INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(3914, 3914, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Air pollution still remains one of the top-most challenges for Bangladesh, and among cities around the world, Dhaka’s air quality has been ranked as the most polluted this morning.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The capital\'s air quality index (AQI) was recorded at 259 at 9:20am today.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">India\'s Kolkata and Delhi occupied the next two spots, with AQI scores of 232, and 225, respectively.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">An AQI between 201 and 300 is said to be \'poor\', while a reading of 301 to 400 is considered \'hazardous\', posing serious health risks to residents.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Bangladesh, the AQI is based on five criteria pollutants -- Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2 and Ozone.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Dhaka has long been grappling with air pollution issues. Its air quality usually turns unhealthy during winter. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 05:16:28', '2022-12-21 05:16:28'),
(3915, 3915, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">US federal drug agents say they seized enough fentanyl in 2022 to kill every American.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) says they intercepted 379m potentially deadly fentanyl doses, which is just two milligrams.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The DEA described the highly addictive substance, which is 50 times more powerful than heroin, as the deadliest drug threat facing the US.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The agency says most of the fentanyl is trafficked into the US from Mexico.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The DEA says it seized more than 10,000lb (4,500kg) of fentanyl, as well as over 50.6m fentanyl pills that were made to resemble different prescription painkillers.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">That is more than double what they seized in 2021.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Most of the drugs were mass-produced at secret factories in Mexico by the Sinaloa and Jalisco drug cartels, which use chemicals sourced in China, the agency said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The drug is so powerful that a lethal dose is small enough to fit on the tip of a pencil.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">More than 100,000 Americans died of drug overdoses last year, and two-thirds were attributed to fentanyl. The amount of fentanyl seized this year was enough to kill all 330 million residents of the US, said the drug agency.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"DEA\'s top operational priority is to defeat the two Mexican drug cartels - the Sinaloa and Jalisco (CJNG) Cartels - that are primarily responsible for the fentanyl that is killing Americans today,\" DEA Administrator Anne Milgram said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In addition to the fentanyl, the DEA also seized 131,000lb of methamphetamine, more than 4,300lb of heroin, and over 444,000lb of cocaine. BBC</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"6\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 05:27:37', '2022-12-21 05:27:37'),
(3916, 3916, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Afghanistan\'s Taliban rulers have banned university education for women nationwide, provoking condemnation from the United States and the United Nations over another assault on human rights.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Despite promising a softer rule when they seized power last year, the Taliban have ratcheted up restrictions on all aspects of women\'s lives, ignoring international outrage.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"You all are informed to immediately implement the mentioned order of suspending education of females until further notice,\" Minister for Higher Education Neda Mohammad Nadeem said in a letter issued to all government and private universities.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The spokesman for the ministry, Ziaullah Hashimi, who tweeted the letter, confirmed the order in a text message to AFP.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Washington condemned the decision \"in the strongest terms.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The Taliban cannot expect to be a legitimate member of the international community until they respect the rights of all in Afghanistan. This decision will come with consequences for the Taliban,\" Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"No country can thrive when half of its population is held back.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was \"deeply alarmed\" by the ban, his spokesman said Tuesday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The secretary-general reiterates that the denial of education not only violates the equal rights of women and girls, but will have a devastating impact on the country\'s future,\" Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The ban on higher education comes less than three months after thousands of girls and women sat for university entrance exams across the country, with many aspiring to choose teaching and medicine as future careers.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The universities are currently on winter break and due to reopen in March.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">After the takeover of the country by the Taliban, universities were forced to implement new rules including gender-segregated classrooms and entrances, while women were only permitted to be taught by women professors or old men.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Most teenage girls across the country have already been banned from secondary school education, severely limiting university intake.