United News of Bangladesh

Power supply will remain suspended for nine hours in several areas of Sylhet on Saturday due to annual emergency repair, maintenance work and tree pruning. The Sales and Distribution Division-1 of the Sylhet Power Development Board announced the outage in a notice issued on Thursday. According to the notice, electricity supply under the Lakkatura Stadium 33/11 KV substation will remain suspended from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm on Saturday. The affected areas include the 11 KV Ghopashal feeder under the Lakkatura 33/11 KV substation, 11 KV Kakuarpar feeder, 11 KV Osmani Airport Express feeder area, Osmani Airport residential area, Kakuarpar, Sylhet Club, Faridabad Housing, Adventure World, Abdani, Barashala Bazar Mosque area, Porjatan area, Farinabad, Silver City, Kewachhara, Hiluachhara Tea Garden, Ghopashal, Mahaldik, Umdarpara, Alaibohor, Lilapara, Dapnatila, Saheber Bazar, Kalahal, Lalbagh, Pirgaon, Chalia, Ratilila, Salutikar Ghat and adjacent areas. Sylhet-Manchester flight temporarily suspended for Hajj pilgrims: Minister However, the authorities said power supply may be restored earlier if the work is completed before the scheduled time. They apologised for the temporary inconvenience.

Kushtia-3 MP and Islamic speaker Mufti Amir Hamza said he will take charge of all matters in Kushtia, including the medical college and hospital. Speaking to reporters after a meeting of the Kushtia Medical College Hospital management committee on Thursday, he said, “I have received written complaints about the medical college and Sadar hospital. I told them these must be fixed. At first, they admitted their mistakes and apologised. They said some issues were beyond their control. It feels like no one is in charge here. Now I am in charge. So, inform me about everything.” He added, “There are talks about irregularities and some hidden hands behind them. If anyone wants to act, they should directly tell me or the concerned person. I will see who runs Kushtia with such power.” Amir Hamza said, “Kushtia Medical College and Hospital are close to our hearts. Some departments are open, but we want to run them fully. Today’s meeting was about that. We talked for nearly two and a half hours and have already made decisions on a few matters. Please pray so that in the coming days you will hear some good news. It will make you happy.” He added, “My efforts are for the benefit of people in Kushtia and nearby four to five districts. We made decisions on two matters today. These are long processes. Seven or eight more issues are ahead. Two have been addressed today. The rest will be completed, InshaAllah.” Amir Hamza also spoke about making government offices more public-friendly. “In the first 100 days of our program, we will try to make all offices and courts easier for people. People are often afraid to go to the DC office, SP office, TNO office, or police stations. Earlier, many systems made it hard to get service. I experienced this myself in 2018-19. Now, these systems have improved. Services now start at 10 am and continue as long as staff can work,” he said. Three shops gutted in Kushtia fire He said, “I know the challenges we are facing while taking initiatives. Offers have come to slow things down, but I said ‘No’. We are here to serve the people and the country. Past leaders did not keep their promises. We will keep ours. The past is past. They will answer to Allah. Now we will focus on the future and show you our work, InshaAllah.” Kushtia Deputy Commissioner Iqbal Hossain, Kushtia Medical College Hospital Director Dr. Shahidul Islam, and other officials were present at the meeting.

