Rajshahi University (RU) teachers and officials allegedly assaulted the students of the Urdu Department who were staging a hunger strike since Monday morning. Four female students were admitted to the university medical center after the incident. The incident took place in front of the administration building of the university on Monday evening. The injured students are Monija Akhtar, Runa Akhtar, Nusrat Jahan Priya and Sumaiya of the 2019-20 academic year of that department. Among them, Manija Akhtar and Sumaiya were taken to Rajshahi Medical College (RMC) Hospital as their condition was critical. The remaining two students are admitted to the university’s medical center. Eyewitnesses and students of the Urdu department said that the officers and teachers of the university came in front of the administration building to break the hunger strike of the students. At one point, a fight broke out between them and the agitating students. This led to a scuffle between the two sides. Later, four students of the Urdu department got injured. The students claimed that they all were beaten up by the authorities. During the scuffle, university pro-vice-chancellor Prof Sultan-Ul-Islam, Proctor Prof Ashabul Haque, Student Advisor M. Tareq Nur, Assistant Proctor Zakir Hossain, Theatre department Prof Ataur Rahman Raju, among others, were present. Later protesting this incident, the students raised various slogans in front of the administration building. Earlier, at 10:30am in the morning, the 2nd year students of the Urdu Department sat on hunger strike in front of the Administration Building of the University, demanding reevaluation of the results. When the university administration wanted to negotiate, the students announced that they would continue their hunger strike until their demands would be met. Read more: RU says yes to second-time admission seekers While asked about the complaint, Ataur Rahman Raju, professor of Theatre department said, “If they can prove the allegations against me, I will leave my job tomorrow morning. When the administration came to talk to them they were loud with the authorities and raised various slogans against the administration. Then I tried to make them understand." In the meantime, a five-member delegation of students held discussions with the administration. Later at 8:30om, University vice-chancellor Professor Golam Sabbir Sattar, two pro-vice-chancellors and Proctor came and broke their hunger strike by feeding students water and biscuits. Meanwhile, Vice-Chancellor Golam Sabbir Sattar said that according to the university's ordinance, there is no opportunity to re-evaluate the results after the publication of the results. But we will always work in the interest of students. He assured to form an investigation committee within seven days to solve the case. “Later, regular counseling will be done to improve the relationship between teachers and students of the department,” Prof Sattar stated. Read more: RU to take action over attack on students in RMCH  

The family of imprisoned Egyptian activist Alaa Abdel-Fattah said Tuesday they received a letter from him saying he has ended his hunger strike. In a statement, the family said that Abdel-Fattah's mother, Laila Soueif, received a short note in her son’s handwriting via prison authorities. The letter is dated Monday. In it, he asks her to come for her monthly visit to him in prison on Thursday. ‘‘I’ve broken my strike. I’ll explain everything on Thursday,’’ the letter read. Read more: Amnesty warns COP27 could be dominated by jailed Egyptian-British activist's hunger strike The family has not seen Abdel-Fattah since the last pre-allotted visit a month ago and has not been given information on his condition. In the note, Abdel-Fattah asks his mother to bring a cake to celebrate his 41st birthday, which is on Friday. The meetings, conducted behind a glass barrier, usually last for around 20 minutes. “From the letter, it is clear that his psychological state “is good,” Soueif told The Associated Press, referring to her son's reference to his birthday. “But I won’t be reassured until I see him.” Fears had been mounting over Abdel-Fattah's life since he stopped intake of all food, then stopped drinking water on Nov. 6, escalating a months-long partial hunger strike to pressure for his release. His strike was timed to coincide Egypt’s hosting of the international climate summit to draw attention to his case and those of other political prisoners. His partial hunger strike began on April 2, after which he was consuming only 100 calories a day The news comes a day after the renowned dissident announced the end of his water strike on Monday via a similar handwritten letter delivered to the family. The prison authorities began a medical intervention on Abdel-Fattah last Thursday, but authorities did not provide details on the nature of medical intervention raising concerns among the family that he was being force-fed. “I feel cautiously relieved now knowing that at least he’s not on hunger strike but my heart won’t really be settled until Thursday,’’ his sister Mona Seif said in the family's statement. Read more: COP27 climate talks begin as world grapples with multiple crises Abdel-Fattah’s hunger strike has drawn attention to Egypt’s heavy suppression of speech and political activity. Since 2013, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi’s government has cracked down hard on dissidents and critics, jailing thousand and virtually banning all protests. Abdel-Fattah is one of Egypt's most prominent pro-democracy activists and has spent most of the last decade in prison. He is currently serving a five-year sentence on charges related to sharing a Facebook post. He rose to prominence during the 2011 pro-democracy uprisings — known as the Arab Spring — that swept through the Middle East. In Egypt, the uprising toppled the country’s long-time autocratic President Hosni Mubarak.

