United News of Bangladesh

Border guards have seized five gold bars worth Tk 77.53 lakh from a young man at the Maheshpur border in Jhenaidah. Faisal Hasan Shishir, 26, was apprehended near Khosalpur market in Maheshpur upazila while allegedly attempting to smuggle the gold into India, according to a press release sent by Assistant Director of the 58 BGB Battalion Munshi Imdadur Rahman on Friday afternoon. Shishir is the son of Munzil Torfadar of Khosalpur village under Nepa Union in Maheshpur. Acting on a tip-off, border guards set up a checkpoint on Khosalpur Bridge and conducted a search. During the operation, four gold bars and one small gold piece were recovered from Shishir’s waist. The total weight of the seized gold is 358.84 grams, with an estimated market value of Tk 77 lakh 52 thousand 412 the BGB official said. The detainee, along with his mobile phone and bicycle, has been handed over to police. Maheshpur Police Station OC Mehedi Hasan said Shishir will be presented before court, while the seized gold bars will be deposited in the government treasury through legal procedures.

Ten candidates of Khagrachhari parliamentary seats met voters together at the town hall event on Thursday, promising to focus on road development, electricity, job creation, education, tourism, women’s empowerment, and drug control. The event, titled “Face to Face with the People,” was organized by “Sushasoner Jonye Nagorik (SUJON)” in front of Khagrachhari Town Hall. It began at 4:00 pm and was chaired by SUJON Khagrachhari district president Advocate Nasir Uddin Ahmed. The program was moderated by SUJON central coordinator Dilip Sarkar. The candidates spoke on infrastructure development, resolving hill region issues, improving education, and creating job opportunities for the youth. Voters from different backgrounds attended and asked questions. ‘Crude bomb’ explodes outside Jamaat candidate’s Khagrachhari house Candidates responded directly and assured transparency and accountability in implementing development projects. The 13th national parliamentary election is scheduled for February 12 and a total of 11 candidates are contesting in different constituencies of Khagrachhari. Independent candidate Ziruna Tripura was absent from the event.

One person was killed in a head-on collision between an engine-driven human hauler and a battery-operated auto-rickshaw in Puthia upazila of Rajshahi on Friday. The accident occurred around 12:00 pm on the Puthia-Taherpur regional road in front of Dhopapara Mohanpur Madrasa. The deceased was identified as Robiul Islam, 28, son of Abdur Rahman. He was an auto-rickshaw driver from Ramkrishnapur Digha village of Naldanga upazila in Natore district. According to local sources, Robiul Islam was traveling from Puthia to Taherpur when his auto-rickshaw collided head-on with a cattle-loaded human hauler coming from the opposite direction. The rickshaw was badly damaged, and Robiul suffered severe head injuries. He was rescued in critical condition and admitted to Puthia Upazila Health Complex, where he died during treatment. Police have seized the human hauler, but the driver escaped. University student, 2 others killed in Rajshahi road crash Faridul Islam, officer-in-charge of Puthia Police Station, confirmed the incident and said no written complaint has been filed yet. “Since no complaint was filed, the body was handed over to the family”, he added.

BNP candidate for the Sirajganj-3 (Raiganj–Tarash) constituency, Ainul Haque, has been hospitalised in Dhaka for heart treatment. He underwent surgery at Evercare Hospital in the capital on Thursday, during which two stents were placed in his heart, said Khandaker Selim Jahangir, former president of the BNP’s Tarash Upazila unit. Earlier, Ainul Haque was admitted to the hospital on Tuesday after experiencing heart-related complications. BNP-Jamaat clash in Sirajganj leaves 9 injured Jahangir said Ainul Haque has been suffering from heart problems for a long time. He is expected to remain hospitalised for at least three days and will need additional rest following his discharge. Despite his absence from the campaign trail, party leaders and activists are continuing election activities in the constituency.

A young motorcyclist was killed after being run over by a truck in Golapganj, Sylhet on Friday afternoon. The accident occurred around 3:30 pm in front of the Government MC Academy. The deceased was identified as Shanaj Ahmed, 25, son of Makhon Mia from Sripur Rampasha village in Bishwanath upazila. He worked as a vehicle driver for a poultry farm in Sylhet city. According to police and witnesses, Shanaj went to Fulbari Purbo Para in Golapganj to attend a event with colleagues. After the event, he rode another person’s motorcycle back towards Golapganj town. Reaching in front of the MC Academy, he lost control of the motorcycle, hit a road divider, and fell off. Dhaka’s rail links with Sylhet, Ctg suspended as train derails A truck coming from the opposite direction ran over him, killing him instantly. Golapganj Model Police and Fire Service personnel reached the site and after initial procedures, took the body to Golapganj Model Police Station. Anupam, sub-inspector of Golapganj Model Police Station, confirmed the incident, saying, “The body was brought to the police station.”

