The police have detained 25 activists of Jamaat-e-Islami and its student wing Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir from the organisation's metropolitan office premises at Paltan.

Paltan police chief Shahidul Haque told bdnews24.com that the activists, including an officer of Islami Bank, were arrested at around 6am on Wednesday.

Election monitors will no longer be allowed to stay in polling centres for the entire period of voting, nor be permitted to enter the area where voters mark their ballot paper.

The election commission has however extended the registration validity of local poll monitoring organisations from one year to five year.

Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan apologised on Tuesday for suffering under Japan's colonisation of the Korean peninsula, despite criticism from lawmakers that the gesture would lead to renewed calls for wartime compensation.

Seeking to build on improving ties with South Korea, Kan adopted language from a former Socialist premier and said he wanted to be sincere in confronting history.

Missing key players and just done with an exhausting drawn Test series, India swiftly shift to the one-day mode as they take on an equally-depleted New Zealand in the opening match of the tri-series starting on Tuesday.

Also featuring Sri Lanka, the series starts just two days after India drew 1-1 with the hosts in an engrossing Test series, reports PTI.

A total of 111 personnel of the Bangladesh Rifles' recording wing have been produced on Tuesday before the special court set up in the BDR headquarters in the capital's Pilkhana, to face charges of their involvement in the bloody BDR mutiny.

The charged BDR personnel were brought before the court at 12.30pm and the charges against them were read out.

A total of 111 personnel of the Bangladesh Rifles' recording wing have been produced on Tuesday before the special court set up in the BDR headquarters in the capital's Pilkhana, to face charges of their involvement in the bloody BDR mutiny.

The charged BDR personnel were brought before the court at 12.30pm and the charges against them were read out.

 speedy trial court has sentenced two members of Jamaat-ul-Mujahedeen Bangladesh (JMB), a banned Islamist outfit, to 20-years imprisonment on charges of possession of explosives. The accused were also fined Tk 25,000 for their crime.

In addition to the two JMB leaders – Salahuddin alias Salehin, and Asaduzzaman Panir - Fahima Akhter alias Farzana, wife of the hanged JMB leader Siddiqul Islam alias Bangla Bhai, was also meted out a similar punishment as an accomplice to the crime.

Open market sale (OMS) of rice was launched on Tuesday to keep rice prices within the reach of the poor people, during the upcoming month of Ramadan.

Food ministry officials said that the sale had started at the in all metropolitan cities and divisional headquarters of the country, including Dhaka, on Tuesday from 10am.

Jamaat-e-Islami executive council member Delwar Hossain Sayedee, detained in jail following an arrest warrant issued by the International Crimes Tribunal, could not be brought to court on Tuesday as jail authorities said he was unwell.

The Tribunal chairman Md Nizamul Huq ruled that the court would therefore be adjourned until Aug 24.

The health ministry has decided to take actions against 68 government doctors found absent from their duties during a recent inspection in nine districts.

"The absentees will be served show-cause notices today," health secretary Muhammad Humayun Kabir told bdnews24.com on Monday.

The blaze at Focus Garment near Nabisco biscuit factory in Tejgaon that started on monday at about 1pm was still not yet under control two hours later. No deaths or burn injuries has been reported in the incident.

The fire broke out around 1pm on Monday at Focus Garment located near Nabisco biscuit factory, the control room of the fire service and civil defense directorate stated.

Debutant Zulqarnain Haider scored a courageous 88 to frustrate England's bid to win inside three days against Pakistan in the second Test at Edgbaston on Sunday.

Pakistan, bowled out for just 72 on Friday before England replied with 251, reached 291 for nine at stumps to lead by 112 with two days remaining. Umar Gul, batting with a runner, was on nine and Mohammad Asif had 13.

You don't need to delay a second pregnancy if you've had a miscarriage, Scottish researchers said Friday.

In fact, women who got pregnant within six months of their miscarriage were more likely to go on to have a live birth than those who waited longer, the researchers' report shows.

Dhaka Metropolitan Police have requested the education ministry to shut down all schools and colleges in the capital from 10 Ramadan in a bid to ease traffic congestion.

At the same time, it urged authorities of shopping malls and markets to initiate community policing.

Foreign minister Dipu Moni has revealed that India will allow Nepal and Bhutan to use Mongla and Chittagong ports to export their products to other countries.

Briefing journalists at the foreign ministry on Sunday, Moni said the Indian government will also finance a railway project from Khulna to Mongla port.

A leak in the underground gas line on Monday morning has led to natural gas leaking out from the surface of the Kaliakoir-Nabinagar highway at Gazipur's Zirani, and catching fire.

The leaking gas caught fire at around 10am halting traffic. The fire service went to the location and put out the blaze and restricted vehicle movement on the east side of the road.

The detective police have detained the president of a BNP backed trade union, along with six garment workers, on Sunday night, accusing them of involvement in vandalism, arson and obstruction of police duty during the workers unrest at Tejgaon industrial zone on July 30.

Assistant commissioner of DB police Mishuk Chakma said that Mohamed Shahidul Islam president of the BNP backed Kendriya Garments Sramik Dal was arrested as the investigators had found direct links with him and the incidents on July 30.

A fire has broken out in a readymade garment factory in Tejgaon industrial area.

The fire broke out at around 1pm on Monday at the Focus Garment factory located near Nabisco biscuit factory, the control room of the fire service and civil defense directorate told bdnews24.com.

Two studies published on Thursday show new ways to fix damaged hearts, one by turning structural heart cells into beating cells and another by restoring a primordial ability to regenerate lost tissue.

The two approaches need more work before they can be tried in humans, but they represent big steps forward in the new field of regenerative medicine.

Wholesale traders are not anxious about price hikes for chickpeas as there is 'abundant stock', but consumers are worried as chickpeas are already selling at prices higher than the government rate of Tk 44 per kg.

A visit to the Dalpotti (pulse market) at Chawkbazar's Rahmatganj in the capital and conversation with traders of retail markets and consumers revealed that wholesalers were selling chickpeas at Tk 38-40 per kg to retail traders, who in turn were selling chickpeas to consumers at Tk 46-48 per kg.