3 Huji men held for CPB rally blast

Aftermath of the bomb attack on a CPB meeting in Purana Paltan in January 2001. Star file photo

Rapid Action Battalion arrested three members of Harakat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami early Sunday in connection with the 2001 bomb blasts at the rally of Communist Party of Bangladesh in the capital's Paltan Maidan.
A team of Rab intelligence wing captured Moulana Md Idris Ali, Moulana Md Abdul Latif and Sakhawat Hossain at about 12:30am in Krishi Market area of Mohammadpur following secret information, Wing Commander Mohammad Sohail, director (Legal and Media Wing) of the Rab, told The Daily Star.
The heinous bomb attacks on January 21, 2001 killed five people and injured 50 others.
Following the bomb attack, CPB President Manjurul Ahsan Khan filed a case with Motijheel Police Station.
Earlier, Criminal Investigation Department arrested Huji leader Mufti Abdul Hannan and several other members for their involvement in the bomb blasts. Moreover, two members of Lasker-e-Taiba of India were also shown arrested in the case and they were taken on remand for interrogation.

Petrol pump owners observe 6-hr strike

File photo 

Bangladesh Petrol Pump and Tank Lorry Owners and Labour Oikya Parishad, a platform of petrol pumps and tank lorry owners, enforced a six-hour strike since 6:00am Sunday to press home their 13-point demand.
It demanded accident insurance for petrol pump workers, an end to the harassment by police in the name of checking documents of tank-lorries on highways and an increase in tank-lorry fare.
The other demands include formulation of a policy regarding installation of pumps and testing laboratory in all depots and increasing the tank lorry fair.
The government did not adopt any policy to install petrol pumps and the commission on sales of petroleum oils dropped to 2 percent from 5 percent in 1990, BSS quoted Nazmul Huq, president of the parishad, as telling the state-run news agency on Saturday.
There are 2,706 petrol pumps and 5,304 dealers and tank-lorry outlets in the country.

Student arrested with arms in capital

Rapid Action Battalion Sunday morning arrested a young man along with arms in the capital’s Mirpur area.
The elite force identified the youth as Abdur Rahman, 22, a private university student, but it did not name the institution instantly, reports the daily Prothom Alo.
Deputy Director Maj Tariqul Islam of Rab-4 said a team of the elite crime busters upon secret information raided a house at Mirpur section-7 and captured Abdur Rahman.
They recovered two revolvers, one pistol and 17 rounds of ammunition from Rahman’s procession, he said.
The Rab official said in primary interrogation Rahman admitted that he had committed muggings and robberies by using the arms.

Protesters surge into Bangkok wanting new election

Supporters of ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra cheer to speech from their leader during an anti-government rally in Bangkok on March 13. Photo: AP AP, Bangkok

Tens of thousands of red-shirted protesters from Thailand's rural areas swarmed the Thai capital Sunday for protests aimed at forcing the government to dissolve parliament and call new elections.
Protest leaders gave the government until noon Sunday (0500 GMT; midnight EST) to accede to their demands or face mass marches on key locations in Bangkok.
The demonstrators, popularly known as the Red Shirts, want Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva to call new elections, which they believe will allow their political allies to regain power. They believe Abhisit came to power illegitimately with the connivance of the military and other parts of the traditional Thai ruling class who were jealous and fearful of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra's popularity while in office from 2001 until he was ousted in a 2006 coup.
In his weekly radio address Sunday, Abhisit indicated he had no plans to dissolve the parliament.
"Dissolution and call for resignations are normal in a democratic system. But we have to make sure the dissolution of parliament will solve the problem and won't make the next election troublesome," he said.
He also denied rumors that a military coup was possible and said he would not impose a state of emergency that would give the army broad powers to deal with the protests.
Traffic in Bangkok was light, businesses were shuttered and social events canceled as many feared the four-day demonstrations, which officially began Sunday but have been building for two days as caravans of protesters pour in from the north and northeast, would repeat past violence. But protesters stressed they would use only peaceful means in their quest for new elections.
"If the prime minister refuses to dissolve parliament on Sunday, we will declare new measures. We are planning to march to key spots belonging to those in power," said one protest leader, Jatuporn Prompan.
"We will ask (the prime minister) to return power to the people," he said.
Jatuporn said he expected a million people to gather by noon Sunday. But local newspapers estimated the numbers at between 80,000 and 100,000, although more were still arriving from outlying areas, traveling in trucks, buses, motorcycles and riverboats.
A force of 50,000 soldiers, police and other security personnel was mobilized in the capital area.
There were no reports of violence, and both Jatuporn and Abhisit praised authorities for facilitating the protesters' easy entry into the capital. Abhisit said the government has asked protest leaders to monitor any groups among the demonstrators who may want to provoke violence.
Despite newspaper headlines warning of a "red tide" about to swamp the city, the protests took on an almost festive atmosphere with musical performances and dancing interspersed with political speeches.
The march is regarded by some as the last chance for Thaksin to return to Thailand.
The protesters, formally known as the United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship, are made up of followers of Thaksin, along with other people who oppose the coup that toppled him.
Forcing the government out of power, Thaksin loyalists say, could pave the way for his pardon and return.
Thaksin, who resides in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, faces a two-year prison term for abuse of power. But he remains especially popular among the rural and urban poor who are thankful for the cheap medical care, low interest loans and other measures his government enacted to alleviate poverty.
On Saturday night, Thaksin telephoned the protesters' People TV station to deny rumors that he had been expelled from the United Arab Emirates and was in neighboring Cambodia. Thaksin said he was currently on a visit to Europe.
Thailand has been in constant political turmoil since early 2006, when demonstrations accusing Thaksin of corruption and abuse of power began. In 2008, when Thaksin's political allies came back to power for a year, his opponents occupied the prime minister's office compound for three months and seized Bangkok's two airports for a week.
Recent polls in Bangkok indicate a large segment of the population, irrespective of their political beliefs, is fed up with the protests, which have battered the economy, including the lucrative tourism industry.
The Red Shirts have vowed to keep their protest nonviolent. The group's last major protest in Bangkok last April deteriorated into rioting that left two people dead, more than 120 people injured and buses burned on major thoroughfares. The army was called in to quash the unrest.
Many embassies have warned their citizens to stay away from areas of the city where violence could erupt.
"This government has no intention to crack down the protesters because that doesn't benefit anyone," Abhisit said, adding the government would strictly follow legal procedures if forced to disperse lawbreakers.

Green light to cut 4,000 trees

Over 100 trees already chopped down after HC directive; ethnic people, environmentalists protest

The felled trees at Kailin Punji in Srimangal.Photo: STARTawfique Ali

A timber trader chopped down over 100 trees and destroyed two betel leaf enclosers at Kailin Punji near Nahar Tea Garden in Srimangal yesterday after the High Court gave the go-ahead to cut down 4,000 trees.
Earlier, 1,200 trees were already felled in 2008.
The HC bench comprising Justice Md Mamtaz Uddin Ahmed and Justice Naima Haider in the go-ahead on February 22 allowed the garden owner to cut the trees.
Indigenous people of neighbouring Khasia Punjis (villages) and environmentalist group Bangladesh Paribesh Andolon (Bapa) apprehend displacement of indigenous people from their ancestral homesteads, loss of traditional livelihood and environmental degradation as a consequence of the wholesale tree felling.
The Ministry of Environment and Forest dubiously issued a permit on June 30, 2008 in favour of Nahar Tea Garden in Moulvibazar allowing it to chop down a total of 4,000 trees in exchange for Tk 47.51 lakh as royalty to the public treasury.
Nahar Tea Garden, however, made a deal with M/s Salim Timber and Traders to sell the 4,000 trees in October, 2006, two years prior to obtaining the permit. The deal involved Tk 1.5 crore.
Following protests by the Khasia community and Bapa, forest ministry on October 19, 2008 suspended the permit.
Before the suspension, the contractor, however, had cut 1,200 trees and removed them with elephants. The court in its February 22 directive did not mention the number of trees already felled.
Interestingly, Sylhet Divisional Forest Officer Md Delwar Hossain issued a fresh permit on February 2 this year allowing the garden owner to cut down 2,350 trees and asked to spare 450, as those are located in the Khasia Punjis (1200+2350+450=4000).
Following a writ petition filed by the timber trader Salim Uddin Mohalder and Nahar Tea Garden Manager Pijush Kanti Bhattacharya, the court on February 22 directed the forest department authorities and local administration to allow the felling of trees as per the earlier work order.
In the Sylhet Divisional Forest Office permit, the garden owner was asked to pay the government an enhanced royalty of Tk 1.19 crore for the trees as per revised rate of forest goods.
The HC in its February 22 rule also asked authorities including environment and forest secretary to show on what legal grounds they had imposed the enhanced royalty and reduced the number of trees by 450 and stayed the permit for three weeks.
"The timber trader started cutting the trees around noon with the backing of several hundred musclemen," said father Joseph, a religious leader of the local Khasia community.
Environment and Forest Secretary Mihir Kanti Majumdar said he would take initiatives to file an appeal today against the HC directive that allowed the felling of trees.
As to why the ministry gave permission in the first place to wipe out as many as 4,000 trees, he said, "We shelved it for some time."
The then Sylhet Divisional Forest Officer Abdul Mabud in a letter to the Nahar Garden manager in August, 2008 said 3,754 of the total 4,000 trees grew naturally and the rest were planted. The trees had 87,174 cubic foot timber and 75,508 cubic foot of firewood.
The trees included Cham, Gamar, Gorjon, Jaam, Koroi, Bonak, Rongi, Shimul, Awal, Khami, Bolos, Lud, Belpoi, Dumur and others.
Khushi Kabir, chairman of Association for Land Reform and Development (ALRD), said tree felling on this scale would adversely affect environment, life and livelihood of the local indigenous people.
"Forest area in Bangladesh is already very low compared to requirement," she said.
Bapa General Secretary Md Abdul Matin referring to locals' estimate said even though the tea garden has a lease for 864 acres of land, it is on over 1,200 acres of land including 200 acres of Khasia community land.
The garden owner has been realising money by sub-leasing 100 acres of the leased-land in violation of the terms in Bangladesh Tea Management Directory, alleged Bapa Member Secretary Sharif Jamil.
The owner has realised a total of Tk 2 crore illegally in the form of land tax since 1984 from the Khasia communities, said Md Abdul Matin.
Deputy Commissioner of Moulvibazar Mofizul Islam said Khasia community is dependent on the trees for their livelihood by the betel leaf cultivation. He received no complaints about realising tax from the community, he said.
There are around 60 Khasia families in two Khaisa Punjis--Akilam Punji and Kailin Punji--in and around the garden.
The tea garden's manager Pijush Kanti said they needed to cut the trees to expand the garden by 60 acres every year. On realising tax from the Khasia, he said they do not do that anymore but the previous owner used to do it.