The body of a poultry businessman was recovered from a pond in Nager Bazar area of Belabo upazila on Thursday night, three days after he went missing. The deceased was identified as Azimul Qader Bhuiya, 45, from Raghab village of Bajnabaup union. Belabo Police Station’s Inspector (Investigation) Nasir Uddin said Azimul, also a Chhatra League leader of Bajnabaup Union and Belabo upazila, disappeared on Tuesday around 8:00 pm after leaving his poultry farm. Journalists in Narsingdi for CRAB's family day attacked Tow workers recently hired at Bhuiya’s farm are also missing along with all the chickens from the farm. The Inspector said that after a general diary was filed police began investigating the case andsearched for the missing person. Later in the night, they received information and recovered his body. The body has been sent to Narsingdi Sadar Hospital morgue for autopsy.

A Feni tribunal on Thursday sentenced three people to death for the killing of a schoolboy after abduction in 2024. Feni Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal Judge ANM Morshed Khan handed down the punishment. The condemned convicts are-- Ashraf Hossain Tushar, 20, Mobarak Hossain Wasim, 20, and Omar Faruk Ripat, 20. The tribunal fined Tk one lakh each, in default, to suffer, six months more in jail. According to the prosecution, Ahnaf Al Main Nashit, 10, a class IV student and son of Main Uddin Shohagh, was abducted by the convicts from Feni district town on December 8, 2024. On December 9, 2024, a general diary was lodged with Feni Model Police Station. Later, the convicts demanded Tk 12 lakh in ransom from Nashit’s father over the phone. At one stage, they strangled Nashit to death and dumped his body into a water body. High Court issues rule against CEC over contempt of court During the investigation, police arrested Tushar on suspicion of involvement in the killing. Following interrogation, police recovered the body of Nashit from a water body in Dewanganj area of the district town.

A grocery shop owner was shot and wounded by snatchersin Pallabi area of Dhaka on Thursday morning. The victim was identified as Mohammad Hossain Dipu, 46. Dipu’s wife Afroza said three masked men on a motorbike shot her husband above his left knee and fled after snatching Tk 17000. He was first taken to Kurmitola General Hospital in critical condition and later transferred to the emergency department of Dhaka Medical College Hospital around 8:45 am. Read More: Youth shot dead in Khulna Pallabi police station Officer-in-Charge AKM Jahangir Alam said police have dispatched teams to both the hospital and the crime scene but the full details of the incident are still being verified.

US Ambassador to Bangladesh Brent T. Christensen paid a courtesy call on Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Dr Shafiqur Rahman at his Bashundhara office  in the capital on Thursday morning. The two sides exchanged views on various issues including Bangladesh’s prevailing political and economic situation, industry and trade, the national election, state reforms and the Rohingya issue, accreting to a social media post of the political party. Both sides also expressed optimism about further strengthening bilateral relations between Bangladesh and the United States in future. Read More: US proud to call Bangladesh a friend: US Ambassador Jamaat assistant secretary general and central publicity and media department chief Advocate Ehsanul Mahbub Zubayer, central executive council member Md Mobarak Hossain and the Ameer’s foreign affairs adviser Professor Dr Mahmudul Hasan were also present at the meeting.

For three months, Shahinara Khatun has not heard her son’s voice. Her phone no longer rings. No message arrives. Each day, she sits by the window of her home at Bankira village of Jenaidah’s Sadhuhati union, watching the road in quiet hope—perhaps today someone will call, perhaps she will hear the familiar words, “Ma, how are you?” But the call never comes. Shah Alam Siddique Imon, 24, has been missing in Egypt for more than three months and his family does not know whether he is alive or dead. Imon (passport number is A-08093076) left for Egypt about six months ago, chasing the promise of a better future, said his family members. With the help of a broker named Imrul from Narail, he secured work at a garment factory there named Billikes Mill. He spoke to his family regularly and sent reassurances home and everything seemed fine. But,  suddenly all communication stopped. According to the family, a young man named Hanif from Bahirgachhi village in Kotchandpur called them one day to say that Imon had lost his mental balance. November 13, 2025, was the last day the family heard from him. Since then, he has vanished without a trace, they said.   Adding to their agony, the broker who arranged Imon’s migration has also gone silent. Though Imrul initially stayed in touch, he now refuses to answer calls. His associates, the family says, have no information either. Wiping away tears, Imon’s mother asks questions no one can answer. “Does my son get food? Where does he sleep? Is he even alive?” Shahinara Khatun says, her voice breaking. “I just want to know where my child is.” His father, Hasan Ali, said poverty forced them to take the risk. “We are poor people. We sent our son abroad so he wouldn’t have to suffer like us. Now he is the one who is lost. If the authorities don’t stand beside us, what can we do?” Local UP member Shahidul Islam Monsad said the prolonged absence of any information about Imon has left the family devastated. “We have informed the union chairman and the district administration so that steps can be taken to trace him,” he said. Sadhuhati Union Parishad Chairman Kazi Nazrul Uddin said the family is being assisted in whatever way possible and urged organisations working on migrant welfare to intervene. “This is a humanitarian issue,” he said. “NGOs and human rights organisations working with migrant workers should come forward.” The family has appealed for urgent intervention from the Bangladesh government, the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment, the Bangladesh Embassy in Egypt, and migrant rights organisations. They are also demanding accountability of the broker network and diplomatic efforts to determine Imon’s fate. Family contact: 01738-457102