Amnesty International's head on Sunday warned that the proceedings of COP27 in Egypt could be stained by the death of one of the country's leading rights activists from a hunger and water strike in prison if Egyptian authorities do not release him within days. Secretary General of Amnesty International Agnes Callamard said Egypt had no more than 72 hours to save the life of jailed dissident Alaa Abdel Fattah, who is also a U.K. citizen. Egypt’s hosting of the climate summit, known as COP27, has trained a spotlight on its human rights record as a wide-reaching crackdown continues under President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi. The conference is being held in the Egyptian Red Sea resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh. “If they do not want to end up with a death they should have and could have prevented, they must act now,” Callamard said at a news briefing in the capital Cairo. Callamard said she will be attending COP27 to push for action on human rights issues related to climate change, including loss and damage or reparations from richer countries to vulnerable nations suffering from climate change. Egypt is a proponent of the issue. Read more: COP27 climate talks begin as world grapples with multiple crises But she will also be there to push for immediate action on the case of prominent Egyptian activist and U.K. citizen Alaa Abdel Fattah and that of the tens of thousands of political prisoners estimated to be inside the country’s jails, she said. Opposition figure Abdel-Fattah escalated his hunger strike this week, refusing also water, to coincide with the first day of the COP27, according to his family. His aunt, the writer Ahdaf Soueif, said he stopped drinking water at 10 a.m. local time on Sunday, amid growing concerns about his health. Alaa Abdel-Fattah hails from a family of well-known Egyptian activists and rose to prominence with the 2011 pro-democracy uprisings that swept the Middle East and in Egypt toppled long-time President Hosni Mubarak. The 40-year old activist spent most of the past decade behind bars and his detention has become a symbol of Egypt’s return to autocratic rule. For more than six months, he has been on a partial hunger strike, consuming only 100 calories a day. In April, Abdel Fattah's family announced he had obtained British citizenship through his mother, Laila Soueif, a math professor at Cairo University who was born in London. The family has criticized U.K. leaders for failing to push harder for a consular visit to him in the detention facility. On Sunday, his family released a letter they had received from the U.K.'s Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who will be attending COP27. The letter said the global summit is an opportunity to raise Abdel Fattah's case “with the Egyptian leadership.” Sunak will "continue to stress to President (el-Sissi) the importance that we attach to the swift resolution of Alaa’s case and an end to his unacceptable treatment," it added. The prime minister's office confirmed the contents of the letter. Read more: Health must be at the centre in COP27 climate change negotiations: WHO Abdel-Fattah's younger sister, Sanaa Seif, meanwhile, landed in Sharm el-Sheikh early Monday, coming on a flight from London through the Turkish city of Istanbul, her family said. “I’m here to do my best to try and and shed light on my brother’s case and to save him,” Seif said upon her arrival. “Today (Sunday) he took his last glass of water, so it’s a matter of hours. I’m really worried. I’m also here to put pressure on world leaders coming.” She is expected to take part along with Callamard in Egypt's human rights situation on the sidelines of the COP27. Seif, also a rights defender who had been imprisoned for one year over charges of spreading false news and insulting a police officer, will focus on the case of her brother and other jailed activists. Seif, who is also a British citizen, had staged a sit-in at the headquarters of Britain’s Foreign Ministry in recent weeks, part of a rallying campaign to push the U.K. to take action in her brother's s case. Since 2013, el-Sissi, a U.S. ally with deep economic ties to European countries, has overseen a massive crackdown, jailing thousands of Islamists, but also secular activists involved in the country’s 2011 uprising. Many other activists, journalists and academics have fled the country. Amnesty also said Sunday it had documented a new wave in the government’s crackdown. There have been 766 Egyptian political prisoners released in the run-up to the conference, Callamard said, according to the group’s figures. She added that more than 1,500 people have been arrested since April, including more than 150 in just the past two weeks. The latest sweep came after the Muslim Brotherhood, designated a terrorist group and driven largely into exile, called for anti-government protests on Nov. 11, aiming to take advantage of Egypt’s worsening economic hardships and global attention on COP27. Other rights groups also criticized Egypt on Sunday for restricting protests and stepping up surveillance during the summit. New York-based Human Rights Watch said it had had joined about 1,400 groups from around the world urging Egypt to lift the restrictions on civil society groups, and also expressed concern about the new rounds of arrest. “It is becoming clear that Egypt’s government has no intention of easing its abusive security measures and allowing for free speech and assembly,” Adam Coogle, the group’s deputy director for the Middle East and North Africa, said in a statement.

BNP will observe a five-hour mass-hunger strike on Saturday in the capital to protest the growing price hike of key commodities and utility services. Party Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir announced the programme at a press conference at its Nayapaltan central office on Wednesday. He said the programme will be observed from 10am to 3pm in front of their party’s Nayapaltan central office. “We had a joint meeting of our party’s Dhaka north, south units and all the associate bodies. We’ve decided to observe a mass hunger strike on April 2 in Dhaka city,” Fakhrul said. READ: Fakhrul links rise in crime to corrupt, politicised police  He said they have sought permission from the authorities concerned to hold the programme in front of their party office. The BNP leader alleged that the common people have been going through serious ordeals over the last two months as the prices of most essential commodities, including rice, soybean oil, sugar, pulses and vegetables have gone beyond their buying capacity. The prices of all essential food items have gone up several times while the gas companies have made new proposals to increase the gas tariffs,” he said. The BNP leader alleged that a fresh move was taken to increase the gas and power prices only to create a scope for the ruling party-backed businessmen and some individuals to make a quick buck.