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Journalism student Madina, who wanted only her first name published, struggled to comprehend the weight of Tuesday\'s order.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"I have nothing to say. Not only me but all my friends have no words to express our feelings,\" the 18-year-old told AFP in Kabul.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Everyone is thinking about the unknown future ahead of them. They buried our dreams.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The country was returning to \"dark days\", added medicine student Rhea in the capital, who asked that her name be changed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"When we were hoping to make progress, they are removing us from society,\" the 26-year-old said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">- \'A fundamental human right\' -</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Taliban adheres to an austere version of Islam, with the movement\'s supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada and his inner circle of Afghan clerics against modern education, especially for girls and women.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But they are at odds with many officials in Kabul and among their rank and file, who had hoped girls would be allowed to continue learning following the takeover.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"There are serious differences in the Taliban ranks on girls\' education, and the latest decision will increase these differences,\" a Taliban commander based in northwest Pakistan told AFP on condition of anonymity.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In a cruel U-turn, the Taliban in March blocked girls from returning to secondary schools on the morning they were supposed to reopen.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Several Taliban officials say the secondary education ban is only temporary, but they have also wheeled out a litany of excuses for the closure -- from a lack of funds to the time needed to remodel the syllabus along Islamic lines.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Since the ban, many teenage girls have been married off early -- often to much older men of their father\'s choice.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Several families interviewed by AFP last month said that, coupled with economic pressure, the school ban meant that securing their daughters\' future through marriage was better than them sitting idle at home.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">- International pressure -</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Women have also been pushed out of many government jobs -- or are being paid a slashed salary to stay at home. They are also barred from travelling without a male relative and must cover up outside of the home, ideally with a burqa.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In November, they were prohibited from going to parks, funfairs, gyms and public baths.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The international community has made the right to education for all women a sticking point in negotiations over aid and recognition of the Taliban regime.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The international community has not and will not forget Afghan women and girls,\" the UN Security Council said in a statement in September.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">However, Pakistan, Afghanistan\'s neighbour, said Tuesday that engagement with the Taliban was still the best path forward.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"I\'m disappointed by the decision that was taken today,\" Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said on a visit to Washington.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But he said: \"I still think the easiest path to our goal -- despite having a lot of setbacks when it comes to women\'s education and other things -- is through Kabul and through the interim government.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In the 20 years between the Taliban\'s two reigns, girls were allowed to go to school and women were able to seek employment in all sectors, though the country remained socially conservative.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The authorities have also returned to public floggings and executions of men and women in recent weeks as they implement an extreme interpretation of Islamic sharia law. AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 05:45:50', '2022-12-21 05:45:50'),
(3917, 3917, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Within a month and a half after the inauguration of 100 bridges in a single day, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today opened a record number of 100 highways to traffic in 50 districts.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The premier virtually inaugurated the 100 highways from her office in Dhaka — to ensure a safe and uninterrupted road network as well as help reduce road accidents and traveling time.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Roads and Highways Department under the Road Transport and Highways Division constructed or reconstructed the highways with a combined length of 2,021.56 km under 48 projects at an overall cost of Tk 14,915 crore in the last two years.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The new highways include 32 with a total length of 653.66km in Dhaka division, 16 with total length of 352.26km in Khulna division, 14 with 258.90km in Chattogram division, 15 with 203.95km in Rangpur, eight highways with 196.87km in Rajshahi, six with 142.48km in Mymensingh, four highways with 106.18km in Sylhet and four highways with 107.26km in Barishal division.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Of these, 99 highways were developed with government fund, while one — the 70km Joydebpur (Gazipur)-Alenga (Tangail) four-lane highway with service lanes on both sides — was constructed with foreign loans (Tk 3,205crore) and the government fund (Tk 2,963.64 crore).