Bangladesh’s Awami League has announced a series of political programs, including a general strike and a nationwide blockade, in protest against what it describes as “false cases” against Sheikh Hasina and the ongoing persecution of religious minorities in the country. The party issued a statement late on Tuesday outlining its...
Unknown attackers destroyed more than 80 shrines and Sufi centres in Bangladesh in the past six months, coinciding with the period when Muhammad Yunus-led government took charge of the South Asian nation following the collapse of former PM Sheikh Hasina and her regime, media reports said. The organisation demanded an immediate...
Bangladesh’s economy is grappling with skyrocketing interest payments, which eat up more than half of government revenue expenses during the first four months of the current fiscal year 2024–25, according to data from the Ministry of Finance of Bangladesh. Economic experts said that Bangladesh’s external debt is over $100 billion...
A senior Taliban minister has criticised the Afghanistan government's policy of prohibiting education for women in the South Asian country, a rare stance by the rulers of the nation which has been facing persistent international pressure for taking such a measure after forcibly coming to power in 2021. Sher Abbas Stanikzai, the Taliban deputy foreign minister,...
 Deposed Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said she and her younger sister Sheikh Rehana escaped death by just 20-25 minutes on August 5 last year when her Awami League government was toppled in a student-led mass uprising.   In a brief audio note released by her party on its...
Inflation has been identified as the biggest risk to Bangladesh in 2025, according to a World Economic Forum (WEF) report released on Wednesday. In its Global Risks Report 2025, the WEF, an independent international organisation, stated that extreme weather events — such as floods and heatwaves — and pollution are...
The Baloch National Movement’s (BNM) human rights department, Paank, has published a report stating that 22 enforced disappearances and five extrajudicial killings took place in Balochistan throughout December 2024. According to the report, the disappearances were recorded across six districts, with Kech reporting the highest number at 10. Gwadar followed with six cases, while Dera Bugti reported two, and Kharan...
Govt to face pressure to maintain payment obligation: economists   The country’s overall external debts remained over $100 billion at the end of the first quarter of the 2024-25 financial year despite the credit growth rate falling to almost one per cent, and the concerns over payment obligation loom large. The overall...
The Embassy of Afghanistan in Pakistan on Monday expressed its deep concern over the recent detention of approximately 800 Afghan nationals in Islamabad, including individuals holding valid visas, Proof of Registration (PoR), and Afghan Citizen Card (ACC) cards. In a statement, the Embassy said that the lack of clarity surrounding...
Some Afghan migrants in Pakistan have reported that the arrests of Afghan migrants by Pakistani police are ongoing. These migrants have stated that, fearing arrest, they are unable to even leave their homes. "They took my son away in a vehicle, and I have no information about him yet. We are...