Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) on Thursday in coordination with the Indian World Forum and the Government of India commenced the transfer of distressed Afghan minorities – Hindus and Sikhs. A special flight comprising 11 Afghan Sikhs from Kabul to New Delhi was arranged at 11.30 am today which included Raqbir Singh who was injured in the Karte Parwan Gurdwara attack in Kabul on June 18 and the ashes of Sawinder Singh, killed in the attack. SGPC provided humanitarian assistance to the Afghan minorities by paying for their airfare. Kam Air, the largest private Afghan airline, flight no 4401 is airborne from Kabul and is expected to land in New Delhi at 12:45 pm. The Sikh body also reiterated to provide financial aid to those seeking rehabilitation in India. Officials of SGPC and Afghan Hindu and Sikh Community leaders were present at the airport to facilitate the distressed Afghan minorities. After their arrival, the entire group will be leaving for Gurdwara Sri Guru Arjan Dev, K Block, Tilak Nagar. Harjinder Singh, President, SGPC, and Indian World Forum have directed their officials to facilitate these distressed persons at the highest level. Islamic State – Khorasan Province (ISKP) attacked Karte Parwan Gurdwara in Afghanistan’s Kabul city. ISKP released a statement claiming responsibility for the attack. According to ISKP, ‘Abu Mohammed al Tajiki’ carried out the attack which lasted for three hours. The group claimed that besides submachine guns and hand grenades, four IEDs and a car bomb were also used in the attack. It further claimed that about 50 Hindu Sikhs and Taliban members were killed in the attack and the attack was conducted as revenge for the insult of Prophet Mohammed by an Indian politician. However, in the attack, at least two civilians, including a Sikh man and a Muslim security guard, died and seven others were wounded. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday condemned the terrorist attack at Karte Parwan Gurdwara in Afghanistan’s capital. Religious minorities in Afghanistan, including the Sikh community, have been targets of violence in Afghanistan. In October, last year 15 to 20 terrorists entered a Gurdwara in the Kart-e-Parwan District of Kabul and tied up the guards. In March 2020, a deadly attack took place at Sri Guru Har Rai Sahib Gurudwara in Kabul’s Short Bazaar area in which 27 Sikhs were killed and several were injured. Islamic State terrorists claimed responsibility for the attack. Source: ZEE5

Government employees are facing financial problems in Afghanistan as government offices have mostly remained closed since the Ashraf Ghani government collapsed last month following the Taliban takeover. According to residents, they are facing financial problems as government offices have mostly remained closed and their wages have not been paid, Tolo News reported. Geti, a teacher at a government school, returned to her job a week after the Taliban came to power, but she has not received her salary yet. “I did not get a salary for two months. I face economic problems. The teachers in my school are the sole breadwinners for their families,” Tolo News quoted Geti as saying. Residents also voiced concerns over the closure of some offices across the country. People are waiting to receive their National Identity Card. Enayatullah, a Kabul resident, said, “I came to get my Identity Card. The process has not resumed. I ask that the process begins very soon,” Tolo News reported. It further reported that the Taliban government's acting Prime Minister Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund earlier on Wednesday ordered all ministries and some other government offices to immediately begin providing services to the people. It has been over a month when the Taliban captured Kabul after an aggressive and rapid advance against Afghanistan government forces amid the withdrawal of US and NATO troops from the country. The country plunged into crisis last month after Kabul fell to the Taliban and the democratically elected government of former president Ashraf Ghani collapsed. Source: ANI SA

BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia has been shifted to the Coronary Care Unit (CCU) of Evercare Hospital in the capital on Monday afternoon. BNP Chairperson’s press wing member Shamsuddin Didar confirmed the information to Rtv news at around 5 pm. Khaleda Zia was admitted to Evercare Hospital on Tuesday night for performing some medical tests as she was tested positive for Covid-19 for the second time on April 24. AH

