United News of Bangladesh

About 25,000 children in Kunar province are still living in makeshift tents six months after a devastating earthquake struck the region, international aid group Save the Children said on Thursday. According to its report, families are using traditional wood- or coal-burning heaters inside tarpaulin shelters to stay warm, which increases the risk of fire. It added that reconstruction work in the mountainous area has hardly started, and the destruction in some villages is so severe that they are unlikely to be rebuilt. At least 61 dead as heavy snowfall, rain lash Afghanistan  The quake also badly damaged the education system. More than half of nearly 1,300 classrooms assessed were either completely or partially destroyed. Even before the disaster, around 50,000 primary school-aged children in Kunar — the worst-hit province — were already out of school, the report noted. A strong 6.0-magnitude earthquake hit eastern Afghanistan on August 31 last year, causing widespread devastation mainly in Kunar and becoming one of the deadliest natural disasters in the country’s recent history.

A 5.6-magnitude earthquake jolted Islamabad and parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in Pakistan on Wednesday. The tremors were felt in Peshawar, Chitral, Swat, Swabi, Bajaur, Mardan, Charsadda and Mansehra, DawnNewsTV reported, adding that they were also felt in Islamabad. According to the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), the quake struck at 4:12pm at a depth of 114 kilometres. It said the earthquake’s epicentre was in Afghanistan’s Hindu Kush region. The department also said the quake was felt in Islamabad, Swat, Peshawar and Chitral. Pakistan lies on three major tectonic plates — the Arabian, Eurasian and Indian — which create five seismic zones beneath the country. The intersection of multiple fault lines means tectonic activity remains frequent in the region. Last week, a 5.9-magnitude earthquake jolted parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, with tremors felt in Shangla, Swat, Mardan, Swabi and Nowshera.

Six members of a family were killed and three others injured when unidentified armed men attacked a house in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province on Wednesday, police said. The attack occurred in Buleda tehsil of Kech district, where the assailants opened indiscriminate fire and also fired a mortar round at the house, police sources said. The victims included women and children. The injured were taken to a nearby hospital, and some of them were reported to be in critical condition. Pakistan launches border strikes inside Afghanistan; Red Crescent says 18 killed Provincial Planning and Development Minister Mir Zahoor Ahmed Buledi condemned the incident and blamed the banned militant group Balochistan Liberation Army for carrying out the assault. He described the incident as an attack on innocent civilians and said law enforcement agencies had been mobilised to arrest those responsible and bring them to justice.

Thai authorities said Tuesday that 72 tigers in two tourist animal parks in northern Thailand died from canine distemper virus (CDV), not bird flu, reassuring the public that the outbreak poses no human health threat. The tigers, located in Mae Taeng and Mae Rim districts of Chiang Mai province, became ill and died over a ten-day period from Feb. 8 to 18. Autopsies detected genetic material of CDV and some bacterial infection, but no avian influenza virus. Public Health Minister Pattana Promphat confirmed that no human infections have been reported, though officials are monitoring anyone who recently came into contact with the animals. CDV, which affects dogs and felines, can be particularly severe in tigers, especially in confined environments with stress or inbreeding. The carcasses were necropsied, disinfected, cremated, and buried to prevent further risk, according to Livestock Development Department Director-General Somchuan Rattanamangklanan. Veterinarian Visit Arsaithamkul, involved in the necropsies, said the exact source of the infection remains unclear, suggesting that shared food sources might be a factor given the parks’ proximity. Both Tiger Kingdom parks remain closed. Authorities also reminded the public to exercise caution with poultry, amid ongoing concerns about bird flu in the region, citing previous outbreaks in Thailand and neighboring countries.  