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader spoke at the function moderated by PM’s Principal Secretary Tofazzel Hossain Miah.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Road Transport and Highways Division Secretary ABM Amin Ullah Nuri made a presentation on the 100 new highways.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Out of the 22,476-km road network under the RHD, there are 3,991km national highways, 4,897km regional highways and 13,588km district roads.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The national highways connect the capital to divisional cities, sea ports, land ports and international highways. Regional highways connect district towns to river ports and land ports. District roads link district towns with upazilas or one upazila with another.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On November 7, the PM inaugurated 100 newly constructed bridges with a total length of 5,494 meters, built at a cost of Tk 8,79.61 crore, in 25 districts of the country. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 06:15:07', '2022-12-21 06:15:07'),
(3918, 3918, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Vicky Kaushal has said that his actor-wife Katrina Kaif is one of the few faces that represent Bollywood on the international platform, just as Hema Malini earlier. Vicky also said that Katrina and Amitabh Bachchan represent the Hindi film industry on the global platform.&nbsp;</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">“I always say that an industry is known by a few faces. With her work, Katrina has become one of those faces, along with Amitabh Bachchan. who represent the industry on the international platform. Hema Malini used to be one of these faces,” Vicky told Navbharat Times.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He added, “Katrina has achieved that status and I believe it is not easy to reach there. I believe, whatever she has done and achieved, she did it all on her own. I respect her a lot for that, and I have a long way to go before I reach there.I feel it is good that we respect each other, and also have a lot to learn from each other.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Vicky\'s recent release, Govinda Naam Mera, released online on Disney+ Hotstar last week. The film also features Kiara Advani and Bhumi Pednekar. The comedy thriller is directed by Shashank Khaitan and received mixed to bad reviews.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Meghna Gulzar\'s Sam Bahadur is Vicky\'s next ambitious film that will also star Sanya Malhotra and Fatima Sana Shaikh. Based on the real life story of Field Marshal Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw, the film is will release on December 1, 2023.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Vicky also has Anand Tiwari\'s next that will see a theatrical release on July 28, 2023. The film also stars Tripti Dimri and Ammy Virk. He also has Laxman Utekar\'s next film in the line up that stars Sara Ali Khan alongwith him.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Meanwhile, Katrina was recently seen in Phone Bhoot alongside Siddhant Chaturvedi and Ishaan Khatter. Directed by, the film received good response and was also praised by the critics. Next up, she has Salman Khan\'s Tiger 3 - the third film in their hit spy thriller franchise Tiger. She also has Vijay Sethupathi-starrer Merry Christmas and Jee Le Zara in the pipeline. HT</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"13\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 06:27:20', '2022-12-21 06:27:20'),
(3919, 3919, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky will meet US President Joe Biden and address Congress on Wednesday during a visit to Washington, his first trip outside his country since Russia invaded in February, the White House said.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Zelensky will join Biden at the White House for the announcement of a \"significant new package of security assistance,\" said White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre. A senior administration official said that included advanced Patriot air defense missiles. AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 07:18:22', '2022-12-21 07:18:22'),
(3920, 3920, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Pakistan\'s security forces killed 25 of 35 Islamist militants holed up in a counter-terrorism centre in the northwestern city of Bannu, while one hostage and two commandos died in the operation to retake the compound, the army said.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Militants being held at the centre took control of the compound on Sunday after overpowering their interrogators and taking their weapons, leading to a two day siege and ultimately army commandoes storming the compound on Tuesday.</div><div><br></div><div>Army spokesman Major General Ahmed Sharif speaking to local TV channel Geo News late on Tuesday said seven of the 35 holed up militants surrendered, and another three who tried to escape were arrested. One hostage, a security official, died during the raid , he said.</div><div><br></div><div>Earlier on Tuesday, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said all of the militants had been killed and all hostages rescued, but later clarified that the army would provide the final figures and details of the operation.</div><div><br></div><div>The army spokesman\'s comments provided the first detailed official account of the standoff, in which two security personnel were killed when the militants first took over the compound, and two commandoes killed in the ensuing raid.</div><div><br></div><div>He said one militant was able to first overpower his interrogator with a brick and seize his weapon. Later other militants at the centre broke into a storeroom where confiscated weapons had been stored.</div><div><br></div><div>\"We tried very hard to get them (militants) to surrender unconditionally. They weren\'t ready,\" Sharif said, adding that they wanted safe passage to Afghanistan, which was rejected by authorities. Source: Reuters&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 07:58:04', '2022-12-21 07:58:04'),