Over two dozen students of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) who hadn't eaten in seven days ended their hunger strike on Wednesday. The students embarked on fast-unto-death on the university campus on January 19, demanding the resignation of SUST Vice-Chancellor Farid Uddin Ahmed over police crackdown on their fellows. Around 10.20am on Wednesday,  the students broke their fast after former SUST Professor Muhammad Zafar Iqbal gave them water to drink. The eminent writer and his wife Yesmeen Huq, also a former SUST teacher, came to the university in Sylhet from Dhaka around 4am and met the protesting students. Read: SUST teachers’ association urges govt to probe ‘police action’ on students “We met a high-level delegation at our residence over the issue and they assured us of meeting your demands. What you want will be fulfilled,” Prof Zafar told the protesting students. "Life is so precious. Why do you want to sacrifice your life for one person? It’s just not acceptable. You have promised me before the media to break your fast. So do it," he told the students. Prof Zafar also condemned the arrest of five alumni of SUST for allegedly sending money to the protesters at the university. "I got Tk 10,000 for a write-up on the occasion of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s birth centenary. I will give you the money. Now let the police arrest me," he told the protesting SUST students.

The free medical support for the protesting students of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) has been withdrawn. According to the students, the mobile phone numbers of some of the protesters -- specifically those used for mobile financial services -- have also been deactivated. The students embarked on fast-unto-death on the university campus on January 19, demanding the resignation of SUST vice-chancellor Farid Uddin Ahmed over police crackdown on the varsity students. “A medical team from Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College that had been voluntarily providing services to those on hunger strike from January 19, withdrew their services on Monday night,” said the protesting students at a press meet on Tuesday morning. Also read:  SUST protest: Proctor-led team fails to reach food, medicines to embattled VC  Most of the 27 students on hunger strike are suffering from low blood pressure, low blood sugar levels and convulsions, and the sudden withdrawal of the medical support could pose serious risks to their health, they said, quoting a senior hospital doctor. However, a doctor arrived at the protest site on his own later in the morning to offer medical support to the students. The students also expressed their displeasure over the suspension of mobile phone services of a few protesters. A total of six Rocket, Nagad, bkash and bank accounts have become inaccessible. The phone numbers used to access them have been seemingly disabled. “When we contacted the customer care centres of our mobile operators, we were told to get in touch with the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC),” said Ariful Islam, one of the protesting students.

Now twelve  of the 24 students of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) on an indefinite hunger strike since Wednesday have been hospitalised till Friday. The 24 students embarked on fast-unto-death on Wednesday afternoon, demanding the resignation of the university's Vice-Chancellor. In the past two days, most of the protesting students have fallen sick, UNB has learnt. While Twelve of them have been hospitalised after their blood sugar levels dropped, remaining all were being given intravenous saline at the venue. One more left the venue in the early hours of Friday as his relative fell sick. Also read: SUST students ‘fall sick’ on 2nd day of hunger strike; one hospitalised

Twenty-four students of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST), who went on a hunger strike unto death on Wednesday demanding their Vice-Chancellor’s resignation, reportedly fell sick on Thursday with one of them being hospitalised. Among them, Kajal Das was taken to a hospital in Sylhet city around 1:30 pm as he fell seriously sick. The agitating students vowed not to break their fast until the VC steps down. Besides, a delegation of teachers came to the students around 8:45 pm on Wednesday and requested them to break their fast. Also read: 24 SUST students go on hunger strike

Twenty-four students of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) went on hunger strike unto death on Wednesday demanding the Vice-Chancellor’s resignation while some teachers staged protests against the students’ ‘indecent remarks’ about the VC The students begun the hunger strike around 3pm in front of the residence of the VC as he didn’t not step down today as per their ultimatum. READ: SUST students threaten fast-unto-death if V-C doesn't resign The students said they will continue their hunger strike until the VC resigns. Earlier on Tuesday night, the students set a deadline for the vice-chancellor to resign by 12 pm. They threatened that they will resort to hunger strike unto death if he doesn’t step down by the deadline.

Health Minister Zahid Maleque on Sunday criticized BNP for not following health rules at their mass hunger strike programme demanding Khaleda Zia’s treatment abroad. “They always criticize government actions but they themselves didn’t wear masks nor maintained social distance,” said Zahid Maleque in a programme held at a city hotel. On Saturday, the minister mentioned, Bangladesh saw the long-awaited day of zero Covid-linked death, and said this has been possible with everyone's cooperation. Read: BNP starts hunger strike seeking Khaleda’s treatment abroad “A political programme attended by thousands of people without wearing masks, including leaders, members of the party, may trigger Covid infections,” he said. Minister Maleque said two things are clear from this: that the Covid situation has been so efficiently handled by the government that they did not feel the necessity of wearing masks. Read: Police foil BNP's hunger strike prog in Khulna “Another point is they criticize the government but they are the ones who don't maintain the health guidelines, and that’s the matter of concern,” he said. The minister urged journalists to highlight the importance of maintaining health guidelines at religious and social programmes.