A baby macaque named Punch has become a major attraction at Japan’s Ichikawa City Zoo after winning hearts online with his emotional story and adorable videos. Over 100 visitors gathered at the zoo on Friday, taking photos and cheering as the six-month-old cautiously approached other monkeys in the enclosure. Punch went viral on social media after clips showed him clinging to zookeepers and dragging around a stuffed orangutan toy for comfort. Zoo officials said, Punch was abandoned by his mother shortly after birth, possibly due to inexperience or summer heat stress. For young monkeys, bonding with their mothers is essential for safety and emotional stability. Caretakers tried giving him towels, but he formed a strong attachment to the orangutan toy, now affectionately called “Ora-mama.” Visitors from different places came to see the baby macaque in person after following his story online. Many described him as “cute” and “heartwarming,” while others said they felt emotional watching him slowly adjust to life with the troop. According to the zoo, Punch has recently started integrating with other monkeys. He has been seen playfully poking them, getting scolded at times, and gradually learning to socialise. In one video, he runs back to his toy after being dragged but soon returns to play with the others. Other clips show adult monkeys hugging and grooming him a key social behaviour among primates that builds trust and bonding. The zoo urged visitors to support Punch’s efforts to socialise, noting that although he is occasionally scolded, he has shown strong resilience and mental strength. Born in July 2025, Punch initially struggled to fit in as other monkeys ignored or acted aggressively toward him. His bond with the plush toy helped him feel secure until he began forming friendships within the troop. Social media users across the world have flooded the internet with messages of love, saying the once-rejected baby monkey is now adored by millions. With inputs from BBC

All seven people on board an air ambulance were killed when the aircraft crashed in Simaria area of Chatra district, Jharkhand, India, on Monday evening, officials said. The Redbird Airways Pvt Ltd-operated air ambulance was flying from Ranchi to Delhi. It took off at 7:11 pm and lost contact with air traffic control around 7:34 pm over a densely forested area near Bariatu Panchayat. At the time of the crash, residents reported heavy rain, strong winds, lightning, and thunder in the region. The victims included two crew members and five passengers. Among the passengers was Sanjay Kumar, a 41-year-old patient from Latehar district with severe burn injuries, being transferred for urgent treatment. He had been admitted to Devkamal Hospital in Ranchi on February 16 with 65 percent burns. Family members said they chose an air ambulance because his condition was too critical for a road journey. All seven bodies were recovered and sent for post-mortem, confirmed Sub-divisional Police Officer Shubham Khandelwal. The victims were identified as Captain Vivek Vikas Bhagat, Captain Savrajdeep Singh, Sanjay Kumar, Dr Vikas Kumar Gupta, Sachin Kumar Mishra, Archana Devi, and Dhuru Kumar. Authorities, including the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), said the Beechcraft C90 aircraft (VT-AJV) lost radar and communication contact roughly 20 minutes after takeoff. The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is expected to arrive in Chatra for a detailed investigation, and the black box will be examined to determine the cause of the crash. Former Jharkhand Chief Minister and BJP leader Champai Soren expressed grief, while All India Trinamool Congress extended condolences and urged a transparent investigation. Redbird Airways, owned by Akshay Yadav and established in 2018, operates six planes and received permission for non-scheduled flights in 2019.   With inputs from NDTV

Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court told judges on Monday that former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte encouraged death squads to carry out extrajudicial killings using fear and financial rewards. The court in The Hague is holding pretrial hearings for the ex-leader, who is facing three counts of crimes against humanity for deadly anti-drugs crackdowns he oversaw while in office. According to prosecutors, police and hit squad members carried out dozens of murders at Duterte's behest, motivated by the promise of money or to avoid becoming targets themselves. “For some, killing reached the level of a perverse form of competition,” deputy prosecutor Mame Mandiaye Niang said in his opening statement. The charges date from Duterte’s time as mayor of the southern Philippine city of Davao and later as president, and include dozens of killings as part of his so-called war on drugs. The hearing is not a trial, but allows prosecutors to outline their case in court. After weighing the evidence, judges have 60 days to decide whether it is strong enough to merit putting Duterte on trial. Duterte “stands behind his legacy resolutely, and he maintains his innocence absolutely,” lead defense lawyer Nick Kaufman told the three-judge panel. According to Kaufman, the prosecution “cherry-picked” examples of Duterte “bombastic rhetoric," and his client's words were never intended to incite violence. Duterte, 80, was not present in the courtroom, having waived his right to appear. Last month, judges found he was fit to stand trial, after postponing an earlier hearing over concerns about his health. In the Philippines, dozens of activists with relatives of suspects killed in Duterte’s anti-drugs crackdowns held a noisy protest in metropolitan Manila on Monday. More than 100 relatives gathered to watch the pretrial hearings on big TV screens in three venues organized by civic groups in the capital region. “We’re hoping that the ICC, even if it’s thousands of miles away, will finally render justice to all these families,” said Randy delos Santos, a volunteer in a charity shelter which was hosting one event. The 17-year-old nephew of delos Santos was shot and killed by three police officers in a purported drug raid in August 2017. The killing sparked a public outcry. The officers were found guilty of murder in a rare conviction by a Manila court the following year. Duterte supporters criticized the administration of current Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Duterte’s political rival, for arresting and surrendering the former leader to a court whose jurisdiction they dispute. Detractors include Duterte's daughter, current Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte who announced last week that she would seek the presidency in the 2028 elections. ICC prosecutors said in February 2018 that they would open a preliminary investigation into the violent drug crackdowns. In a move that human rights activists say was aimed at escaping accountability, Duterte, who was president at the time, announced a month later that the Philippines would leave the court. Judges rejected a request from Duterte’s legal team to throw out the case on the grounds that the court did not have jurisdiction because of the Philippine withdrawal. Countries can’t “abuse” their right to withdraw from the court's foundational Rome Statute “by shielding persons from justice in relation to alleged crimes that are already under consideration,” the September decision says. An appeal of that decision is still pending. Estimates of the death toll during Duterte’s presidential term vary, from the more than 6,000 that the national police have reported to up to 30,000 claimed by human rights groups.

