United News of Bangladesh

Four members of a family sustained burn injuries in a fire triggered by a cooking gas cylinder blast in their house in the Char Muktarpur area of Munshiganj's Sadar upazila on Thursday. The victims have been identified as Kawsar, 42, his wife Shanta, 38, and their children -- Yeasin, 6, and Fatema, 3. They lived on the first floor of a two-storey house. Read: Jatrabari gas cylinder blast: Another victim dies, death toll now five Dewan Azad Hossain, duty officer of Dhaka Fire Service and Civil Defense control room, said the fire broke out at the first floor of the building following the cylinder blast around 4.30 am, leaving all the four members of the family injured. On information, a fire tender rushed to the spot and extinguished the blaze. The injured were immediately rushed to Munshiganj General Hospital from where they were shifted to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital.

Forest officials have recovered the carcass of another wild elephant in the Lotmoni hills area of Banshkhali upazila in Chattogram. Sources said the locals spotted the carcass of the wild elephant and informed the forest department on Wednesday afternoon. Read: HC directs rapid action against elephant-killing On information, a team from the Banshkhali Forest Department and Livestock Services Department went to the spot with four veterinarians. Jolodi Sanctuary Range Officer Anisuzzaman Sheikh said an autopsy would be conducted to ascertain the exact cause of the elephant's death. Earlier, on November 12, the carcass of another wild elephant was recovered from a paddy field near the Chambal hills area of Chambal union of the same upazila.

The prime accused in the Cumilla ward councillor Syed Mohammad Sohel murder case was killed in a gunfight in Sadar upazila in the early hours of Thursday, police said. The deceased was identified as Shah Alam, son of Janu Mia of Sujanagar upazila. Two policemen also sustained injuries in the exchange of fire, according to officials. Read: Cumilla councillor killing: Two accused killed in 'gunfight' with cops Acting on a tip-off, a local police team along with some detectives conducted a raid in the Chanpur Ratnabati Gumti Beribadh area of Sadar upazila around 1.30am, said Anwarul Azim, officer-in-charge of Kotwali Model Police Station. Spotting the cops, Alam and his accomplices opened fire, forcing the cops to retaliate. Alam sustained bullet wounds in the exchange of fire, while the others managed to escape. Alam was rushed to Cumilla Medical College and Hospital, where doctors declared him dead on arrival, police said. "Two cops also received bullet wounds in the gunfight. One gun and some bullets were recovered from the spot," the OC said.

A farmer was allegedly stabbed to death over a property dispute in Rajapur union of Sadar Upazila on Tuesday. The deceased was identified as Md Ruhul Amin Bepari, 57, a resident of ward no 7 under Rajapur union. Police have arrested a woman in connection with the murder. According to police, Ruhul Amin had a feud with his relative Kasem Chowkidar over a property. The disputed land was in Ruhul's possession. On Tuesday, Kasem, his wife and their sons attacked Ruhul, leaving him seriously injured. Read: Narail: Gallows for one, life term for 3 in farmer's murder case Hearing his screams, relatives rescued him and admitted to Bhola Sadar Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries in the evening. "A police team, led by Ilisha police outpost in-charge Md Farid was sent to the spot," said officer-in-charge of Bhola police station Enayet Hossain. Read: 15 injured in Narayanganj post-poll violence

Two college students were killed Tuesday as a freight truck ran over the motorcycle they were on in Bogura’s Sherpur. The deceased were identified as Nahid Hasan, 21, son of Zahidur Rahman of Krishnapur village under Mirzapur union of the upazila, and Sampad, 20, son of Hridoy from Namapara village in the same union. The two friends were first-year HSC students at Summit International School and College. Read: Now HSC examinee killed in Ctg road crash To the extent that it was an accident, the tragedy unfolded on the part of the Dhaka-Bogra highway that goes by the village of Krishnapur in the upazila Tuesday around 8.15 pm. Sherpur police OC Shahidul Islam said that the students were on their way home from Mirzapur Bazar on a motorcycle. As they reached pulled Krishnapur Eidgah field area on the highway, a speeding Dhaka-bound freight truck crushed the motorcycle like it was nobody’s business and never hesitated to look back till safety was guaranteed. Nahid and Sampad both died on the spot, said the OC. Their bodies have been recovered by the police station, while attempts are being made to identify the deadly truck and its driver, he added.

