Khaleda terms Hasina ‘neo-Hitler’

The BNP chairperson said if her party and alliance came to power the recruitment of Bangladeshi manpower in the middle-East would be reopened.She said that the Awami League would not be able to do it as it had no good relation with Muslim world.Khaleda criticised the government’s claim of success in electricity saying there was no electricity in the country on Saturday.During about one-hour speech, Khaleda accused the government of making the judiciary partisan and urged the judges not to give judgements looking at face and party.

Jamaat’s hartal resumes today

Jamaat sources said they were waiting for the verdict in Mir Quasem Ali’s case which is scheduled for today to enforce yet another spell of hartal.‘We will announce a fresh 24-hour hartal if Mir Quasem is awarded maximum punishment,’ an executive council member of Jamaat said.Meanwhile, over a hundred of activists of Jamaat and its student wing Islami Chhatra Shibir were detained across the country ahead of the hartal on Saturday.Jamaat-Shibir men staged demonstrations and clashed with the police in Dhaka city and elsewhere on the day

Blackout all over as grid fails

The whole country on Saturday morning went into a rare power blackout which continued for hours together as the national grid collapsed after the 400kv power transmission line between India and Bangladesh tripped, officials said.The blackouts began at 11:27am and power could not be restored in most of the urban and rural areas until late into the night.

যুক্তরাষ্ট্রসহ কয়েকটি দেশ সমর্থন করেনি

শিল্পমন্ত্রী তোফায়েল আহমেদ বলেন, শুল্কমুক্ত সুবিধার জন্য পৃথিবীর অনেক দেশ আমাদের সমর্থন করেছে; কিন্তু মার্কিন যুক্তরাষ্ট্রসহ কয়েকটি দেশ সমর্থন করেনি। পরবর্তীকালে আমরা সিদ্ধান্ত নিলাম, বিশ্বের ৪৮টি দেশের সঙ্গে পরামর্শ করে আমরা এটাকে অন্তর্ভুক্ত করব। এরপর আমি একটি উচ্চপর্যায়ে মিটিং করি। সেটি ছিল ফলোআপ মিটিং। সেখানে আমি এবং নেদারল্যান্ডসের ডেভেলপমেন্ট মিনিস্টার দুজনই সভাপতিত্ব করি। এর পর আইএমএফ, ওয়ার্ল্ড ব্যাংক এবং কিছু সংস্থা আমাদের সাহায্য করতে আগ্রহ প্রকাশ করে। এ সিদ্ধান্তের পরিপ্রেক্ষিতে কানাডাসহ অনেক দেশ আমাদের মার্কেট একসেস দিয়েছে। আজ কানাডায় আমরা মার্কেট একসেস পাই। বৃহস্পতিবার চ্যানেল আইয়ের তৃতীয়মাত্রায় তিনি এসব কথা বলেন। জিল্লুর রহমান অনুষ্ঠানটির উপস্থাপনা করেন।

Myanmar key players in rare roundtable talks

Myanmar's president has held rare roundtable talks with the opposition, military and ethnic groups, as the US calls for "credible" polls next year.The meeting comes days after officials announced the next general election would be held in late 2015.Ahead of the meeting, US President Barack Obama held telephone talks with both President Thein Sein and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Virgin Galactic spacecraft crash kills pilot

In a statement, Virgin Galactic said the "vehicle suffered a serious anomaly resulting in the loss of SpaceShipTwo".The aircraft that the spacecraft was launched from, known as White Knight 2, landed safely, Virgin Galactic said.It was the second accident this week involving a commercial space company in the US.On Tuesday, an unmanned supply rocket called Antares exploded shortly after its launch from Virginia. It was carrying cargo to the International Space Station.

Barca target Clasico bounceback

Champions Atletico Madrid can also temporarily leapfrog Barcelona when they host struggling Cordoba at the Vicente Calderon.A run of four wins in five games has brought Diego Simeone’s side back to within two points of the top and they will be extra motivated this weekend after players and fans alike reacted with fury at the lack of recognition they received at the La Liga awards ceremony for last season earlier in the week.‘Atletico Madrid were the best in La Liga last season. The La Liga awards don’t diminish that. Last season we were the best,’ said Simeone, who won Atletico’s only individual award as coach of the season. ‘Maybe if we win the league again we will win some award next year.’

Tamim cries wolf again!

In the pre-Test press conference, skipper Mushfiqur Rahim had to face a volley of questions on whether Tamim’s whining after a routine bruise was a distraction for the team.Mushfiq tactfully avoided the question but it did not stop people from speculating, as many doubt the gravity of an injury every time Tamim complains. During informal discussions, many former cricketers said Tamim’s repeated complaint may have some relation with his tendency to avoid the rigour of training sessions.Some hoped Tamim would stop making excuses on routine bruises, once Chandika Hathurusinghe, known as a hard taskmaster, was appointed as the Bangladesh coach.

Fire burns Amar Desh office

Fire service director Mohammad Mahboob said, ‘We have already formed a five-member probe team headed by deputy director Mizanur Rahman to find out the cause of the fire.’The committee was asked to submit the probe report in seven working days, he added.BSEC authority also formed a five-member committee to investigate the incident.Industries minister Amir Hossain Amu, state minister for home affairs Asaduzzaman Khan and acting BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir visited the spot.Fakhrul suspected that there might have been a plot to permanently stop Amar Desh to suppress the criticisms of the government. The ministers also said that they would ensure proper investigation into the incident.

JMB coordinator, 4 others held by RAB

The five were basically leaders of Chapainawabganj and Pabna belt and now were regrouping the banned Islamist outfit under the supervision of its present chief Sohel Mahfuz, now in hiding, said the battalion’s intelligence wing director Abul Kalam Azad. He said that that a team the battalion arrested the five JMB members at Munsur Ali railway station in Shirajganj on early Friday when they were heading for Joydebpur in Gazipur by train.