Bangladesh today (Monday) recorded 25 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) deaths and 1,683 fresh cases overnight. The recovery count rose to 3,39,768 after another 1,623 patients were discharged from the hospitals during the period, a press release of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) said today. “Twenty-five more COVID-19 patients died in the last 24 hours, increasing the death toll from the pandemic to 6,092,” the release said. It said the tally of infections has surged to 4,21,921 as 1,683 new cases were confirmed in the last 24 hours. A total of 14,042 samples were tested at 115 authorized laboratories across the country during the time. Of the total sample tests in the past 24 hours, 11.99 percent tested positive, while 17.17 percent cases were detected from the total tests conducted so far, the release added. Among the total infections, 80.53 percent patients have recovered, while 1.44 percent died so far since the first COVID-19 positive cases were reported in the country on March 8. Source: BSS AH

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday said she has directed the Law Minister to look for a way for the quick disposal of the Abrar Fahad murder case. "I’ve already asked the Law Minister to find out a way for the quick disposal of the case (Abrar Fahad killing)," she said. The Prime Minister said this while the family members of Abrar Fahad met her at her official residence Ganabhaban. PM's press secretary Ihsanul Karim briefed reporters after the meeting. Abrar's Father Barkat Ullah and mother Rokeya Khatun expressed their profound gratitude to the Prime Minister as she is dealing with the matter from the position of a mother. They said they do not have any word to express their gratitude for playing the role from the position of a mother. They also expressed their gratitude to the administration, police and the people of the country for their all-out support and cooperation. After the incident, Hasina said, they did not see who belong to which party. "I don't want to see who belongs to which party. To me, killers are just killers, criminals are just criminals," she said. The Prime Minister said she does not have the words to console them as what they have lost. "Please look at me, I’ve lost everything in just one night, I understand the pain of losing close ones."  Hasina said the killers are not human being. "How they could kill a person with whom they were sitting and studying [every day]!" she said. After the incident, the Prime Minister said, police personnel were directed to collect the CCTV footage. "But it’s not clear to me why some of the Buet students created obstacles towards collection of the footage," she said. PM's press secretary Ihsanul Karim said that on arrival of the Prime Minister at the meeting room, Abrar's mother embraced her and burst into tears. The Prime Minister held her with great affection for some time and sat down beside her instead of her designated chair. Abrar Fahad's brother Abrar Faiz, Awami League general secretary Obaidul Quader, joint secretary Mahbubul Alam Hanif, Kusthia Sadar upazila AL general secretary and upazila chairman Ataur Rahman were, among others, at the meeting. Abrar, a second-year student of Buet’s electrical and electronic engineering department, was beaten to death by a group of BCL men at the university’s Sher-e-Bangla Hall on October 7. Later, his father filed a murder case against 19 Buet students, mostly BCL leaders of the Buet unit, and several other unnamed accused with Chawkbazar Police Station. Source: UNB AH

Awami League has got the absolute majority in the eleventh national parliament. After taking oath as the Member of Parliament on Thursday president of the party Sheikh Hasina went to visit President Md. Abdul Hamid. At that time the President invited the chief of majority party Sheikh Hasina to form the new government. Press Secretary to the President Md. Joynal Abedin confirmed the matter. Earlier Sheikh Hasina entered in the Bangabhaban at around 4:30 pm on Thursday to meet the President. With formation of the new government Sheikh Hasina is going to be the Prime Minister for the third consecutive term, which will be the new example for the history of Bangladesh. Press Secretary of the President said, President Md. Abdul Hamid has invited Awami League president to form the new government. At that time Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader and advisory council members Amir Hossain Amu and Tofail Ahmed were present. Earlier after taking oath as the Members of Parliament the meeting of Awami League parliamentary party took place at the ruling party meeting room at 12:30 pm on Thursday. In the meeting Awami League president Sheikh Hasina was elected leader of the parliament. She was elected for the post for third consecutive terms. In the eleventh national parliament election Awami League won 257 seats out of 298 seats. Under Grand Alliance they got 288 seats. On the other hand BNP and their alliance Oikyafront bagged only seven seats. AH     

At least three people were killed and two others injured in a head-on collision between a truck and a CNG-run auto-rickshaw in Baluchora area of Chittagong early Tuesday. The deceased could not be identified immediately. Nurul Islam, sub-inspector of Bayezid Bostami Police Station, said that the accident took place when the truck hit the auto-rickshaw on Chittagong-Hathazari road around 12:45am, leaving three auto-rickshaw passengers dead on the spot and two others, including the driver, critically injured. The injured were admitted to Chittagong Medical College Hospital, reports UNB.   FU