(3921, 3921, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today asked people to compare the development work done by other governments to that of the Awami League government.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">“I expect that people of the country would at least consider how much development was done by those in power for nearly 30 years (1975-1996 and 2001-2009) and what the Awami League governments did,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">The premier was addressing the inaugural ceremony of 100 highways at her office in Dhaka.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina opened a record number of 100 highways to traffic in 50 districts through a virtual platform, within a month and a half after inaugurating 100 bridges in a single day.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The new highways – which include national, regional and district highways – aim to ensure a safe and uninterrupted road network as well as help reduce road accidents and traveling time.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Roads and Highways Department under the Road Transport and Highways Division constructed or reconstructed the highways with a combined length of 2,021.56 km under 48 projects at an overall cost of Tk 14,915 crore in the last two years.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The PM said her government opened 100 highways in a single day and earlier opened 100 bridges in a single day too. “Could anyone do that in the past? No. It is only Awami League that can accomplish this,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She said the 100 highways are gifts for the nation in this month of victory.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We are told that the Awami League government has destroyed the country… I don’t know if people would believe those who say that Awami League destroyed the country even after this (opening 100 highways and 100 bridges). That is my question,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The new highways include 32 with a total length of 653.66 km in Dhaka division, 16 with total length of 352.26 km in Khulna division, 14 with 258.90 km in Chattogram division, 15 with 203.95 km in Rangpur, eight highways with 196.87 km in Rajshahi, six with 142.48 km in Mymensingh, four highways with 106.18 km in Sylhet and four highways with 107.26 km in Barishal division.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Of these, 99 highways were developed with government fund, while one — the 70km Joydebpur (Gazipur)-Alenga (Tangail) four-lane highway with service lanes on both sides — was constructed with foreign loans (Tk 3,205crore) and the government fund (Tk 2,963.64 crore).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader spoke at the function moderated by PM’s Principal Secretary Tofazzel Hossain Miah.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Road Transport and Highways Division Secretary ABM Amin Ullah Nuri made a presentation on the 100 new highways.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The local beneficiaries and stakeholders of the development projects were connected to the function from Tangail and Khulna through virtual platforms.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Out of the 22,476 km road network under the RHD, there are 3,991 km national highways, 4,897 km regional highways and 13,588 km district roads.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The national highways connect the capital to divisional cities, sea ports, land ports and international highways. Regional highways connect district towns to river ports and land ports. District roads link district towns with upazilas or one upazila with another.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On November 7, the PM inaugurated 100 newly constructed bridges with a total length of 5,494 meters, built at a cost of Tk 8,79.61 crore, in 25 districts of the country. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 07:58:55', '2022-12-21 07:58:55'),
(3922, 3922, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">A powerful magnitude 6.4 earthquake jolted the extreme northern coast of California before dawn on Tuesday, crumpling homes and roads, rupturing utility lines and leaving thousands of residents without running water and electricity.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>At least a dozen people were injured, and two others died from \"medical emergencies\" that occurred during or just after the quake, according to the Humboldt County Sheriff\'s Office.</div><div><br></div><div>The tremor, which struck at 2:30 a.m. PST and was followed by about 80 aftershocks, was centered 215 miles (350 km) north of San Francisco offshore of Humboldt County, a largely rural area known for its redwood forests, local seafood, lumber industry and dairy farms.</div><div><br></div><div>California\'s Governor Gavin Newsom proclaimed a state of emergency on Tuesday for Humboldt County to support the emergency response to the earthquake.</div><div><br></div><div>Newsom has directed state agencies and departments to take appropriate action as necessary to provide support to local communities, according to a statement.</div><div><br></div><div>The region also is known for relatively frequent seismic activity, although the latest quake appeared to cause more disruption than others in recent years.</div><div><br></div><div>Tuesday\'s temblor set off one structure fire - by severing the gas line of a hot-water heater - and caused at least two other buildings to collapse, authorities said. The blaze was quickly extinguished, and fire crews rescued a resident briefly trapped in the home, according to fire officials. Source: Reuters&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 08:36:11', '2022-12-21 08:36:11'),