24 killed in western Mexico; 11 in one shootout

AP, Acapulco

A series of shootings killed 24 people Saturday in a Pacific coast state plagued by drug gang violence. Nearly half died in one shootout between soldiers and armed men.
The gunbattle erupted when attackers opened fire on soldiers patrolling the small town of Ajuchitlan del Progreso, said Valentin Diaz, director of the Guerrero state investigative police. Ten gunmen and one soldier were killed, he said.
Diaz said the shootout broke out in the middle of the day in the center of the town as it was full of bystanders. He said state police were investigating and soldiers had reinforced security.
President Felipe Calderon has deployed tens of thousands of troops to Guerrero and other drug-trafficking hotspots across Mexico in an effort to root out cartels. Gang violence has surged since the crackdown began three years ago, claiming more than 17,900 lives.
Thirteen other people were killed in Guerrero in several other incidents before dawn, according to a state police report.
Two decapitated men were found on a scenic road packed with nightclubs in the resort city of Acapulco. Another man was found shot to death on the edge of the city.
Gunmen, meanwhile, killed five police officers on patrol in Tuncingo, a rural area outside Acapulco. In the same area, police found the bullet-ridden bodies of five other men, including two who had been beheaded.
Police mentioned no possible motives, and it was unclear if the killings were related.
Several cartels are fighting over drug dealing turf and trafficking routes in Guerrero. Gang violence occurs almost every day in the state, but Saturday was unusually bloody.
Farther to the south in the state of Chiapas, which borders Guatemala, a grenade explosion inside a car killed one man and wounded another. State prosecutors said the dead man was holding the weapon when it exploded.
Investigators believe the victim belonged to the Zetas drug gang and had been about to throw the grenade at federal police offices in the state capital, Tuxtla Gutierrez.

BSF digs 25 bunkers inside Bangladesh

Retreats after 19 hours following border talks

Staff Correspondent, Sylhet

Indian Border Security Force dug 25 bunkers following an overnight intrusion into Bangladesh territory through Padua-Protappur border in Gowainghat upazila of Sylhet and retreated yesterday afternoon after 19 hours.
The BSF's retreat from about 100-yard inside the international border came after an emergency flag meeting with Bangladesh Rifles from 1:30pm to 3:30pm on 'no man's land' at Padua-Protappur amidst tension prevailing since Friday night.
Lt Colonel Zahirul Alam, commanding officer of 21 Battalion of BDR, Sylhet, who led the BDR team at the meeting, told The Daily Star at 5:40pm yesterday, "BSF started retreating from the position they took inside Bangladesh territory on Friday. They had already left the bunkers."
BSF commanding officer of Battalion-1, Shillong, S Shekhor led the Indian side at the meeting.
A sector commander-level flag meeting between the BDR and BSF would be held soon to settle the ongoing trouble on Jaintapur, Tamabil and Padua borders, Zahirul said.
Earlier, around 9:00pm on Friday BSF trespassed into Bangladesh territory through border pillars No 1270 and 1271 and dug 25 bunkers while BDR took position in the nearby area and dug eight bunkers.
"We raised strong protests in the meeting and asked them to retreat to their previous position in line with the decision taken in September 2009", said Zahirul Alam adding that the BSF agreed to leave.
Colonel Alam also said that according to a joint decision taken in September 2009, the BSF and BDR had kept themselves at a distance of 200 yards from Padua-Protappur border.
Meanwhile, BDR on Thursday handed over an Indian to BSF, who intruded into Bangladesh through Padua border on the previous day. The BSF also returned a Bangladeshi, held by them from zero line along the same border the same day.

PM asks Kuwait to import from Bangladesh

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday met with Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah at Seif Palace in Kuwait City. Photo: PID UNB, Kuwait City

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina urged Kuwaiti business leaders and entrepreneurs to import world-class products from Bangladesh and make investment in the country’s promising sectors under an attractive package of incentives.
"In fact, there is ample scope for diversifying and increasing our two-way trade. We only need to work together to identify areas of cooperation to harness the existing potential," she told her audience at a luncheon meeting hosted by Kuwait Chamber of Commerce in her honour.
The prime minister arrived in Kuwait on Sunday on a three-day state visit to the oil-rich Gulf state with a wide range of matters of bilateral cooperation on her agenda, especially development assistance, investment and labour issues.
Chairman of the apex trade body Ali Mohammad Thunayan Al Ganim delivered the welcome address.
The prime minister said Kuwait could import from Bangladesh high-quality garments, ceramics and pharmaceuticals, which have been established as popular items in the developed world.
The other items she put on offer, which also have equal recognition in an increasingly environment-conscious world, are finished leather and leather products, furniture, handicrafts, and, particularly, jute and jute products.
Hasina said another important area of immense possibility is investment by the State of Kuwait in Bangladesh. "Our government has been successful in creating an attractive investment climate with liberal fiscal and financial policies."
She listed the significant facilities on stake for investment, like tax holiday, concessionary duty on imported machinery, avoidance of double taxation, remittance of royalty, technical know-how, technical assistance fee, allowing 100 percent foreign equity, unrestricted exit policy, and full repatriation of capital and capital gains in the event of exit.
A huge domestic market of 150 million people, abundant skilled labour, the presence of homegrown entrepreneur class, supportive legal regime, and, above all, commitment of the government are added attractions for foreign investors, the PM told the leading Kuwaiti businesspeople.
She said Kuwaiti investors could seriously consider investing in power, telecommunications, infrastructure development, pharmaceutical, textiles, ICT, real estate, gas and energy, leather, furniture, and agro-based industry sectors.
"I invite you to come forward with investments in Bangladesh, which would be lucrative, as well as assist in strengthening even further our countries’ relations."
She assured that her government would provide all possible assistance and cooperation in doing business.
"I hope my invitation to you all for expansion of trade with and enhancement of investment in Bangladesh would receive your favourable response.”
On a note of confidence, the Prime Minister said: "With your cooperation in the fields of trade, commerce and investment, both the State of Kuwait and Bangladesh would mutually be benefited bringing greater prosperity to our countries and peoples."
She said that the two states are bound by brotherly ties based on common faith, culture and tradition.
She noted that the Gulf State has now established itself as a regional economic hub and Bangladesh would very much like to closely engage with Kuwait for a more meaningful cooperation.
"An important area is, of course, by way of enhancing our bilateral trade," she said, adding that, at present, the balance of trade is very much in favor of Kuwait.
In 2007 to 2008, Bangladesh’s exports to Kuwait stood at a mere USD 9.69 million while the corresponding import figure was many times higher.
In his speech the KCCI chief highly praised Hasina’s leadership, especially in dealing with the challenges of security and development.
Hasina, not only in her capacity as prime minister of the friendly and great country but also as a shining example of the ambition and competence of the Muslim woman and as a good example of the intelligence and diplomacy of the politician, faces, with great courage and skill, the challenges of security and development, he said.
He wouldn’t deny that the size of trade exchange and the level of economic cooperation between two countries by far fall short of reflecting the depth of the Islamic bonds of two nations and brotherly relations among the leaders of both countries.
"Neither do I deny that the responsibility of changing it is a matter of our joint interest. It is our sincere hope that your visit will mark an encouraging start for all of us to bear out responsibilities," the Kuwaiti business leader said.
He mentioned that the meeting held today gave a very valuable opportunity for both countries to identify and communicate with the highest positions of information and decision in the friendly Bangladesh and the key milestones toward cooperation in the fields of trade and investment in the best interests of both the countries.
Labour and Expatriate Welfare Minister Engineer Mosharraf Hossain,
Foreign Minister Dr Dipu Moni, State Minister for Environment Dr Hasan Mahmud, Ambassador-at-Large Ziauddin, Principle Secretary MA KArim, Press Secretary to the Prime Minister Abul Kalam Azad and other high officials from Bangladesh side and business leaders from Kuwait were present among others at the function.

Gold tally reaches 17 for hosts

Bangladesh won two more gold medals on Monday --two in Boxing and the other in Wushu—at the 11th South Asian Games, taking the total number of gold for the hosts to 17.
Jewel Ahmed Rony and Abdur Rahim won gold in Boxing, private television ATN Bangla reports.
Earlier in the morning, Mesbah Uddin won gold in Wushu.
On Sunday, the hosts grabbed six gold medals, including the 14th maiden medals in the newly introduced South Asian Games Cricket, beating Sri Lanka.