A Barguna court on Tuesday sentenced a madrasa teacher to life time imprisonment in a case filed over raping a seventh grader in 2019. Barguna Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal Judge Md Hafizur Rahman pronounced the verdict. Read: Narail: Gallows for one, life term for 3 in farmer's murder case The court also fined the lifer Tk 20,000. According to the case statement, Saiful Islam, a madrasa teacher of Fuljhuri union in Barguna Sadar Upazila, called the class VII student for giving a guide book. When the girl met Saiful, he took her to his house and raped her. Read: Rangpur school teacher gets life term for raping student Locals rescued the girl and admitted her to Barguna General Hospital.  Later, she was shifted to Barishal Sher-e-Bangla Medical College and Hospital as her condition deteriorated. The girl’s father filed a case accusing two people including madrasa teacher Saiful Islam on the same day. Later, police arrested fugitive Saiful Islam on February 20, 2019.

Amid protests in Dhaka over the death of a NDC college student and a SSC examinee, an HSC examinee was killed after a truck hit a motorcycle in Station Road area of Chattogram city on Tuesday. The deceased was identified as Joydwip Das of Cox’s Bazar. He was a student of Mirsarai Degree College and a candidate of the upcoming HSC examination. Read:Students block roads again demanding road safety, half fare Inspector of Panchlaish Police Station (Investigation) Sadekur Rahman said when Joydwip was returning home  by a motorbike after attending a wedding party around 3:30am a speeding truck hit the motorbike near Riazuddin Bazar area. Later, critically injured Joydwip was rushed to Chittagong Medical College Hospital where doctors declared him dead, the OC added. Read: Students block Rampura road protesting SSC examinee’s death in road crash Mainuddin Islam Durjoy, an SSC examinee from Ekramunnesa College, was killed in a road accident at Rampura in Dhaka on Monday within a week of the tragic death of a student of Notre Dame College being hit by a garbage truck of Dhaka South City Corporation.

A leader of the Jana Sanghati Samity (JSS) was shot dead by assailants in Rangamati on Tuesday morning, police said. The deceased was identified as Abiskar Chakma, a resident of the Sijok area of Sharoyatali union in Baghaichhari. He was a top leader of the JSS Santu Larma faction. Read: UP Polls: 3 shot dead during clash in Thakurgaon According to police, a group of armed men attacked Abiskar this morning in the Kijing Adam area of Sadar upazila and pumped bullets into his body, killing him on the spot. "A police team have been sent to the spot," said additional police super of Rangamati (sadar circle) Taposh Ranjon Ghosh.

A fire gutted valuables of  ‘Ripon Knitwear Factory Ltd’ at Konabari Jarun in Gazipur city on Tuesday. The fire broke out in a warehouse on the ground floor of the five-story building at noon and spread soon. Read:Mugda fire: 55-yr-old woman dies of burn injuries On information, six firefighting units rushed to the spot. It took two hours to extinguish the blaze. However, the workers, who were working in the building, managed to come out when the factory catches fire. The origin of the fire and the extent of loss caused by the fire will be known after investigation, said Abdul Hamid.

Amid a global alarm over the new Omicron variant of Covid, authorities in Brahmanbaria have decided to hang red flags outside the houses of seven South Africa returnees. The decision was taken at an emergency meeting of the Corona Prevention Committee on Monday evening, chaired by district commissioner Hayat-Ud-Doula-Khan. Also read: Omicron: DGHS recommends enforcement of 15 instructions The committee also issued directions to the Akhaura land port authorities for ensuring strict screening of people entering the country. The committee also decided to initiate immediate steps to vaccinate the two lakh people waiting for the Covid shots. Recently, three residents of Kasba upazila, two of Sadar upazila, and one each from Bancharampur and Nabinagar upazilas in Brahmanbaria district returned from South Africa, where the new variant is said to have originated. Nearly two years into the Covid-19 pandemic, the world raced Friday to contain the new coronavirus variant potentially more dangerous than the one that has fuelled relentless waves of infection on nearly every continent. Also read: NTAC recommends travel ban to contain new variant Omicron A World Health Organization panel named the variant 'Omicron' and classified it as a highly transmissible virus of concern, the same category that includes the predominant Delta variant, which is still a scourge driving higher cases of sickness and death in Europe and parts of the US.