(3923, 3923, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Members of Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) in a drive arrested four suspected drug traders along with 100kg hemp from Gazipur’s Sadar police station on Tuesday afternoon.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The arrestees are Robiul Hossain, 24, Shapon Miah,20, Yasin Miah,19, and Akram Hossain,19.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On information that a consignment of hemp was being taken to Gazipur from Cumilla on a private car, a team of Rab set up a check-post on the road at Harinal Kcha Bazar area under Sadar police station of GMP, said&nbsp; Noman Ahmed, senior assistant superintendent of police of the Rab-1.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">When the car reached the check-post, the elite force signaled to stop the car and searched it.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sensing danger, the drug traders tried to flee the scene.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">However, the team managed to arrest them and recovered the hemp from inside the car.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">During the drive, 3 mobile phone sets and Tk6,195 in cash were also recovered from their possession. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 08:48:48', '2022-12-21 08:48:48'),
(3924, 3924, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday asked the elected local government representatives to play effective role in overcoming global crisis arisen out of the Covid-19 and Russia-Ukraine war.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>\"We are trying our best so that our people don\'t have to suffer amid the global crisis. As elected representatives, you also have some responsibilities and you have to discharge the duties,\" she said.</div><div><br></div><div>The prime minister said this while administering oath to newly elected chairmen of Noakhali and Chapainawabganj District Councils Abdul Wadud Pintu and Ruhul Amin respectively. They were elected in separate polls on November 14 and 28.</div><div><br></div><div>Nineteen elected councilors of the two district councils were sworn in by Local Government, Rural Development (LGRD) and Cooperatives Minister Md Tazul Islam.</div><div><br></div><div>The prime minister stressed the need for boosting food production bringing every inch of fallow lands under cultivation across the country to face any possible food crisis.</div><div><br></div><div>\"If all the fallow lands across the country can be brought under cultivation, then, there will be no food crisis in the country,\" she added.</div><div><br></div><div>In this regard, she has sought cooperation from the elected representatives to make people aware of growing own food.</div><div><br></div><div>She also asked people to show austerity in every sector and make savings to overcome the global crisis, reminding them prices of everything particularly imported items went up globally that created a global economic crisis.</div><div><br></div><div>Sheikh Hasina asked the public representatives to ensure proper use of the local development fund and quality works of the local projects for balanced development of the country.</div><div><br></div><div>\"As elected representatives you have to work in ensuring proper use of allocated local funds so that no area lags behind in terms of development,\" she added.</div><div><br></div><div>The prime minister once again asked the public representatives to work for the welfare of the people.</div><div><br></div><div>\"I urge you all to work for the welfare of the people,\" she told the elected public representatives.</div><div><br></div><div>She also asked them to look after the works of the ongoing projects to make sure their quality.</div><div><br></div><div>The premier, as well, called upon the public representatives to prepare a list of the homeless and landless people across the country irrespective of political affiliation as part of the government\'s move that none will remain homeless and landless.</div><div><br></div><div>As many as 35 lakh landless and homeless people have, so far, been provided with houses across the country free of cost, she added.</div><div><br></div><div>Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader and State Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Swapan Bhattacharjee were present on dias. ‍Source: BSS</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 10:09:40', '2022-12-21 10:09:40'),
(3925, 3925, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">In the wake of Sunday\'s World Cup final soccer fans around the world have rushed to buy merchandise, with demand for Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe soccer club jerseys more than tripling, sports merchandise retailer Fanatics Inc told Reuters.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Argentina beat France 4-2 on penalties after a dramatic 3-3 draw, with Messi scoring twice and France\'s Kylian Mbappe netting three times. It was Argentina\'s first World Cup win since Diego Maradona hoisted the trophy 36 years ago.</div><div><br></div><div>Global sales of soccer gear were up more than 700% for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar versus the 2018 World Cup in Russia across the Fanatics network of online stores.</div><div><br></div><div>Fans flocked to buy Nike-brand Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) soccer club jerseys, with sales in particular for Messi and Mbappe jerseys on the official PSG online store surging by more than 200% on Sunday.</div><div><br></div><div>Messi, Argentina\'s 35-year-old team captain, said the final would be his last match in the World Cup, though he intends to play a few more games for the national side.</div><div><br></div><div>Mbappe also shone with three goals in the game, becoming only the second hat-trick scorer in a World Cup final after England\'s Geoff Hurst in 1966.</div><div><br></div><div>Fanatics, which operates the official online Paris Saint-Germain store, said 40% of all PSG sales on the day came from the United States. Source: Reuters&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'sports Desk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 10:21:04', '2022-12-21 10:21:04'),