Siamese twins separated

In this image made from TV grab, the conjoined twins are seen before and after the operation at Dhaka Shishu Hospital on Monday. Star Online Report

Surgeons at the city's Dhaka Shishu Hospital successfully separated a pair of conjoined female infants on Monday.
The twins -- Moni and Mukta -- are the fourth to be separated in Bangladesh.
Prof AR Khan, Director and head of surgery of Dhaka Shishu Hospital, performed the operation from 9:45am to 12:00pm along with a 10-member team of surgeons and anesthetists.
They have been kept at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) of the hospital.
They were brought to Dhaka Shishu Hospital on January 31 and admitted to ward No 6 of the hospital.
Trisna Pal, wife of a village farmer Joyprokash Pal of Palpara village in Birgonj upazila of Dinajpur, gave birth to the twins in a caesarean operation at a local clinic on August 22 last year.

BTRC asks Citycell to explain illegal connections

Telecom regulator on Monday issued a show cause notice to Citycell asking the mobile phone operator to explain why it was selling unauthorised connections.
Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) took the action following the threat issued to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her nephew lawmaker Fazle Noor Taposh by the criminals recently.
“We have found at least 26 unauthorised RUIM (removable user identity module) cards,” the BTRC chairman said adding some of the connections have been found to be used in illegal and criminal activities.
Citycell will have to reply to the notice within 30 days, the chairman said.
He also said the commission will examine the connection selling process of all operators in the country.

3 cops sued for death in custody

A murder case was filed against the incumbent officer in-charge, a sub-inspector and an assistant sub-inspector of Keraniganj Police Station on Monday following the death of an accused in custody.
Manik Mia alias Lutfar, 38, died in the custody of Keraniganj police on February 1.
Victim's father Adu Mia filed the case with a Dhaka court against OC Md Asaduzzaman, SI Zahidur Rahman and ASI Harun ur Rashid.
The complainant in his case statement alleged that Manik died following torture in police custody.
Judicial Magistrate Sahriar Arafat took the charge into cognizance and may pass an order on this issue in the afternoon.
Earlier, Keraniganj police claimed that Manik Mia, an accused in a murder case and arrested along with two others on January 31, committed suicide in a toilet of the police station.

Poor to get rice at Tk 22

File photo Star Online Report

The government on Monday decided to start selling rice at Tk 22 per kg through cards on February 25 for around 25 lakh poor people across the country.
The decision was taken at a Food Planning and Monitoring Unit meeting at the Ministry of Food and Disaster Management with Minister Abdur Razzaque in the chair.
Finance Minister AMA Muhith, Agriculture Minister Matia Chowdhury and secretaries of ministries concerned attended the meeting.
Briefing journalists after the meeting, the food minister said the quantity of food grains storage in the country is estimated at 8.67 lakh metric tons, which is adequate.
He said the government have launched the programme in a bid to increase rice supply in the market to keep its price stable.
The price of rice is yet to come down in the market due to poor supply, Razzaque observed.
The minister said the Food Department would prepare a list upon consultation with local people's representatives in this regard.
The government will continue monitoring the market price and take necessary steps.
The people, who do not have specific sources of income and are not included in the government's safety net programme, are eligible for the programme.

Iran launches production lines of unmanned planes

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, wears eye protection goggles as he visits an exhibition of Iran's laser science, in Tehran, Iran on February 7. Photo: APAP, Tehran

Iran's state TV says the country has launched two production lines of unmanned aircraft, or drones.
The Monday report quoted Iran's defense minister, Gen. Ahmad Vahidi, as saying the planes will be able to carry out surveillance as well as attack tasks with high precision.
Iran said a year ago it has built an unmanned surveillance aircraft with a range of more than 600 miles (1,000 kilometers), long enough to reach Israel.
Also Monday, a senior air force Commander, Gen. Heshmatollah Kasiri, told the official IRNA news agency that Iran would soon deploy a missile air defense system that's more powerful than the Russian S-300 system that Tehran has ordered from Moscow but not yet received.

PM bins allegation of signing 'secret deal' again

File photoBSS, Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday categorically told the Jatiya Sangsad that she did not sign any 'secret deal' with India during her recent visit to the neighbouring country.
While replying to a supplementary from independent lawmaker Fazlul Azim during the prime minister's question-answer session, she refuted the allegation of BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia in this regard and asked her (Khaleda) to refrain from giving such 'misleading and false' information in the greater national interest.
"If you have any document regarding the so-called secret deal, please make it public. Don't mislead the people by giving such untrue information," she told the BNP leaders including its chairperson.
The PM told the House that the agreements signed with India during her visit to New Delhi was meant for upholding the national interest and spirit of the country's independence and sovereignty as well as the nation's dignity.
Referring to the Joint Communiqué, signed between Bangladesh and India on different bilateral issues during her visit to India, Hasina said these matters came up for discussion in the cabinet beforehand.
The PM criticised the reckless remarks of the leader of the oppositions in parliament and said that the party (BNP) always pacifies India while in power and oppose the neighbour while in the opposition. "India is good when BNP is in power, India is bad when BNP is in the opposition," she said.
Describing her India visit as a fruitful one, Hasina said this trip has heralded a new era in the bilateral relations between Bangladesh and India.
Responding to another supplementary from treasury bench member Eng Mosharraf Hossain, the PM said her government had a plan to expand and modernise the Chittagong and the Mongla ports so that India, Nepal and Bhutan could use them.
"It would help generate employment side by side with socio- economic development of the country," she said adding that only 10 percent of the Mongla port and 40 percent of the Chittagong port are being used currently.
On infrastructure development, the premier said the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway would be made six-lane road while rail line would be expanded between Chittagong and Cox's Bazar to facilitate transportation of goods.
The PM said her government is trying hard to resolve all unresolved problems regarding enclaves, communications and 54 common rivers between India and Bangladesh in line with the Indira-Mujib Agreement.

13 countries craft plan to save tigers

In this photo taken January 20, two adult male tigers look on at Wat Pa Luangta Bua Yannasampanno Forest Monastery in Kanchanaburi, Thailand. Photo: APAP, HUA HIN

More than a dozen Asian nations aim to double the numbers of wild tigers by 2022 and prohibit the building of roads, bridges and other infrastructure projects that could harm their habitats.
However, a draft declaration that was to be adopted by the 13 countries Friday includes no new money to finance the conservation efforts which scientists said must be more than doubled.
The draft, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press, mentions only a commitment from countries to use money from ecotourism, carbon financing and infrastructure projects to pay for tiger programs.
"With political will and implementation of the needed action, the extinction of the wild tigers across much of their range can be averted," the declaration states. "Tiger conservation is important to protect biodiversity and preserve a vital part of our national heritage."
Officials at the first Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation, in Thai coastal resort of Hua Hin, were to adopt the declaration Friday. It will then be considered for approval by heads of state of the 13 countries in September at a meeting in Vladivostok, Russia.
Tiger numbers in recent decades have plummeted because of human encroachment — with the loss of more than nine-tenths of their habitat — and poaching to supply a vibrant trade in tiger parts. From an estimated 100,000 at the beginning of the 20th century, the number of tigers today is less than 3,500.
John Seidensticker, head of conservation ecology at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park and chairman of the Save the Tiger Fund, said the draft declaration included all the components for ensuring a steady recovery of tigers.
Along with a target for doubling tiger populations, countries would agree to protect core tiger habitats as well as buffer zones and corridors that connect key sanctuaries and national parks. The declaration also supports maintaining a permanent ban on the trade of tiger parts and reducing poaching through beefed-up law enforcement.
"If we get everything done in this declaration, we will turn tiger populations around so in fact it's a positive not a negative," Seidensticker said. "For me, I'm very happy with this."
The meeting which opened Wednesday was organized by Thailand and the Global Tiger Initiative, a coalition formed in 2008 by the World Bank, the Smithsonian Institute and nearly 40 conservation groups. It aims to double tiger numbers by 2022.
The 13 countries attending the meeting are Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam.

15 Somalis dead as Islamist attacks spark fighting

AP, Mogadishu

A medical worker says the heaviest fighting in months has killed at least 15 civilians in Somalia's capital.
Ali Muse says women and children were among the dead and that more than 30 people were wounded. Muse heads the ambulance service in the Somali capital of Mogadishu.
A spokesman for the Islamic insurgency says the fighting started when the Islamists attacked government bases and African Union peacekeeping troops around the city.
Sheik Ali Mohamoud Rage says the attack early Friday was a response to a plan by peacekeepers and the government to wrest back control of the battered seaside capital.
Somali police spokesman Colonel Abdullahi Hassan Barise says Somali forces beat back the insurgents.

