About 10 patients were still in the queue, each screaming for emergency care as the clock struck 12:30am on Saturday at Dhaka Medical College and Hospital.

With most doctors and nurses having gone on leave, patients at the government-run hospitals suffered more than usual during the Eid holidays.

At least 11 Bangladeshis were killed and 80 others injured in the Hajj stampede in Makkah on Thursday, Hajj Agencies Association of

This is a story of a Bangladeshi man who had to leave home to secure a better future for his family. He waited for 20 years in Saudi Arabia to be reunited with his wife. And when that moment finally came, he lost her again -- this time, forever.

Saudi Arabia deployed large numbers of security reinforcements as pilgrims performed the final rituals of a Hajj marred by double tragedy, with the death toll from a stampede rising to 769. The kingdom's leaders have ordered an inquiry into the disaster -- the deadliest to strike the annual Muslim pilgrimage in a quarter-century -- and a "revision" of its organisation, with the deaths raising tensions with regional rival Iran as well.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday left Dhaka on an eight-day official visit to the United States to attend the 70th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

The United States has said there is still important work to be done before the GSP trade privilege can be reinstated for Bangladesh though Dhaka claims it has fulfilled all conditions outlined in the 16-point action plan.

Ahead of the Eid-ul-Azha, the two city corporations in Dhaka have called upon all to use the designated spots for slaughter of sacrificial animals and biodegradable bags for controlled and faster disposal of waste.

All the ministries and divisions of the government will have to sign annual performance agreements (APAs) with their subordinate departments and organisations by October 15 to ensure better public service and more accountability, said cabinet division sources.

Around two million Muslims yesterday poured into the vast Saudi plain where the Prophet Mohammed (pbuh) gave his final sermon, for the peak of the Hajj pilgrimage.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina leaves for the US this morning to lead Bangladesh to the UN special summit on Sustainable Development and 70th UN General Assembly (UNGA) with a 227-member delegation, the biggest entourage since her taking office in 2009.

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) yesterday filed 23 more cases in connection with the Tk 5,000-crore BASIC Bank scam between 2010 and 2013.

Hundreds of thousands of Muslims from across the globe began the annual hajj pilgrimage yesterday in one of the largest annual gatherings of people in the world.

Asiya. In her mid-20s, she is one of those whose names never come up in the media. But an ironic twist of fate has suddenly put her in the spotlight -- one that she would never want. Nobody in their right mind would.

It was a peaceful protest at first and there was no instigation from any quarter as suggested by the acting police chief, locals and witnesses have said.

A Sylhet court yesterday framed charges against 13 people, including prime accused Kamrul Islam, in a case filed for the brutal murder of teenage boy Samiul Islam Rajon in July.

With the Eid rush getting momentum, thousands of home-goers had to endure sufferings due to gridlock at different exit points of the capital and on its outskirts. Excessive flow of vehicles, haphazard parking and stoppage, and street vending caused traffic chaos at the city's main points at Gabtoli, Abdullahpur, Jatrabari, Postogola and Babubazar.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday ruled out any possibility of the rise of radicalism in Bangladesh. “There's no possibility of the rise of radicalism in Bangladesh. Our intelligence and law enforcement agencies are very active and alert so that they can thwart any such attempt,” she said.

The BNP yesterday said the government is “controlling the media through pursuing a secret policy meant to gag journalists who are critical of it”. “The government, directly and indirectly, has established its control over media houses. It even finalises the names of participants of talk shows,” BNP spokesperson Asaduzzaman Ripon told a press conference at the party's Nayapaltan headquarters.

“There remains no difference between a policeman and a criminal if arms are used in this way without any logical ground. And we don't want to see police members in criminal roles in Bangladesh.”