(3926, 3926, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">A Dhaka court placed Ameer of Jamaat-e-Islami Dr Md Shafiqur Rahman on a three-day fresh remand in a case lodged with capital\'s Jatrabari Police Station for his alleged involvement in militancy.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Syed Mostafa Reza Nur passed the order as police produced the Jamaat chief before the court after the end of his seven-day remand in the case and pleaded for placing him on eight-day fresh remand.</div><div><br></div><div>Earlier on December 13, Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Rajesh Chowdhury had placed him on a seven-day remand in the case.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>A team of Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit arrested the Jamaat chief from capital\'s Basundhara area on December 12.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>Earlier, police arrested his son Dr Rafat Chowdhury, alleged chief coordinator of banned militant outfit Ansar Al Islam\'s Sylhet region, in this case. - BSS</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 12:39:51', '2022-12-21 12:39:51'),
(3927, 3927, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">India were hit by injury once again as KL Rahul, who is leading the side in absence of injured Rohit Sharma was latest to join the long injury list and is at risk of missing the second Test against Bangladesh, starting tomorrow (Wednesday) at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>If he misses the second Test, Cheteshwar Pujara, who is the vice-captain will lead the side as India look to sweep the two-match series following their 188-run win in the first Test.</div><div><br></div><div>India batting coach Vikram Rathour said that KL Rahul got a blow to his hand while batting in the nets on the eve of the match. But at the same time, he though indicated that Rahul\'s injury wasn\'t serious, he didn\'t confirm whether Rahul is certain to start the match.</div><div><br></div><div>\"It doesn\'t look serious. He seems to be fine. Hopefully he\'ll be okay. The doctors are looking at it, but hopefully he\'ll be okay,\" Rathour said here today.</div><div><br></div><div>Rahul took the blow to his hand towards the end of his nets session when Rathour was delivering the throwdowns to him. He was seen rubbing the injured area, and was attended to by the team doctor.</div><div><br></div><div>If Rahul is unavailable, Abhimanyu Easwaran, who initially came into the squad as Rohit\'s standby can make his debut.</div><div><br></div><div>The blow to Rahul\'s hand is the latest in a series of injuries India have suffered in recent weeks. Jasprit Bumrah is a long-term absentee with a stress fracture of the back, while as many as seven players were ruled out of the ODI series at various points - including first-choice Test players Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Shami. - BSS</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'sports Desk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 13:13:52', '2022-12-21 13:13:52'),
(3928, 3928, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Brazil and Tottenham star Richarlison suffered a hamstring injury while on international duty with Brazil at World Cup 2022.&nbsp;</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The forward scored three times in Qatar but was forced off in Brazil\'s quarter-final defeat to Croatia. Tottenham coach Antonio Conte has offered a fitness update on some of his players and says the Brazilian must now undergo a scan.</div><div><br></div><div>\"For Richy, tomorrow he’s going to have an MRI [scan] to know very well the importance of the injury. After tomorrow we will see very well the time he needs to recover,\" he told the club\'s new streaming service.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>\"Ben Davies is okay and started to work with us last week, he has recovered. Rodrigo has started to work. I think that he’s going to be good for the game against Aston Villa.\"</div><div><br></div><div>Richarlison has had a modest start to the season with Spurs, scoring two goals in 15 appearances across all competitions.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>However, the summer signing showed his class at the World Cup, particularly with a brilliant overhead kick goal against Serbia, and Conte will certainly hope he\'s not out of action for long. Source: goal.com&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'sports Desk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 13:48:23', '2022-12-21 13:48:23'),
(3929, 3929, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">An incredible video shows plants \"breathing\" in real-time. The close-up clip has been captured by biologists at the University of California San Diego during one of their research projects, according to EarthSky.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The researchers discovered how plants use their stomata - tiny openings found on almost all the flora - to exchange carbon dioxide and water with the air. The research was funded by National Science Foundation, which has released the video. Scientists said it is a \"key breakthrough\", according to EarthSky, which will have implications on global food supply in the coming century.</div><div><br></div><div>Julian Schroeder, the lead researcher, was quoted as saying by the outlet: \"The researchers hope that harnessing this mechanism could lead to future engineering of plant water use efficiency and carbon intake. Critical as atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration continues to increase.\"</div><div><br></div><div>\"In fact, the researchers have filed a patent. And, they are examining ways to translate their findings into tools for crop breeders and farmers,\" the biochemist added.</div><div><br></div><div>The study detailing the discovery has been published in peer-reviewed journal Science Advances.