5 executed killers of Bangabandhu buried at their village homes

Nation rids itself of stigma

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina takes part in a prayer in the House yesterday for Bangabandhu and his family members killed in the August 15, 1975 bloodbath. Photo: PIDStaff Correspondent

The five executed killers of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman were buried yesterday following the hangings in Dhaka Central Jail in the first hour of the day.
They were buried at their ancestral village homes. Five ambulances, escorted by Rapid Action Battalion and police, transported the bodies to the burial sites.
Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan was buried at Gopinathpur of Kashba upazila in Brahmanbaria, Syed Farooq Rahman at Marma Mallikpur village in Naogaon, Bazlul Huda at Hatboalia village of Alamdanga upazila in Chuadanga, and AKM Mohiuddin Ahmed and Mohiuddin Ahmed at Neta and Nijkata villages respectively under Golachipa upazila in Patuakhali.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina offered shokrana namaz and recited from the holy Quran in her official residence Jamuna after the executions.
Hasina, one of the two surviving daughters of Bangabandhu, expressed deep satisfaction over the executions, and called upon the people as well as her party leaders and activists to resist any conspiracy with patience.
Awami League leaders and activists led by Deputy Leader of the Parliament Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury placed wreaths at the portrait of Bangabandhu at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Memorial Museum in Dhanmondi of the capital in the morning.
"The nation is now stigma free," said Sajeda Chowdhury, adding that she had been waiting for the executions for long. "The nation was waiting for the day," she said.
Other AL leaders also expressed their satisfaction with the executions, and demanded immediate extradition of the other six fugitive condemned killers.
The parliament in a special munajat also expressed deep gratitude to the Almighty yesterday for the executions.
LGRD Minister Syed Ashraful Islam said the executions prove that the rule of law exists in the country. It also proves that nobody can escape the long arm of the law after committing a crime, the AL general secretary told reporters at a capital hotel expressing his reaction.
Our Patuakhali correspondent reported, Milton Talukder received his cousin AKM Mohiuddin Ahmed's body around 2:30pm.He was buried in his family graveyard at 2:45pm after a hurried namaz-e-janaza. About 200 people however staged a demonstration there protesting against the funeral. They also manhandled AKM Mohiuddin's another cousin Kabir Hussain Talukder, and threw shoes at the body.
AL activists and other local people brought out a march when Mohiuddin Ahmed's body reached his Nijkata village around 3:15pm. Abul Hossain Howlader, an uncle of Mohiuddin, received the body. He was also buried following a namaz-e-janaza.
Golachipa AL unit leaders and activists staged demonstrations against allowing funerals for AKM Mohiuddin Ahmed and Mohiuddin Ahmed when the bodies entered the upazila town around 11:40am.
The namaz-e-janaza of Bazlul Huda was held in Hatboalia High School field around 12:05pm, reported our Kushtia correspondent. Huda's younger brother Nurul Huda received the body.
Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan's son Ashraf Rahman Khan received his father's body at Gopinathpur around 6:30am. Sultan was buried in his family graveyard, our correspondent reported.
Syed Farooq Rahman's body reached his village Marma Mallikpur around 8:45am reported our Rajshahi correspondent.
Police handed over the body to Farooq's cousin Dewan Asadur Rahman Mithu. His janaza was held at 9.30am.
People at the janaza demanded to see Farooq's uncovered body before burial, and police allowed them to have a look, following which he was buried.
Local AL activists brought out a procession near Farooq's house after the burial, celebrating his exceution.

6 stay out of reach

Staff Correspondent

None of the remaining six convicted killers of Bangabandhu, now holed up in different countries, could be brought back yet despite the government's diplomatic manoeuvres.
The government even does not yet have specific information about the whereabouts of a number of the absconding killers because of their frequent change of location. It already sought assistance from the Interpol in this regard, but for no result.
Law Minister Shafique Ahmed, however, yesterday claimed that the government has information about the fugitives and is working to bring them back to face justice.
The six absconding killers are Lt Col (dismissed) Khandaker Abdur Rashid, Lt Col (relieved) Shariful Haque Dalim, Lt Col (retd) Nur Chowdhury, Lt Col (retd) AM Rashed Chowdhury, Capt Abdul Mazed and Risalder Moslehuddin.
Five of the 12 convicted killers of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman were executed early yesterday at Dhaka Central Jail.
Another convict, Aziz Pasha, died in Zimbabwe in 2002.
All the subsequent military and civil governments coming to power following the coup of August 15, 1975, until the Awami League came to power in 1996, awarded and rehabilitated the leaders of the upheaval politically instead of punishing the self-declared murderers.
General Ziaur Rahman and General Ershad, who became the president of the country, and former prime minister Khaleda Zia--all created opportunities for the killers and directly or indirectly rehabilitated them politically. They also assisted the killers in getting power and authority.
Sources in the administration and intelligence agencies said the government has specific information about two of the six absconding convicts.
Lt Col (retd) AM Rashed Chowdhury now resides in the USA and is trying for getting political asylum in Canada, they said.
The government has requested the US government through its embassy in Washington to deport Rashed Chowdhury.
Another convict Lt Col (retd) Nur Chowdhury, after a long stay in Germany, has also sought political asylum in Canada.
No specific information regarding the locations of four others is available, but different sources say they are hiding in Libya, Pakistan, Kenya and Hong Kong.
According to the sources Lt Col (dismissed) Khandaker Abdur Rashid, one of the key plotters of the massacre of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and most of his family members, is settled in Benghazi, Libya, where he owns a construction business.
He used to be a frequent visitor to Pakistan before he was admitted to a hospital there after a road crash a couple of months ago.
One source says Lt Col (relieved) Shariful Haque Dalim is now in the UK, but Rashed Chowdhury, press minister of Bangladesh High Commission in London, told The Daily Star yesterday that they had searched for Dalim in the UK for the last one month but could find no trace of him.
Another source says Dalim lives in Pakistan and often travels to Libya, particularly Benghazi.
Dalim has a business in Kenyan capital Nairobi and some other African countries. He even has a Kenyan passport, sources said.
Capt Abdul Mazed frequently visits both Benghazi and Pakistan while Risalder Moslehuddin lives in Libya.

India visit not only a failure, harmful too: Khaleda

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia on Sunday speaks at a press conference in her Gulshan office. Photo: StarStar Online Report

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia on Sunday said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's India visit was not only a failure, but also a harmful event for the country.
In her formal reaction to the visit, Khaleda Zia at a press conference at the BNP chairperson's Gulshan office said the prime minister returned home empty-handed.
Khaleda rejected the joint communiqué signed during the prime minister's visit and urged the people to wage vigorous movement against the anti-people moves.
She said the prime minister apparently gave transit to India in guise of allowing them to use our port and rail facilities.
"Be conscious, exchange views with each other on the demerits of the treaties and take preparation for a final movement to protect the country's sovereignty," she said.
Khaleda said, "They claimed that the visit was hundred percent successful. But the reality is it was not only a failure, it turned out to be harmful too for the nation. The people of the country got disappointed at the failure of the prime minister."
"People expected that the prime minister will bring something from India that will work for our welfare. But they were disappointed as the prime minister returned empty-handed," said the former prime minister.
She also said she was wondered to see the warm reception accorded to the prime minister on her return from India resulting in untold sufferings for the city commuters.
"It's India that can accord her such reception, not the people of Bangladesh," the leader of the opposition said.
She said the people became angry viewing the huge reception to the prime minister who returned home after giving away everything to India.
The people never saw such reception to the prime minister, Khaleda said adding it was actually meant to cover the failures keeping the people in darkness.
"She (Hasina) sold the country to India. People did not give her the mandate to sell the country," Khaleda said in reply to a question from a journalist after she read out her written statement.
On the $ 1 billion credit line announced by India, Khaleda said the total money would be used for infrastructure development of the rail and road link for the use of India.
“We will lose our market in eastern provinces of India and road, rail and the country’s security may be at stake,” Khaleda added.
Khaleda decisively announced that they were not anti-Indian and her party believed in regional cooperation.
Criticising the PM's speech on allowing Bangladeshi television to run in India, Khaleda said the government was working in favour of India.
“It is injustice. Indian channels are allowed in Bangladesh when our channels are prohibited in India and our prime minister said that was not her issue,” Khaleda added.
She expressed deep shock at the death of veteran Indian politician Jyoti Basu.
Khaleda also conveyed sympathy to the people suffering from freezing cold and asked the government to stand beside the poor community.

'Ordinary' Tigers cripple top test team

The Bangladesh fielders are happy to see the back of VVS Laxman of India in the first test of the Idea Cup two-Test series at Zohur Ahmed Chowdhury Cricket Stadium in Chittagong on Sunday. Photo: AP Star Online Report

Bangladesh skipper Shakib Al Hasan and paceman Shahadat Hossain shared eight wickets which caused India's collapse in the first innings of the first test of the Idea Cup two-Test series at Zohur Ahmed Chowdhury Cricket Stadium in Chittagong on Sunday.
Left-arm spinner Shakib took four wickets at the cost of 52 runs and Shahadat bagged four for 51 runs as ICC test number one India struggled to reach 213-8 when the opening day's play was called off nearly 30 minutes before scheduled close due to bad light.
Sachin Tendulkar (76 not out) and stand-in captain Virender Sehwag (52) were the only batsmen to give a good account in a dismal batting performance.
The others failed to cope with a disciplined pace-spin combination, just a day after Sehwag had described Bangladesh as an "ordinary side."
Earlier, Bangladesh skipper Shakib Al Hasan won the toss and elected to field against India.
The match kicked off one-and-half hours late due to foggy weather.
It is the sixth test match between the two neighboring countries.
Bangladesh: Shakib Al Hasan (captain), Shahriar Nafees, Imrul Kayes, Tamim Iqbal, Mohammad Ashraful, Raqibul Hasan, Mahmudullah, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shafiul Islam, Shahadat Hossain, Rubel Hossain.
India: V Sehwag (captain), G Gambhir, R Dravid, SR Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Yuvraj Singh, KD Karthik, I Sharma, Z Khan, A Mishra, S Sreesanth.

Proshika unrest: 9 Faruque's men sued

Star file photoStar Online Report

Khondokar Mohammad Kamrul Hossain, a staff of Proshika, on Sunday filed a case with a Dhaka court against nine supporters of the non-government organisation's former chairman Qazi Faruque Ahmed.
Metropolitan Magistrate Roksana Begum Happy took the case into cognizance and directed the officer-in-charge (OC) of Pallabi Police Station to submit a report by March 4, 2010 after an investigation into the matter.
On January 12, a group of people backed by Faruque ousted the anti-Faruque group from the head office of the NGO and took control of the building.
Some 20 to 25 people stormed the Proshika Bhaban at the city's Mirpur-6 and beat five to six Proshika officials and ousted those from the office on the day.
Last year, the governing body of Proshika removed Faruque from the chairmanship of the organisation and appointed Abdul Wadud as its chairman.