The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB-10) has arrested the main suspect in a shocking case where a teenage worker was killed by high-pressure air forced into his body through a pipe at a factory in Boalmari, Faridpur. RAB-10 Company Commander Squadron Leader Tarikul Islam confirmed the arrest at a press briefing held Thursday evening at the RAB office. The suspect, Rihat Sheikh alias Hakim (22), was arrested from Shripur area of Magura district. He is a resident of Ramnagar village in Boalmari Upazila, Faridpur. According to RAB, the suspect was identified and arrested during a special operation aimed at maintaining law and order and curbing crime in the region. The case stems from the incident on the night of Feb 23, when victim Md. Sajib alias Sharif (12), a worker at Akij-Bashir Jute Mill in Dobra village, Boalmari, was cleaning his body with a compressor pipe after work. Rihat Sheikh and an accomplice forced high-pressure air into the boy’s rectum, causing severe abdominal swelling and critical injuries. The victim was initially admitted to Faridpur Medical College Hospital and later transferred to Dhaka Medical College Hospital for advanced treatment. Despite surgery, he succumbed to multiple internal injuries on Feb 25. Doctors confirmed that his intestines were severely pierced. Following the incident, the victim’s father filed a murder case with Boalmari Police Station under Case No. 17, dated Feb 26, 2026, Sections 302/34 of the Penal Code. The case received widespread media and social media attention, sparking outrage in the area. RAB stated that the suspect had gone into hiding immediately after the crime but was captured within 24 hours through intelligence and modern technology. He is currently being handed over to the relevant police station for further legal action. RAB-10 emphasized its zero-tolerance policy against such brutal and inhumane crimes, pledging to bring offenders to justice and maintain law and order.

Two sisters were killed after a truck ran them over in Laksam upazila of Cumilla on Thursday evening. The deceased were identified as Jahanara Begum, 65, wife of the late Mobarak Hossain of Rajapur village in Uttarda union, and her elder sister Anwara Begum, 70, wife of the late Abul Khair of Gazimura village in Ward No. 7 of Laksam municipality. Sarkar Abdullah Al Mamun, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of  Laksam Highway Crossing Police Station confirmed the deaths. Eyewitnesses said the two women were crossing the road from east to west in the Khila Uttar Bazar area of the highway when a speeding truck ran over them. They died on the spot after being crushed under the vehicle’s wheels.

Police recovered the throat-slit body of a woman from her home in Faridgonj upazila of Chandpur on Thursday. The deceased was identified as Nurjahan Begum, 50, wife of Kuwait expatriate Abul Kalam. She was a mother of four children. The incident occurred around noon at Bhaterhrod village under Rupsha North Union of Faridgonj upazila. 3 of a family suffer burn injuries in blast from ‘gas leak’ in Chandpur Family members found Nurjahan's throat-slit body inside the toilet of her house. She was taken to the Faridgonj Upazila Health Complex, where doctors declared her dead. Her college-going daughter Nur Sultana Tanha said she had gone to college in the morning as usual. When she returned home at noon, she found the main door locked. After getting no response, she went to a relative’s house nearby. Later, she came back and saw the door open. She then found her mother inside the toilet with her throat cut. Mother, son die from electrocution in Chandpur Local Union Parishad member Khorshed Alam said Nurjahan had taken loans from several NGOs and owed a large amount of money. He said NGO workers often visited her house demanding repayment and some had come in the morning as well, though he could not name any organisation. Police Inspector Md Emdadul Haque of Faridgonj Police Station said police recovered the body from the health complex at around 3 pm. He said there were deep cut marks on the victim’s throat. “Legal action is underway. No case has been filed and no arrests have been made yet,” he added.

A 15-year-old girl, who was reportedly abducted by some young men in her father's presence, was found dead in Madhabdi upazila of Narsingdi district on Thursday. The deceased was identified as Amena Akter, daughter of Ashraf Hossain of Barishal district. Local people said Ashraf along with his family used to live at Bilpar area of Madhabdi upazila for work purposes. A group of 5/6 people, led by one Nur Mohammad, picked up the girl from the area and violated her in turns. UP member’s husband shot dead in Narsingdi The matter was solved locally. On Wednesday night, Ashraf was heading towards his sister-in-law’s house to keep his daughter there for safety reasons. When they reached Boroitala, Nur along with his associates again forcibly took her away and since then the victims’ father did not know whereabouts of the girl. Later, local people spotted the body of Amena, with her neck tied with a scarf, from mustard fields at Darikandi on Thursday morning. Journalists in Narsingdi for CRAB's family day attacked Kamal Hossian, officer-in-charge of Madhabdi Police Station, said no written complaint was found in this regard. Police are working to find the culprits. Already a man was arrested suspecting his involvement in the murder, said the OC.

