pamshak said. “As I am talking to you, they are still attacking people. The tension is still high and there are places the bandits still control, so people are not able to go and check if there are others killed,” Pamshak said. Also read: Gunmen kill 15 people, abduct 5 aid workers in north Nigeria Plateau Gov. Simon Lalong said he was disturbed by the attack and directed security forces to search for the suspects and prosecute them, according to a statement issued by his spokesman. “He (the governor) describes this as yet another attempt by crises merchants and criminals to return the state to the dark days of pain and agony,” said Makut Macham, Lalong’s spokesman. Such attacks have become rampant in many parts of Nigeria’s northern region, where several armed groups target villages with inadequate security, either killing or abducting residents and travelers for ransom. Arrests are rare in such attacks, for which no group typically takes responsibility. However, authorities have in the past identified many of the attackers as former pastoralists who took up arms after decades of conflict with farmers over limited access to land and water. The security crisis has led to thousands of deaths and defied several government and security measures in the last year. After the latest killings in Plateau, Lalong directed the emergency response agency to visit the affected communities “to bring succor” to victims and their families, many of whom have either fled the area or have lost their homes, adding to Nigeria’s worsening humanitarian crisis.  

At least 25 people were injured in a clash between two groups of locals from six villages of Faridpur’s Bhanga upazila on Friday. The incident took place reportedly over a trivial matter at Chulna Bazar area around 7 pm.  Quoting locals, MM Siddikur Rahman, Chairman of Alog union, said there was an argument between some men of Gulpunodi and Naora villages over taking photographs. Also Read: Man killed in lynch-mob attack in Faridpur At one point, people from six villages split into two groups over the issue, resulting in a clash that lasted nearly an hour and a half.  People from Gulpunodi, Naora, Chulna, Shuadi, Chandra, and Oporpurti villages engaged in the clash with locally made arms, he said.  Read More: 4 more arrested for viral assault on father, son in Faridpur The groups attacked each other and the injured are currently receiving treatment at different hospitals, he added.  Md Ziarul Islam, officer-in-charge of Bhanga police station, said no complaint has been filed yet.  “The situation is now under control. Additional police were deployed in the area,” he said.   

A man was killed and 25 were wounded in a clash between two groups, allegedly over establishing supremacy, in Baniachong upazila of Habiganj yesterday evening. Police have so far detained six people in connection with the incident. A tense situation has been prevailing in the area since yesterday. The deceased was identified as Jahangir Miah, 45, while identities of the injured could not be known immediately. Police and locals said there had long been a dispute between former union parishad member Azam Ali and Kachham Ali of Kushiyartala village under the upazila over establishing dominance. People of both groups locked into an altercation over income earned from properties when arbitration was going on at the village on Saturday afternoon, they said. Read more: Panchagarh clash leaves 2 killed and at least 50 hurt At one stage, the groups attacked each other with locally made lethal weapons, leaving Jahangir dead on the spot and 25 injured. They are now undergoing treatment at Habiganj Sadar Adhunik Hospital. Jahangir belonged to the Kachham Ali group, locals said.   Ajoy Chandra Dev, officer-in-charge of Baniachong Police Station, confirmed the death, saying that police fired 20 rounds of bullets and used 2 rounds of tear gas to bring the situation under control. Six people were detained from the spot after the incident while members of law enforcing agencies have been patrolling the area to ward off any violent incident further, he said. The body was sent to the Sadar Hospital morgue for autopsy, the OC said, adding that no case has so far been lodged in this connection.