Dhaka-Aricha highway blocked for 2 hours

Local people block the Dhaka-Aricha highway for about two hours after a seven-year-old girl was injured in a road accident in Manikganj Sunday morning. Photo: Star Star Online Report

Locals blocked the Dhaka-Aricha highway for about two hours after a seven-year-old girl was injured in a road accident in Manikganj Sunday morning.
The injured was identified as Salma, reports our Manikganj correspondent.
Following the accident, the angry people vandalised the bus and blocked the highway at about 10:00am, stranding hundreds of vehicles on both sides of the road.
Meanwhile, the communication was restored after the people left the highway at about 12:00pm.
Locals said a speedy bus hit Salma as she was crossing the highway at about 9:00am, leaving her seriously injured.
She was brought to Manikganj Sadar Hospital.
Additional police were deployed in and around the area to avert any untoward incident.

US missile strike kills 12 in Pakistan

AP, Mir Ali

Intelligence officials say a suspected US drone missile strike on a house in Pakistan's volatile tribal area has killed at least 12 people.
The officials say Sunday's attack occurred in the Shaktoi area of South Waziristan.
Drones also targeted a meeting of militant commanders in the Shaktoi area on Thursday, killing 12 people in an apparently unsuccessful attempt to kill Pakistani Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud.
The officials said the identities of those killed in Sunday's attack were unknown.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.
Sunday's strike was the ninth since the beginning of the year, an unprecedented volley of attacks since the CIA-led program began two years ago.

Hunger and hope, thirst and frenzy grip Haiti

People gestures as a US helicopter makes a water drop near a country club used as a forward operating base for the US 82nd Airborne Division in Port-au-Prince on January 16. Photo: AP AP, Port-au-Prince

Precious water, food and early glimmers of hope began reaching parched and hungry earthquake survivors Saturday on the streets of this shattered city, where despair at times turned into a frenzy among the ruins.
"People are so desperate for food that they are going crazy," said accountant Henry Ounche, in a crowd of hundreds who fought one another as US military helicopters clattered overhead carrying aid.
When other Navy choppers dropped rations and Gatorade into a soccer stadium thronged with refugees, 200 youths began brawling, throwing stones, to get at the supplies.
Across the hilly, steamy city, where people choked on the stench of death, hope faded by the hour for finding many more victims alive in the rubble, four days after Tuesday's catastrophic earthquake.
Still, here and there, the murmur of buried victims spurred rescue crews on, even as aftershocks threatened to finish off crumbling buildings.
"No one's alive in there," a woman sobbed outside the wrecked Montana Hotel. But hope wouldn't die. "We can hear a survivor," search crew chief Alexander Luque of Namibia later reported. His men dug on. Elsewhere, an American team pulled a woman alive from a collapsed university building where she had been trapped for 97 hours. Another crew got water to three survivors whose shouts could be heard deep in the ruins of a multistory supermarket that pancaked on top of them.
Nobody knew how many were dead. Haiti's government alone has already recovered 20,000 bodies — not counting those recovered by independent agencies or relatives themselves, Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive told The Associated Press.
In a fresh estimate, the Pan American Health Organization said 50,000 to 100,000 people perished in the quake. Bellerive said 100,000 would "seem to be the minimum." Truckloads of corpses were being trundled to mass graves.
A UN humanitarian spokeswoman declared the quake the worst disaster the international organization has ever faced, since so much government and UN capacity in the country was demolished. In that way, Elisabeth Byrs said in Geneva, it's worse than the cataclysmic Asian tsunami of 2004: "Everything is damaged."
Also Saturday, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton flew to Port-au-Prince to pledge more American assistance and said the US would be "as responsive as we need to be." President Obama met with former Presidents George W Bush and Bill Clinton and urged Americans to donate to Haiti relief efforts.
As the day wore on, search teams recovered the body of Tunisian diplomat Hedi Annabi, the United Nations chief of mission in Haiti, and other top UN officials who were killed when their headquarters collapsed.
Despite many obstacles, the pace of aid delivery was picking up.
The Haitian government had established 14 distribution points for food and other supplies, and US Army helicopters were reconnoitering for more. With eight city hospitals destroyed or damaged, aid groups opened five emergency health centers. Vital gear, such as water-purification units, was arriving from abroad.
Thousands lined up in the Cite Soleil slum as UN World Food Program workers distributed high-energy biscuits there for the first time. As the hot sun set, the crew was down to just a few dozen boxes left from six truckloads. Perhaps 10,000 people were still waiting patiently, futilely, in line.
Seven months' pregnant, and with two children, 29-year-old Florence Louis clutched her four packets. "It is enough, because I didn't have anything at all," she said.
On a hillside golf course, perhaps 50,000 people were sleeping in a makeshift tent city overlooking the stricken capital. Paratroopers of the US 82nd Airborne Division flew there Saturday to set up a base for handing out water and food.
After the initial frenzy among the waiting crowd, when helicopters could only hover and toss out their cargo, a second flight landed and soldiers passed out some 2,000 military-issue ready-to-eat meals to an orderly line of Haitians.
More American help was on the way: The US Navy hospital ship Comfort steamed from the port of Baltimore on Saturday and was scheduled to arrive here Thursday. More than 2,000 Marines were set to sail from North Carolina to support aid delivery and provide security.
But for the estimated 300,000 newly homeless in the streets, plazas and parks of Port-au-Prince, help was far from assured.
"They're already starting to deliver food and water, but it's mayhem. People are hungry, everybody is asking for water," said Alain Denis, a resident of the Thomassin district.
Denis's home was intact, and he and his elderly parents have some reserves, but, he said, "in a week, I don't know."
Aid delivery was still bogged down by congestion at the Port-au-Prince airport, quake damage at the seaport, poor roads and the fear of looters and robbers.
The problems at the overloaded airport forced a big Red Cross aid mission to strike out overland from Santo Domingo, almost 200 miles away in the Dominican Republic. The convoy included up to 10 trucks carrying temporary shelters, a 50-bed field hospital and some 60 medical specialists.
"It's not possible to fly anything into Port-au-Prince right now. The airport is completely congested," Red Cross spokesman Paul Conneally said from the Dominican capital.
Another convoy from the Dominican Republic steered toward a UN base in Port-au-Prince without stopping, its leaders fearful of sparking a riot if they handed out aid themselves.
The airport congestion touched off diplomatic rows between the US military and other donor nations.
France and Brazil both lodged official complaints that the US military, in control of the international airport, had denied landing permission to relief flights from their countries.
Defense Minister Nelson Jobim, who has 7,000 Brazilian UN peacekeeping troops in Haiti, warned against viewing the rescue effort as a unilateral American mission.
The squabbling prompted Haitian President Rene Preval, speaking with the AP, to urge all to "keep our cool and coordinate and not throw accusations."
At a simpler level, unending logistical difficulties dogged the relief effort.
A commercial-sized jet landed with rescue and medical teams from Qatar, only to find problems offloading food aid. They asked the US military for help, surgeon Dr Mootaz Aly said, and were told: "We're busy."
As relief teams grappled with on-the-ground obstacles, the US leadership promised to step up aid efforts. In Washington, Obama joined with his two most recent White House predecessors to appeal for Americans to donate to the cause.
"We stand united with the people of Haiti, who have shown such incredible resilience," he said.
Their resilience was truly being tested, however.
On a back street in Port-au-Prince, a half-dozen young men ripped water pipes off walls to suck out the few drops inside. "This is very, very bad, but I am too thirsty," said Pierre Louis Delmar.
Outside a warehouse, hundreds of desperate Haitians simply dropped to their knees when workers for the agency Food for the Poor announced they would distribute rice, beans and other supplies. "They started praying right then and there," said project director Clement Belizaire.
Children and the elderly were asked to step first into line, and some 1,500 people got food, soap and rubber sandals until supplies ran out, he said.
The aid official was overcome by the tragic scene. "This was the darkest day of everybody living in Port-au-Prince," he said.

Adjournment sought on hearing of 5th amendment

Star Online Report

Two separate petitions were filed on Sunday with the Supreme Court, seeking adjournment of Monday's scheduled hearing on the pending petitions filed against the High Court verdict that had declared the fifth amendment to the country's Constitution illegal.
The fifth amendment had legitimised all governments that had been in power following the coup of August 15, 1975 till April 9, 1979 including late president Ziaur Rahman's ascension to the presidency.
With the two new petitions, a total of six petitions against the HC verdict are now pending with the apex court.
Of the petitions, two separate leave-to-appeal petitions had been filed last year with the SC, challenging the HC verdict, and two others were filed on January 5 this year, seeking reinstatement of a stay order on the HC verdict.
BNP Secretary General Khandaker Delwar Hossain and three SC lawyers--Tajul Islam, Kamruzzaman Bhuiyan and Munshi Ahsan Kabir filed all the six petitions.
On January 5 this year, the SC's Appellate Division fixed January 18 for hearing all the petitions, which have been enlisted as item No-6 for hearing on Monday's cause list of the court.
Tajul Islam, one of the petitioners, on Sunday told The Daily Star that they filed the petitions seeking eight weeks' adjournment on the scheduled hearing on the petitions.
Earlier on January 3, the Appellate Division lifted its four-year old stay order on the HC verdict and also allowed withdrawal by the incumbent government and Muktijoddha Kalyan Trust of two leave-to-appeal petitions against the HC verdict.