Local residents on Thursday formed a human chain in Chauhali upazila of Sirajganj district demanding urgent steps to protect the banks of the Jamuna River from erosion. The hour-long programme was held around noon at Jotpara Jamuna river ghat in the upazila. Speakers said that river erosion has been causing land loss in different parts of the upazila for a long time, creating fear among residents. 4 fishermen fined for catching hilsa in Sirajganj’s Jamuna River They demanded the installation of geo-bags along the Jamuna riverbanks to prevent erosion and called for an end to the movement of sand-carrying bulkheads. They warned that without immediate action, residential areas, the Upazila Parishad, educational institutions and other establishments along the river could be washed away. After the human chain, the protesters submitted a memorandum to the Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO). Meanwhile, during the programme, some protesters set fire to some bulkheads in the Jamuna River in the area.

At least 16 people sustained burn injuries in a fire following a blast at a LPG filling station in Kolatoli area of Cox's Bazar district town on Wednesday night. At least 10 houses near the filling station and 20 to 25 tourist jeeps were gutted in the fire. The explosion occurred around 10:20pm at the ‘N Alam’ LPG filling station  with a big bang, causing fire that spread to the nearby houses, said Deputy Assistant Director (DAD) of Bangladesh Fire Service and Civil Defence Syed Muhammad Morshed. On information, local firefighting units rushed to the spot and extinguished the fire with the help of members of the army, air force, fire service and Red Crescent and local people around 3am on Thursday after nearly five hours. Among the injured seven were sent to Chattogram Medical College Hospital while three others to Dhaka for better treatment. Sabuktageen Mahmud Sohel, resident medical officer of Cox's Bazar Sadar Hospital said six people are undergoing treatment at the hospital while 10 others were sent to Dhaka. Witnesses and fire service sources said gas leakage from the LPG station spread a strong smell across the area for nearly three hours, causing panic among residents. The filling station had no valid approval and the massive explosion was triggered by a gas leak, said DAD Morshed. Touhidul Islam, a local resident, said the whole area was filled with suffocating gas fumes before the explosion and the fire rapidly spread to adjacent Adarsha Gram and Chandrima Housing areas. Local people blamed negligence on the part of the station owners. Officer-in-Charge of Cox’s Bazar Sadar Model Police Station, Sami Uddin said the situation is now under control and law enforcement personnel were deployed at the scene. Fire service officials said legal action will be taken against the owners of the unauthorised filling station.

Police have detained a youth in connection with the killing of a schoolgirl in the capital’s Hazaribagh area. The suspect, Siam, was detained in a drive in Kathalbagan area, said Assistant Police Commissioner (Dhanmondi Zone) Mustafa Tarikuzzaman of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police on Thursday. Police also recovered the knife ‘used in the killing’ and a bloodstained shirt. He said details would be shared at a press briefing later in the day. Earlier, schoolgirl Shahriar Sharmin Binti was stabbed around 9:30 pm on Wednesday at Haider Hotel lane in Hazaribagh. She was first taken to a local hospital in critical condition and later shifted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital where doctors declared her dead at around 10:45pm.

A local leader of Jatiyatabadi Tanti Dal was hacked to death at Gunak village  in Sonagazi upazila of Feni on Wednesday evening. The deceased was identified as Ayub Nabi Tarek, 26, organisational secretary of Bogadana Union Tati Dal and son of Kamal Uddin of Gunak village. Tarek’s fsther Kamal Uddin said,Tarek was lured to a house in the same locality by Naru (also known as Nahar), wife of Ohidur Rahman, on the pretext of settling an earlier dispute. He alleged that Ohidur Rahman’s son Nahid, along with Sayeed, Niloy and Naru,  attacked Tarek  using sharp weapons and sticks, leaving him dead on the spot. Local sources said there had been tension for some time over allegations of an extramarital relationship between the victim and the wife of the main accused, Nahid. Locals said  the murder may have been linked to that dispute. Police from Sonagazi Model Police Station rushed to the spot after receiving information and recovered the body. It was later sent to the morgue of Feni General Hospital for autopsy , said Officer-in-Charge of Sonagazi Model Police Station Md Kamrul Islam.