</div><div><br></div><div>\"When stomata are open, the inside of the plant is exposed to the elements, and water from the plant is lost into the surrounding air, which can dry them out. Plants, therefore, must balance the intake of carbon dioxide with water vapor loss by controlling how long the stomata remain open,\" said National Science Foundation spokesperson Jared Dashoff, as reported by New York Post.</div><div><br></div><div>The discovery is significant, considering the fact that atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration and temperature have increased due to climate change, affecting the balance between carbon dioxide entry and water vapour loss through the stomata.</div><div><br></div><div>If plants, especially crops like wheat, rice and corn, can\'t strike a new balance, they risk drying out. The finding will enable researchers to edit those signals through which the stomata is opened so that the plants can strike the right balance between taking in carbon dioxide and losing water. Source: NDTV</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 15:56:58', '2022-12-21 15:56:58'),
(3930, 3930, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal said that there is no pressure from the international community or foreign diplomats on the Election Commission (EC) regarding the upcoming parliamentary elections.&nbsp;</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>“Comments of international community members or foreign ambassadors didn’t create any pressure on the EC regarding the next parliamentary elections. It’s (remarks of foreign diplomats) a matter of the government, they will discuss it through bilateral talks,” he said.</div><div><br></div><div>The CEC made the remarks while inaugurating the distribution of Smart National Identity Cards at Mirzaganj Upazila Parishad Auditorium here in the afternoon.</div><div><br></div><div>The EC will hold a participatory election&nbsp; on time, in line with&nbsp; the constitutional process, Awal said, adding that no political party is being forced for taking part in the polls rather they have been requested&nbsp; .&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>“We want to hold a fair election with the participation of all political parties. If the opposition party (BNP) takes part in the next parliamentary elections, it will make the election more participatory,” he said.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>Noting that process is underway for holding the elections using electronic voting machines (EVMs), the CEC said the polls will be held using ballots if finally it is not possible through EVMs, according to BSS reports.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-21 16:21:20', '2022-12-21 16:21:20'),
(3931, 3931, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday asked the newly commissioned Navy officers to stay prepared to deal any natural disaster in the country.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>\"Being imbued with the quality of honesty, leadership and self-sacrifice, you (Navy men) have to be prepared always to face any disaster alongside protecting the country\'s sovereignty standing shoulder to shoulder with the Army and Air Force members,\" she said.</div><div><br></div><div>The premier was addressing the Winter President Parade of the passing out cadets of the \"Midshipmen 2020 Alfa Batch\" and the \"Direct Entry 2022 Bravo Batch\" of Bangladesh Navy at Bangladesh Naval Academy (BNA) at Patenga in Chattogram.</div><div><br></div><div>Mentioning that Bangladesh is a disaster-prone country, she said Bangladesh Navy always stands beside people and takes part in rescue operation and relief distribution efficiently during any disaster.</div><div><br></div><div>\"I want new officers (of Navy) to work with sincerity,\" she said, adding, \"You must have to be disciplined all times and have to discharge duty with discipline and devotion being imbued with patriotism.\"</div><div><br></div><div>She hoped that the new officers, who are passing out today and going to take responsibility, will brighten the country\'s image by discharging own duty, reports BSS</div><div><br></div><div>Sheikh Hasina said Bangladesh will be made a developed country by 2041 and each citizen of that Bangladesh will prepare themselves with the knowledge of technology.</div><div><br></div><div>\"Our economy and implementation of any plan will be made digitally. Bangladesh will be \'Smart Bangladesh\' and developed Bangladesh, as dreamt by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman,\" she said.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-22 08:08:43', '2022-12-22 08:08:43'),
(3932, 3932, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Brazilian football great Pele will spend Christmas in hospital, his medical team and family said Wednesday, as he receives treatment for worsening cancer as well as kidney and heart problems.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The 82-year-old \"requires greater care related to renal and cardiac dysfunctions,\" said the Albert Einstein Hospital in Sao Paulo.</div><div><br></div><div>It also reported a \"progression\" of his cancer, but said Pele was not in intensive care.</div><div><br></div><div>Considered by many to be the greatest footballer of all time, Pele was hospitalized in Sao Paulo on November 29 for what his medical team called a re-evaluation of his chemotherapy treatments, which he has been receiving since having surgery to remove a colon tumor in September 2021.</div><div><br></div><div>Doctors have also diagnosed Pele -- whose real name is Edson Arantes do Nascimento -- with a respiratory infection.</div><div><br></div><div>Earlier this month, Pele\'s daughters Kely Nascimento and Flavia Arantes sought to reassure fans about his health, denying reports that Pele had been placed in end-of-life care as supporters held a vigil outside the hospital.</div><div><br></div><div>They said Wednesday on Instagram that they would be spending Christmas with their father at the hospital.</div><div><br></div><div>\"Our Christmas at home has been suspended,\" they wrote.