Hasina nominated for Indira Gandhi Gold Plaque

Sheikh HasinaStar Online Report

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been nominated for this year's Indira Gandhi Gold Plaque as she had significant contribution to human development.
The prime minister of Bangladesh was also nominated for the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development for 2009.
The Asiatic Society of Kolkata awards the “Indira Gandhi Gold Plaque” annually to an eminent person of international repute for significant contribution to international understanding or inter-cultural cooperation or for significant contribution towards human progress.
Outgoing Indian High Commissioner in Dhaka Pinak Ranjan Chakravarty during his farewell call on the prime minister at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) handed over a letter of the Asiatic Society to her in this regard on Sunday.
The letter reads: “The Council of the Asiatic Society in its meeting decided, unanimously, to confer the Indira Gandhi Gold Plaque 2009 on Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister of Bangladesh.”
Mother Teresa and Nelson Mandela were awarded with the plaque respectively in 1987 and 1989. Other recipients of the plaque included Dr Javier Pervez de Cuellar, 1988, Rev Desmond Titu, 1990, Yasir Araft, 1993, Aung San Suu Kyi, 1995, Dr Gabriel Garcia, 1998, Gunter Grass, 1999, Fidel Castro, 2000, Ernst Steinkellner, 2006, Pranab Mukherjee, 2008, Dinkar Kowshik, 2007, Somnath Hore, 2004, Ustad Bismillah Khan, 2003, Pandit Ravi Shankar, 2001, and Prof Amartya Sen, 1994.
The prime minister and the Indian high commissioner discussed various matters of national, regional and international development, Prime Minister’s Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad told reporters after the meeting.

Mymensingh, Netrakona road crashes kill 7

Mymensingh, Netrakona road crashes kill 7

At least seven people were killed and 32 others injured in three road accidents in Mymensingh and Netrakona Sunday afternoon.
Five people were killed and 12 others injured as a bus crashed into a human hauler (Laguna) on Dhaka-Mymensingh highway at Jamtala in Mymensingh Sadar upazila Sunday afternoon, reports UNB.
Three of the deceased were identified as Rubel, 25, son of late Abdul Kadir and Dulal, 40, son of late Muslem Uddin of Digarkanda in Sadar upazila and Abdul Hye, 45, son of late Hatem Ali of Radhakanai village in Phulbaria Upazila in the district.
Police said a Jamalpur-bound passenger bus coming from Dhaka hit the hauler coming from the opposite direction at about 12:30pm leaving four people dead on the spot and 13 others injured.
Nine of the injured were admitted to Mymensingh Medical College Hospital (MMCH) where an unidentified person succumbed to his injuries.
Police seized the bus but failed to arrest its driver.
In Netrokona, one person was killed and 20 others injured when a bus skidded off the road and fell into a paddy field at Gumai under Kalmakanda upazila around 9:00am.
The deceased was identified as Kasur Ali, 54, of Rahamatpur village under Kalmakanda upazila.
Four of the injured were taken to Mymensingh Medical College Hospital in critical condition.
In another accident, a trolley driver named Eklash Mia was killed in Gugbazar after his trolley fell into a ditch around 11:00am.

Govt set to import palm oil from Malaysia

A worker loads an oil tanker with crude palm oil. Photo: InternetStar Online Report

Bangladesh for the first time in the government-level is going to sign an agreement with Malaysia to import palm oil aiming to keep stable the local edible oil market, Commerce Minister Faruk Khan said on Sunday.
The agreement is expected to sign in the next week between the state-owned Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) and Malaysian government.
The commerce minister revealed this in a meeting with Malaysian Plantation, Industry and Commodities Minister Bernard G Dompok at the secretary office without mentioning the quantity of the palm oil to be imported

Nearly 1,000 climate protesters released

Demonstrators gather outside Bella Center, the venue of the Climate Conference, on December 12, 2009. The UN climate change conference is underway in Copenhagen to way out how the world will be protected from global warming. Photo: APAP, Copenhagen

Danish police said they have released hundreds of activists who were detained during a mass rally to demand an ambitious global climate pact.
Police also said only 13 of the 968 people detained during the demonstration in Copenhagen remain in custody Sunday. Of those, three — two Danes and a Frenchman — are set to be arraigned in court on preliminary charges of fighting with police.
An estimated 40,000 people joined Saturday's mostly peaceful march toward the suburban conference center where the 192-nation U.N. climate conference is being held.
Riot police detained activists at the tail end of the demonstration, when some of them started vandalizing buildings in downtown Copenhagen.

Follow-up process begins as apex court delivers verdict

BSS, Dhaka

Jail authorities has initiated the follow-up process of the final verdict in the Bangabandhu Murder Trial conveying the five convicts in prison the apex court's decision upholding their death penalties, officials said on Friday.
Jail officials said the process began as they informed the decision to the condemned five ex-army officers at Dhaka Central Jail hours after the Supreme Court's Appellate Division pronounced the judgment.
Legal experts and concerned lawyers said the judgment was likely to be executed in two months after exhaustion of two more legal steps that were open for the convicts.
"The jailor accompanied by several other prison officials went to the isolated cells of the convicts and loudly read out the copy of the Appellate Division's short order last evening in line with the Jail Code," a senior jail said.
He added that the five ex-army officers wanted to see their relatives as well as their lawyers as they apparently preferred to seek a review of the verdict by the apex court itself as the last legal step ahead of seeking the presidential clemency.
Lawyers of the convicts also told newsmen that they were preparing for filing petitions for review of the judgment.
Several legal experts separately told newsmen that the execution of the verdict could take as high as two months as according to the constitution they were entitled to the opportunity to seek a review of the verdict at the Appellate
Division within 30 days, and if rejected they would have a last chance to seek presidential clemency within subsequent seven days.
Under the jail code, a death row convict would be hanged in between 21 and 28 days on exhaustion of the last legal option.
State Minister for Law Qamrul Islam, however, told newsmen after the verdict on Thursday that the assassins could be hanged by late December or early January on exhaustion of legal procedures.
The five death row convicts are sacked lieutenant colonels Syed Faruque Rahman, Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, Muhiuddin Ahmed, AKM Mohiuddin Ahmed and sacked major Bazlul Huda are in jail while the first three of them faced the trial in person since the process began in 1996 while the rest two were brought back home later abroad where they were hiding.
A total of 11 ex-army officers were to walk gallows but six of them were hiding abroad while Foreign Minister Dipu Moni
On Thursday told newsmen that a process was expedited to track them out and bring home to expose to justice

Suicide bomber kills 13 in western Afghanistan

Afghan soldiers secure a street in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday. Photo: AP/File AP, Kabul

A suicide bomber riding a motorcycle killed 13 people, including a police officer, and wounded 30 others Friday in a busy city square in western Afghanistan.
Several children were among those wounded in the morning explosion, said a doctor at the hospital in Farah city, Shir Agh Asas.
Afghan police shouted, "Stop! Stop!" at the motorcyclist before he detonated the explosives, provincial police chief Gen. Mohammad Faqir Askar said.
Provincial governor Rohul Amin said the deadly blast occurred about 50 metres from his compound in a crowded square in the city of Farah.
"These days Taliban are causing high casualties because the foreign forces and Afghan forces have been conducting operations against the insurgency in the region," Askar said.
An operation three days ago in another part of the province killed five insurgents, including a Taliban commander and a bomb-maker, said Askar.
The violence comes a day after Afghan President Hamid Karzai, in his second inaugural address, said he has placed national reconciliation with insurgents at the top of his peace-building agenda.
"We invite dissatisfied compatriots, who are not directly linked to international terrorism, to return to their homeland," he said.
Karzai also set a five-year benchmark for the Afghan security forces to be in the lead in defending the nation, a goal that would allow international forces to take on more of a support role.
As the inaugural ceremony took place in Kabul on Thursday, a suicide bomber killed two U.S. service members in the southern province of Zabul, local officials and Nato said. Hours later, another suicide bomber blew himself up in a busy marketplace in another province, killing 10 civilians, including three boys, and wounding 13 other people.
Also on Friday, three civilians were wounded in a roadside bomb in Khost province, according to Wazir Pacha, deputy police chief of Khost.

Man shot dead in Mirpur

Star Online Report

Unidentified assailants on Thursday night gunned down a middle-aged man in the capital's Mirpur area.
On information, Shah Ali police recovered the body of the around 40-year-old man, who was not named instantly, from Block-F at Mirpur-1 this morning.
The officer-in-charge of the Shah Ali Police Station told The Daily Star this morning that they recovered the bullet-hit body after being informed by locals.
He also said the reason behind the killing could not be known immediately.

Rebels blow up train track in India, killing 1

Photo: NDTVAP, Patna

A passenger train derailed after Maoist rebels blew up a key track in eastern India, killing one person and injuring at least 30 others, a police official said Friday.
The rebels bombed the track shortly before the train passed through a sparsely populated area in Jharkhand state Thursday night, said Sindhu Hembram, a deputy inspector general of police.
Eight of the train's coaches went off the tracks and toppled over, killing one woman instantly, Hembram said. Five of the 30 injured passengers were in critical condition, said BN Mete, a railway official.
Efforts were underway on Friday to clear and repair the track, which is one of main rail routes linking the cities of Calcutta and Mumbai.
The rebels, who say they are inspired by Chinese revolutionary leader Mao Zedong, have been fighting for more than three decades demanding land and jobs for farm laborers and the poor.
Thousands of people, including police, militants and civilians, have died in the violence in recent years.
The rebels have called for a 24-hour strike in Jharkhand on Friday to protest next week's elections for the state legislature.

