The UK prime minister's trade envoy for Bangladesh, Ms Rushanara Ali has hinted that the British ban on direct cargo flights from Hazrat Shahjalal Airport may be withdrawn in the foreseeable future.

While the existing laws of the National Integrity Strategy institutions are more or less sufficient, there does exist a culture of impunity that needs to be firmly addressed by the government. Laws must apply equally to everyone.

It is unfortunate that instead of taking any substantive steps, the world body relies on a misguided belief that Suu Kyi will eventually respond to her conscience.

We are pleased that the government has clarified the confusion regarding a fake letter which said that India had stopped exporting rice to Bangladesh. But at the same time, it is a reality that the price of rice has increased significantly in the recent past, creating much suffering for ordinary citizens. What then is causing this?

The war cry from the North Korean leader is very disconcerting. It is regrettable that Kim Jong-un chooses to up the ante with every passing week by missile tests, 13 in all so far this year, in what could best be described as thumbing his nose to the rest of the world.

It is unfortunate that the parliament has passed a resolution calling for legal steps to nullify the Supreme Court's verdict that scraps the 16th amendment from the Constitution.

A report titled "World Food Security and Nutrition Situation-2017" brought out jointly by a number of UN organisations states that some 815 million people in the world go to sleep hungry.

It's a matter of grave concern that some fishermen are using lethal poison to catch fish, lobsters and other crustacean stocks in Sundarbans canals. The poison is so deadly that a few drops of it are sufficient to kill a large quantity of fish.

We are glad that the US has moved beyond “voicing” its concern on the persecution of the Rohingyas by Myanmar to something relatively more substantive. It has realised that the situation, which has been described as a “typical textbook ethnic cleansing” by the UN, merits dispatch of a senior-level state department official to that country.

Apassengers' welfare association on Wednesday disclosed its findings on accidents during the last Eid holiday, saying at least 322 people were killed and 759 others injured in accidents on roads, waterways and railways in just 13 days starting August 28.

It is for the first time that the Council had agreed on any kind of statement on Myanmar in nine years. Obviously, absence of any kind of international response to hold Myanmar accountable for its appalling treatment of Rohingyas for so long has given the rulers in Naypyidaw the feeling of impunity.

UNICEF stated on Monday that some 200,000 children housed in the Rohingya camps in Cox's Bazar are at serious health risk as the camp population has crossed 370,000.

We welcome Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's statement that Bangladesh will stand by Rohingya refugees fleeing state-sanctioned violence and persecution in Myanmar. The premier made these remarks during her visit to a registered Rohingya camp at Kutupalong Bazar in Ukhia, Cox's Bazar on Tuesday.

The United Nation's message is loud and clear. It has denounced Myanmar's “brutal security operation” against Rohingyas as a “textbook example of ethnic cleansing” in what is its strongest ever condemnation of Myanmar.

Members of the Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) have, over the years, built a reputation for beating up anyone who does not agree with unethical practices by some members of their fraternity.

The humanitarian response of the administration to the plight of the Rohingya refugees has been commendably proactive, and we think that the plan to allocate a specific piece of area to shelter, and register them, is judicious.

The government should be congratulated for inaugurating Bangladesh's second submarine cable which, if properly used, will ensure faster Internet connection speed for the consumers.

While we would like to support our law enforcing agencies in their endeavours to maintain security for all citizens, we cannot help but feel concerned about some of their methods. The constantly emerging contradictory narratives that surround incidents involving law enforcing agencies cannot possibly have any positive effect.

The persecution of the Rohingyas by Myanmar has only been met by sparse and feeble condemnation by the international community,

It is said the wheels of justice move slowly in Bangladesh. When each lower court judge is burdened with an average of 2,000 cases for hearing and disposal, we begin to comprehend why it takes years to wind up legal proceedings.