Clashes between Pakistan's police and supporters of former Prime Minister Imran Khan persisted outside his home in the eastern city of Lahore on Wednesday, a day after officers went to arrest him for failing to appear in court on graft charges. The police operation triggered clashes between Khan's supporters and police in the country's major cities, including Karachi, Islamabad, the garrison city of Rawalpindi, Peshawar, Quetta and elsewhere in Pakistan. For the past 18 hours, police were firing tear gas at the house as the 70-year-old opposition leader's supporters hurled rocks and bricks at the officers. The upscale area of Zaman Park where Khan lives was under siege since Tuesday. The government was sending additional police to tackle the situation after hundreds of Khan's supporters showed unexpected perseverance. Early Wednesday, Khan emerged from his house to meet with his supporters, who faced tear gas and police batons the whole night to save him from arrest. He said he was ready to travel to Islamabad on March 18 under his arrest warrant, but police did not accept the offer. The confrontation outside Khan's house continued. Also Read: Pakistan's ex-PM Imran Khan no-show in court, avoids arrest About a dozen police and some 35 of Khan's supporters were reported injured. Tear gas shells and pieces of bricks littered the pavement as Khan's followers fought back with batons they had brought to resist police, who were preparing for a final effort to arrest Khan. Khan, who was ousted in a no-confidence vote in Parliament in April, was ordered to appear before a judge in Islamabad on Friday to answer charges of illegally selling state gifts he had received during his term as premier and concealing his assets. The former premier has avoided appearances before the court since November, when he was wounded in a gun attack at a protest rally in the eastern Punjab province, claiming he was not medically fit to travel from Lahore to Islamabad to face indictment. Also Read: Pakistani court orders arrest of former premier Imran Khan Last week, he went to Islamabad to appear before three courts, but he failed to appear before the fourth court to face indictment in the graft case, which is a legal process for starting his trial. Khan has claimed that the string of cases against him, which includes terrorism charges, are a plot by the government of his successor, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, to discredit the former cricket star turned Islamist politician. On Tuesday, Sharif told Pakistan's Geo television that Khan's arrest was ordered by a court, and it was not political victimization. “We will arrest him, and will do it on a court order,” Shahzad Bukhari, deputy-inspector general of Islamabad police, told reporters earlier in Lahore. Later, Bukhari was also lightly injured in the violence and received first aid from police medics at the scene. Also Read: Imran Khan's party dissolves assembly in Pakistani province However, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, a top leader from Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, said the government was trying to disrupt law and order by sending police to Khan’s house. “We are ready to find a middle way through talks with police, but we should know what the purpose of today’s police raid is,” he said. “Don't worsen the situation. Let us sit and discuss what you want,” Qureshi asked the police. He said Khan could consider voluntarily offering his arrest, “but let us talk first." Also Read: Imran Khan far better actor than Shahrukh and Salman, says Pakistani politician Fawad Chaudhry, another senior party leader, said Khan’s legal team was in the process of submitting a request to the Islamabad High Court to have warrants against Khan suspended. Khan's lawyers were also legally challenging the warrants before another Islamabad court Tuesday. From inside his home, Khan urged his followers to fight on even if he is arrested. “They think this nation will fall asleep when Imran Khan is jailed,” he wrote on Twitter. “You need to prove them wrong.” Police said reinforcements were on their way to Khan's house to bring the situation under control. TV footage showed tear gas shells falling inside Khan's house. Angered over the expected arrest of Khan, his supporters took to the streets across Pakistan, blocking some key roads near Islamabad while asking the government to refrain from arresting Khan. “We will arrest this man on the court order and he ran away to avoid arrest,” said Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan, who is not related to the former premier. He said Khan will be produced before the court.

Police filed a case against 250-300 unidentified people in connection with Saturday’s clash between Rajshahi University (RU) students and local people. Sub-inspector of Motihar Police Station Amanat Ullah filed the case last night. Confirming the development, Rajshahi Metropolitan Police spokesperson, Rafiqul Alam, said that police have filed a case with Motihar Police station against unnamed people. Read more: Those who set fire on rail line are outsiders: RU VC The authorities of Rajshahi University yesterday afternoon filed a case against more than 500 unnamed people in connection with Saturday’s clash. Following this case, police have arrested a businessman named Taslim Ali alias Peter (45). Moreover, the university authorities formed a 5-member probe committee to investigate into the incident. Pro Vice-chancellor Prof Humayun Kabir is leading the committee.  

More than 200 Rajshahi University (RU) students were injured in a clash with locals over a bus seat on Saturday. The incident took place at the university's Binodpur gate in the evening, said Professor Sultan-Ul-Islam, pro-vice-chancellor of the university. The injured are now receiving treatment at Rajshahi University Medical Centre and Rajshahi Medical College Hospital (RMCH). At least 10 campus journalists were also injured while covering the incident. Witnesses said Akash, a student of the university, was coming to Rajshahi by bus from Bogura. He had an argument with the driver Shariful and his assistant Ripon over the bus seat. When the bus reached the Binodpur area of the university, they again got into an argument. Later, a local shopkeeper came there and got into an argument with the students. This ultimately led to the clash. During the clash, the students set several shops and the police box at Binodpur gate on fire.

At least 20 people, including Moulvibazar district BNP President and ex-lawmaker from Moulvibazar-3, M Naser Rahman, were injured in a clash between Awami League and BNP over BNP's human chain programme in Moulvibazar on Saturday. The injured were treated at various local private clinics. Foyzul Karim Mayun, former mayor and vice-president of Moulvibazar district BNP, said during the preparations for their human chain in front of Kashinath Alauddin High School and College in the town around 1pm, activists of Chhatra League and Jubo League attacked with indigenous weapons, leaving 15 of their leaders and activists injured. Syed Rezaul Karim Sumon, former general secretary of District Jubo League, said: "We were holding a peace march from Shaheed Minar as part of the central programme. Suddenly, someone threw a brickbat in the procession igniting the clash." Later, brickbat pelting started between the two sides. Five Chhatra League and Jubo League members were also injured in the clash. Two vehicles were also vandalised during the clash. Ariful Haque Chowdhury, Sylhet City mayor and central BNP executive member, was the chief guest in the human chain which was organised as a part of BNP's country-wide programme with 10-point demands, including the protest of abnormal increases in electricity price, price hikes of daily necessities, elections under a non-partisan neutral government by abolishing the current parliament and unconditional release of BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia. On information, police rushed to the spot and brought the clash under control, said Hasan Mohammad Naser Rikabder, additional superintendent of Moulvibazar police. "Culprits will be identified after watching the video footage and action will be taken against those involved in the clash," he added. Read more: BNP announces rally in all cities on March 18