8 militants killed in reported US strike in Pakistan

The picture shows an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as Drone plane. Photo: InternetAP, Mir Ali

Missiles fired from a reported US drone killed at least eight suspected militants Friday in Pakistan's lawless tribal area along the Afghan border, intelligence officials said. It was the fourth such attack since the Pakistani military began an offensive in a nearby area in mid-October.
A drone fired two missiles at a compound being used by suspected Taliban militants in a village near Mir Ali in North Waziristan, according to two intelligence officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to release the information.
The compound was destroyed and eight bodies were pulled from the rubble, the officials said, adding that two other suspected militants were wounded.
Ahmed Nawaz Dawar, a local tribesman, said Taliban militants buried those killed and took the wounded to a hospital.
US officials rarely discuss the unpopular missile strikes and the reports could not immediately be confirmed.
Anti-American sentiment is pervasive throughout Pakistan. The Pakistani government publicly condemns the US strikes as violations of its sovereignty, but many analysts believe the two countries have a secret deal allowing them.
Militants are believed to have fled to North Waziristan to escape the Pakistani offensive under way in South Waziristan. The army has retaken many towns in the region, but the militants say they avoided fighting and will now begin a guerrilla campaign.
The United States has welcomed the offensive, but wants the army to do more against the insurgents in the border area blamed for violence across the border in Afghanistan.

Pabna AL leader chopped dead

A local Awami League leader was chopped to death in Santhia upazila of Pabna district on Thursday night.
The deceased, Rezaul Karim Dipu, son of Abdul Kader of Dhulauri in the upazila, was the secretary of ‘Dhulauri’ union unit of AL, reports our Pabna correspondent.

Police said criminals chopped Dipu mercilessly as he got onto a road after saying Esha prayers at a mosque of the village, leaving him dead on the spot.
Later, the criminals left the place by firing, the police added.
Reason behind the murder could not be ascertained initially, Police Superintendent of the district Nibash Chandra Majhi said.

Killers to walk gallows

Appellate Division upholds HC verdict in Bangabandhu killing case, rejects pleas of 5 convicts

Julfikar Ali Manik and Ashutosh Sarkar

The light of justice yesterday completely removed the darkness that had hung over the nation for 34 years following the heinous killing of Bangabandhu as the Supreme Court upheld the death sentence to a dozen killers earlier confirmed by the High Court.
Amid an unprecedented tight security on the court premises as well as across the country, a five-member special bench of the Appellate Division delivered the nine-minute "short order" of the judgment around 11:45am in a jam-packed courtroom of the chief justice.
"We are of the view that it [killing of Bangabandhu] is not a case of criminal conspiracy to commit mutiny, rather it is a criminal conspiracy to commit the murder of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and other members of his family," said Justice Md Tafazzul Islam, the most senior member of the bench, while reading out the order.
This order dismisses the appeal petitions of five convicts against the third judgment of the High Court that handed them and seven others death penalty.
These five, now languishing in jail, had filed the petitions in October 2007 giving five different points to challenge the High Court verdict.
Of seven other convicts, six have been absconding while the other is dead.
With yesterday's verdict, their punishment remains valid.
"The appellants having failed to make out a case of extenuating circumstance to commute their sentence of death, we are not inclined to interfere with the sentence of death awarded to the appellants by the learned sessions judge and maintained by the High Court Division," says the Supreme Court verdict.
The other members of the five-member bench were justices Md Abdul Aziz, BK Das, Md Muzammel Hossain and SK Sinha. They heard submissions of the appeals for 29 days beginning on October 5.
When the delivery of the verdict was finished, the courtroom got filled with cheerful buzzes only to be hushed into silence within a few moments. After the nerve-racking silence, some of the relatives of Bangabandhu, including grandson Fazle Noor Taposh, burst into tears.
Soon the judges left the courtroom.
The emotional outburst continued for another 15 minutes. Bangabandhu's relatives, lawyers, the complainant and investigation officer of the case, and a few Awami League leaders were seen hugging each other, tears still in their eyes. They came out of the room but stayed on the court premises for a while.
"The nation has got justice," Chief State Counsel of the case advocate Anisul Huq told The Daily Star at that moment.
Attorney General advocate Mahbubey Alam said, "This verdict will be considered as the best historic judgment of the nation."
Barrister Abdullah Al-Mamun, who represented the convicts, told The Daily Star, "According to the law, we will file a review petition with the Supreme Court as soon as we get the certified copy of the judgment."
In general, most lawyers considered the verdict to have freed the nation from the shame of killing the father of the nation and set the example that no matter how powerful a killer is, they are not beyond the purview of the law.
According to lawyers, if the review petition fails to produce any result, the convicts could seek the president's mercy.
If the president refuses their mercy petitions, the convicts will get 21 more days before they are hanged within the next week, said defence lawyer barrister Abdullah Al-Mamun.
In case of absconding convicts, whenever one is arrested he will be sent to jail. He will have the right to file a petition with the Supreme Court through the jail. The court may either entertain the petition or reject it. The convict can then seek the president's mercy.
The court wore a different look yesterday with closed circuit cameras installed at two points and several metal detectors set up. Security staffs from all agencies of the government were seen everywhere in the court. They checked the chief justice's room before the court opened.
People started pouring in the Supreme Court as early as 8:00am. By 11:00am, there were so many people in the corridors of the court building that it became very difficult even to walk. Hundreds of curious onlookers were seen waiting on the footpath outside the Supreme Court boundary.
Soon after the verdict, a small group of people chanted slogans and held a rally on the court premises for a short time expressing their joy.
The whole country remained glued to TV sets for live telecasts from the court to hear the final verdict.
Many schools in the capital were kept closed. The traffic movement in the city was unusually thin for any given Thursday.
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's personal assistant Mohitul Islam, who had survived the attack by a gang of army officers on the night of August 15, 1975, filed the case for the killings on October 2, 1996.
On January 15, 1997, the charge sheet was filed against 20 living and four dead persons--Khandakar Moshtaque, Mahbubul Alam Chashi, Capt Mustafa and Risalder Sarwar.
As all except the dead were brought to trial, the court examined 61 witnesses and heard submissions for 151 days.
On November 8, 1998, the trial court handed death sentence to 15 of the 20 accused.
On December 14, 2000, a two-member High Court bench gave a split verdict on the trial court's judgment: one judge upheld the death sentences of all 15 convicts while the other upheld that of 10. The judges were also divided on which section of the Code of Criminal Procedure to be followed for the death sentence of one convict.
On April 30, 2001, a third judge of the High Court resolved the matter and finally gave death sentence to 12 killers. Of them, the following are now in jail: Lt Col Syed Farooq Rahman, Lt Col Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, Maj Bazlul Huda, Maj (Lancer) AKM Mohiuddin Ahmed and Lt Col (Artillery) Mohiuddin Ahmed, who appealed with the Supreme Court against the High Court verdict.
The six absconding are: Lt Col Khandaker Abdur Rashid, Lt Col Shariful Haque Dalim, Lt Col SHMB Nur Chowdhury, Lt Col AM Rashed Chowdhury, Capt Abdul Mazed and Risaldar Mosleuddin Khan. The other convict Lt Col Abdul Aziz Pasha died in Zimbabwe in June 2001 where he took political asylum.
Of the jailed convicts, Huda was brought to Dhaka from Bangkok in 1998 while AKM Mohiuddin Ahmed was brought from USA during the last caretaker government's rule. The other three were arrested in Dhaka.
According to sources, the absconding convicts took refuge in Pakistan, Libya, USA and Canada.
Soon the convicts in jail filed leave-to-appeal petitions with the Supreme Court against the High Court verdict.
But its hearing was stalled with the change in government in October 2001. After the BNP-led alliance government came to power, the Supreme Court did not hear the case even for a single day.
The hearing of the leave-to-appeal petitions finally took place on August 7, 2007, and the appeals were granted on September 23 the same year.
The hearing of the appeals against the High Court verdict began on October 5, 2009.
The killers murdered Bangabandhu and seven of his family members and three security personnel at his Dhanmondi residence on August 15, 1975. Soon after the killing, their accomplice Khandaker Moshtaque took over power as president and framed an indemnity ordinance to protect the killers.
Later, subsequent military governments led by Ziaur Rahman and HM Ershad had rewarded the killers with various diplomatic posts.