A strong 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck early Monday off Malaysia’s Sabah state on Borneo island, according to the United States Geological Survey. The epicentre was located less than 100 kilometres northeast of Kota Kinabalu, the capital of Sabah, at a depth of 619.8 kilometres, the agency said. The quake occurred at 12:57am (local time). There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties. With inputs from agency

At least nine people were killed and 35 others injured after a passenger bus overturned due to reckless driving in Afghanistan’s western Badghis province on Sunday, local police said. The accident occurred in the unSabzak area along the highway linking Qala-e-Naw, the provincial capital, with Herat province, said Sadiqullah Sadeqi, spokesperson for the Badghis provincial police. He said nine passengers, including women and children, died at the scene. Police, with help from local residents, rushed the 35 injured to nearby health facilities for treatment. Pakistan launches border strikes inside Afghanistan; Red Crescent says 18 killed Several of the wounded were reported to be in critical condition, raising fears that the death toll could rise, Sadeqi added. Road crashes are common in Afghanistan, often caused by reckless driving, overcrowded roads and poor signage on damaged highways, and they remain a major cause of fatalities in the conflict-affected country.

Pakistan said it carried out early Sunday airstrikes along the border inside Afghanistan, targeting hideouts of Pakistani militants blamed for recent attacks in Pakistan, while the Afghan Red Crescent reported at least 18 people killed. The strikes reportedly hit “various civilian areas” in the eastern Afghan provinces of Nangarhar and Paktika, including a religious madrassa and several homes, according to Afghanistan’s defense ministry. Kabul condemned the attacks as a violation of its airspace and sovereignty. Afghan government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the strikes killed and wounded dozens, including women and children. The Afghan Red Crescent Society later confirmed 18 deaths and several injuries in Nangarhar. Following the strikes, Afghanistan summoned Pakistan’s ambassador in Kabul and lodged a formal protest, warning Islamabad would bear responsibility for any consequences. Villagers in affected areas were seen clearing rubble and preparing funerals. Local elder Habib Ullah said those killed were civilians with no links to militant groups. Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said the military conducted “intelligence-based, selective operations” against seven camps of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and its affiliates, as well as an affiliate of the Islamic State. He added that Pakistan remains committed to regional stability but prioritises the safety of its citizens. The strikes came hours after a suicide bombing targeted a security convoy in Pakistan’s Bannu district, killing two soldiers. A similar attack in Bajaur last week killed 11 soldiers and a child, with authorities alleging the attacker was an Afghan national. Islamabad has long accused Kabul of allowing TTP militants to operate from Afghan soil, a claim denied by both the Taliban administration and the group itself. Security analysts warned the latest strikes could escalate tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan, despite previous ceasefire efforts mediated by regional actors. Relations between the two neighbours have remained strained following deadly border clashes and stalled talks in recent months.