Hang the killers: SC

slide showStar Online Report

The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the High Court verdict that confirmed death sentences of 12 retired and dismissed army men in Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman assassination case.
The five-member bench comprising Justice Md Tafazzul Islam, Justice Md Abdul Aziz, Justice BK Das, Justice Md Muzammel Hossain and Justice SK Sinha delivered the verdict dismissing the appeals filed by five convicts against their death sentences in this case.
Lt Col (sacked) Syed Farooq-ur Rahman, Lt Col (retd) Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, Lt Col (retd) Muhiuddin Ahmed, Lt Col (retd) AKM Mohiuddin Ahmed and Maj (retd) Bazlul Huda, who are now behind bars, filed the appeals with the apex court in October 2007 against their convictions and death sentences by a lower court.
Of the other seven condemned killers, Lt Col (retd) Md Abdul Aziz Pasha had died earlier.
The death sentences of Col (retd) Khandaker Abdur Rashid, Maj (retd) Shariful Haque Dalim, Lt Col (retd) AM Rashed Chowdhury, Lt Col (retd) SHMB Noor Chowdhury, Capt (retd) Abdul Mazed and Risaldar (retd) Moslemuddin delivered by the High Court will stand valid as they are absconding at present.
In his immediate reaction to the justice, chief counsel for the state Anisul Huq told The Daily Star, "The nation has got the justice."
Barrister Abdullah-al Mamun, counsel for convicts Bazlul Huda and AKM Mohiuddin, said they will submit a review petition with the Supreme Court within the stipulated 30 days after receiving the SC certified copy of the judgment.
The SC observed in the verdict that Justice M Fazlul Karim has properly delivered the verdict and this court cannot interfere in it.
The court said Justice Fazlul Karim has reviewed the matter of six accused as earlier two judges of the HC had expressed same opinion about the nine other accused, out of 15, in this case.
The apex court said that the trial court and the HC have properly explained the delay in filing the first information report (FIR) of this case.
The court of judges said the incidents of August 15, 1975 were a simple murder and it was not a result of mutiny.
Criminal conspiracy was committed to murder Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and this was not committed for any mutiny, it added.
The court further said there was no contradiction or anomaly in the evidence and the statements in this case. So, there is nothing to interfere in the HC verdict. And the HC verdict has been confirmed, the court said.
After hearing for 29 days the appeals, the special bench delivered the verdict.
Convicts Lt Col (sacked) Syed Farooq-ur Rahman, Lt Col (retd) Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, Lt Col (retd) Muhiuddin Ahmed, Lt Col (retd) AKM Mohiuddin Ahmed, and Maj (retd) Bazlul Huda, who are now behind bars, filed the appeals with the apex court in October 2007 against their convictions and death sentences by a lower court.
Earlier on November 8, 1998, Dhaka Sessions Judge Golam Rasul handed down death sentences to 15 of the 20 defendants in the case.
The court gave the capital punishment to Lt Col (dismissed) Syed Farooq-ur Rahman, Lt Col (retd) Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, Lt Col (retd) Muhiuddin Ahmed, Lt Col (retd) AKM Mahiuddin Ahmed, Maj (retd) Bazlul Huda, Lt Col (retd) Khandaker Abdur Rashid, Maj (retd) Shariful Haque Dalim, Maj (retd) Ahmed Shariful Hossain, Lt Col (retd) AM Rashed Chowdhury, Lt Col (retd) SHMB Noor Chowdhury, Lt Col (retd) Md Abdul Aziz Pasha, Capt (retd) Md Kismat Hashem, Capt (retd) Nazmul Hossain Ansar, Capt (retd) Abdul Mazed, and Risaldar (retd) Moslemuddin.
A division bench of the High Court comprising Justice Md Ruhul Amin and Justice ABM Khairul Haque on December 14, 2000, delivered split verdicts on death reference appeals in the case.
First judge Justice Md Ruhul Amin upheld the death sentences of 10 and acquitted five -- Muhiuddin Ahmed, Ahmed Shariful Hossain, Md Kismat Hashem, Nazmul Hossain Ansar, and Moslemuddin.
Second judge Justice ABM Khairul Haque upheld the death sentences of all 15 convicts.
On January 15, 2001, Justice Mohammad Fazlul Karim was appointed as the third judge to adjudicate the appeals.
He delivered the final High Court verdict in the case on April 30, 2001, affirming the convictions and death sentences of 12 of the 15 defendants. The three that he acquitted are Md Kismat Hashem, Ahmed Shariful Hossain, and Nazmul Hossain Ansar.
The deafening sound of gunshots broke the stillness of dawn on August 15, 1975 on road No 32 of Dhanmondi residential area. In less than an hour, the darkest chapter in the political history of Bangladesh was written on that fateful morning.
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the following members of his family were assassinated in three separate attacks: his wife Begum Fazilatunnessa, sons Sheikh Kamal, Sheikh Jamal and nine-year-old Sheikh Russel, daughters-in-law Sultana Kamal, Parveen Jamal, Bangabandhu's brother Sheikh Naser, brother-in-law Abdur Rab Serniabat, 13-year-old Baby Serniabat, Serniabat's son Arif, four-year-old grand son Babu, a visiting nephew, three guests, four servants, Sheikh Fazlul Huq Moni, a nephew of Bangabandhu, his wife Begum Arju Moni, and Bangabandhu's security chief Colonel Jamil Uddin Ahmed.

The judgment hailed

Photo: Star/Anisur Rahmanslide show Star Online Report

The nation on Thursday hailed the verdict in Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman murder case.
In his immediate reaction, chief counsel for the state in this case Anisul Huq told The Daily Star, "The nation has got the justice."
Awami League Lawmaker Fazle Noor Taposh said, "Today is my birthday and this is the best gift for me."
Attorney General Mahbubey Alam said the verdict will be considered as the best judgment.
"Through this judgment the nation has got rid of disgrace," he said.
Hundreds of people thronged the Dhanmondi road-32 residence of Bangabandhu this morning and chanted slogan after the verdict was declared, demanding immediate execution of the judgment.

Verdict shows justice: Ashraf

Awami League General Secretary and LGRD Minister Syed Ashraful Islam Star Online Report

Awami League General Secretary Syed Ashraful Islam on Tuesday expressed his party’s reaction on the final verdict in the Bangabandhu assassination case saying it has been proved that no one is above the law, no matter how influential he or she is.
The AL welcomed the verdict on the August 15, 1975 killings that had remained as a stigma for the nation during the last 34 years, Ashraf told reporters at the party's Dhanmondi office after the Supreme Court upheld the High Court's verdict awarding capital punishment to the killers of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and most of his family members.
The verdict couldn’t bring joy to the AL men, as it would not be able to bring back Bangabandhu and his assassinated family members, he added.
Ashraf, also the LGRD minister, said the AL was not a vindictive party and never will be. It only wants to establish the rule of law and human rights.
Answering a query on Prime Minister and AL President Sheikh Hasina’s reaction on the judgement, the LGRD minister said she got what she wanted.
She sought nothing but the justice, he said adding that she expressed her satisfaction after the verdict, but she was also lamenting remembering her assassinated family members.

Hasina nominated for Indira Gandhi Peace Prize

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been chosen for this year's Indira Gandhi International Prize for peace, disarmament and development.
The Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust made the announcement, our correspondent from Delhi Reports.

Verdict restores rule of law: Moudud

Barrister Moudud Ahmed Star Online Report

BNP leader and former law minister barrister Moudud Ahmed said on Thursday the rule of law has been reestablished through the judgment and the nation got relief.
"We all have to accept the verdict delivered by the apex court of the country," he said while giving his reaction to the verdict in Bangabandhu murder case at his Motijheel office.
It will not be fair to consider the judgment politically, he added.

IFAD promises Tk 280 cr for agricultural development

Star Online Report

International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) has assured Bangladesh of Tk 280 crore financial assistance for rural agricultural development especially, in the coastal belt areas.
IFAD President Kanayo F Nwanze made the pledge at an hour-long meeting with Food and Disaster Management Minister Abdur Razzaque at the organisation's Rome headquarters. The minister came to Rome with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on November 15 to attend the world summit on food security.
"The IFAD will assist Bangladesh with Tk 280 crore for the agricultural development of the coastal belt in the country," Razzaque said.
Comprehensive projects would be launched to ensure development of the coastal areas by constructing cyclone shelters and embankments," he added.
Issues including climate change, food security and agriculture also came up at the discussion.
Highlighting different problems the country has been facing, he told the official that the main problem of Bangladesh is poverty, which needs to be reduced significantly by ensuring employment.
He also said the smallholders must be given priority to ensure food security in Bangladesh.
The minister said he urged IFAD to extend their assistance to Bangladesh, a politically stable and democratic country with good law and order.
In this context, the IFAD chief said he would take all necessary measures to involve other donor agencies including DFID, the World Bank and the US Aid for co-financing the development projects.

AG gets threat on life

Attorney General Mahbubey AlamStar Online Report

Attorney General Mahbubey Alam received a letter at his office containing a threat on his life on Thursday.
The three-page letter with a piece of shroud also threatened to kill all lawyers of the prosecution side of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman assassination case.
Kabir Ahmed, personal assistant of Mahbubey Alam, filed a general diary with Shahbag Police Station around 4:45pm in this connection.
An unknown organisation called Jamia Islamia Al Hulhulia Bangladesh owns up the letter.

Karzai sworn in for 2nd term

Afghan President Hamid Karzai, front left, walks with Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari, front right, at the presidential palace in Kabul, Afghanistan on Wednesday. Photo: AP

AP, Kabul Afghan President Hamid Karzai says his country's security forces should take the lead in tackling the insurgency there, and that the forces should be able to take control of security in the next five years.





Karzai also addressed corruption during his inauguration ceremony in the presidential palace. He says officials who are corrupt should be "tried and prosecuted." Karzai has come under intense international pressure to tackle the issue, and he described corruption as a "dangerous enemy of the state."





The president stressed he wants "expert" and competent ministers in his government, and said his administration would seriously fight drug traffickers.

SC security beefed up for Bangabandhu verdict

File photo Star Online Report

The security of the Supreme Court was beefed up on Sunday ahead of the announcement of verdict by this court in the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman assassination case.
The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court will deliver the verdict on November 19.
Supreme Court registrar Shawkat Hossain told The Daily Star that the authorities have strengthened the security of the SC, some judges and lawyers, so that no untoward incidents can take place on the court premises.
He said the government authorities have deployed additional security forces inside and outside the court premises and the forces have been checking up the people entering the court compound.
Shawkat Hossain also said the additional security will remain in force on the court premises after the announcement of the verdict in Bangabandhu murder case, if necessary.

Salam Pintu remanded in N'ganj attack case

Abdus Salam Pintu Star Online Report

Former deputy minister and BNP leader Abdus Salam Pintu was placed on a five-day remand in a case filed for the bomb attack on Awami League office at Chasara in Narayanganj in 2001.
Chief Judicial Magistrate of Narayanganj Arifur Rahman passed the order after the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) produced him before the court praying for 10 days remand.
Earlier on Thursday, the BNP leader was shown arrested in the case following a petition by investigation officer of the case Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Yusuf Ali Mollah.
Pintu has already been arrested in connection with the August 21 grenade attack case.
The bomb attack on the Awami League office took place on June 16 in 2001 that left 20 people dead and a number of people, including former AL lawmaker Shamim Osman, injured.