</div><div><br></div><div>\"We decided with the doctors that, for various reasons, it would be better for us to stay here with all the care that this new family at Einstein gives us!!\"</div><div><br></div><div>Accompanied by a picture of them smiling, the sisters thanked Pele\'s fans for their support and wished them a happy festive season.</div><div><br></div><div>\"We are going to turn this room into a Sambodrome (just kidding), we will even make caipirinhas (not kidding!!),\" they joked, referencing Brazil\'s famous cocktail.</div><div><br></div><div>The siblings promised an update next week.</div><div><br></div><div>- \'The King\' -</div><div><br></div><div>Pele dazzled from an early age and took the 1958 World Cup by storm when he was 17 years old, netting a hat trick in the semifinals and two more goals in the final, catapulting his own career and launching the soccer dynasty of the Brazilian national team.</div><div><br></div><div>Pele scored more than 1,000 goals in one of the most storied careers in sport. He is the only player in history to have won three World Cups (1958, 1962 and 1970).</div><div><br></div><div>In recent years, the man dubbed \"The King\" has faced deteriorating health and his public appearances have grown rare.</div><div><br></div><div>He has dealt with his ailments with trademark good humor, remaining active on social media.</div><div><br></div><div>Pele posted regularly during the Qatar World Cup, including a message of congratulations to captain Lionel Messi after Argentina took the top prize.</div><div><br></div><div>\"Congratulations to Argentina! Diego (Maradona, who died on November 25, 2020) is probably smiling now,\" he wrote.</div><div><br></div><div>Pele also watched from hospital as star player Neymar equalled his goal record of 77 with the \"Selecao.\"</div><div><br></div><div>Pele has received messages from well-wishers all over the world, also recently from French striker Kylian Mbappe who called on fans earlier this month to \"pray for the King.\"</div><div><br></div><div>It was with Mbappe that Pele made one of his last public appearances, in April 2019, in Paris, for a promotional event.</div><div><br></div><div>World Cup host nation Qatar also showed its support for Pele, lighting up buildings with a \"Get well soon\" message. Source: AFP&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'sports Desk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-22 08:23:46', '2022-12-22 08:23:46');
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(3933, 3933, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">President Joe Biden has told President Volodymyr Zelensky the US will stick by Ukraine \"for as long as it takes\" in its war with Russia, reports BBC.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>\"You will never stand alone,\" Mr Biden told Mr Zelensky as he visited the White House on his first overseas trip since the Russian invasion began.</div><div><br></div><div>Mr Biden confirmed a new package of more than $2bn (£1.7bn) in assistance for Ukraine and promised another $45bn.</div><div><br></div><div>Mr Zelensky expressed his gratitude for Washington\'s backing.</div><div><br></div><div>At Wednesday\'s joint news conference, Mr Biden told reporters he was \"not at all worried\" about holding the international coalition together.</div><div><br></div><div>Amid concerns that some allies may be feeling the strain of the conflict\'s cost and disruption to global food and energy supplies, the US president said he felt \"very good\" about the solidarity of support for Ukraine.</div><div><br></div><div>Mr Biden said Russian President Vladimir Putin had \"no intention of stopping this cruel war\".</div><div><br></div><div>As Ukraine\'s most important ally, the US has already committed $50bn (£41bn) of humanitarian, financial and security assistance - far more than any other country.</div><div><br></div><div>Mr Zelensky - wearing his trademark combat-green sweatshirt and boots - expressed hope that Congress would pass the extra $45bn in aid to Ukraine to \"help us to defend our values, values and independence\".</div><div><br></div><div>Republicans - who will take control of the House of Representatives in January - have warned they will not write a \"blank cheque\" for Ukraine.</div><div><br></div><div>But Mr Zelensky, who travelled on a US Air Force jet from the Polish city of Rzeszow, said that \"regardless of changes in the Congress\", he believed there would be bipartisan support for his country.</div><div><br></div><div>After the White House meeting, the 44-year-old Ukrainian president gave an address to a joint session of Congress, where he was welcomed with a standing ovation.</div><div><br></div><div>He told US lawmakers his country was still standing \"against all odds\" and predicted \"a turning point\" in the conflict next year.</div><div><br></div><div>While vowing Ukraine would never surrender, he said it needed more weaponry.</div><div><br></div><div>\"We have artillery, yes, thank you,\" he told his audience. \"Is it enough? Honestly, not really.\"</div><div><br></div><div>\"For the Russian army to completely pull out, more cannon and shells are needed,\" he added.</div><div><br></div><div>Concluding his speech, Mr Zelensky presented Congress with a battle flag signed by the defenders of Bakhmut, a frontline city in the east of Ukraine that he visited on the eve of his Washington trip.</div><div><br></div><div>The package of security assistance announced by Washington on Wednesday includes a new Patriot missile system, which is expected to help Ukraine protect its cities from missiles and drones that Russia has fired at critical facilities.</div><div><br></div><div>A rare moment of levity arose in Wednesday\'s news conference as Mr Zelensky, a former comedian, answered reporters\' questions.</div><div><br></div><div>The Ukrainian president said: \"What\'s going to happen after the Patriots are installed? After that we will send another signal to President Biden that we would like to get more Patriots.\"</div><div><br></div><div>\"We are in a war, I\'m sorry, I\'m really sorry,\" he deadpanned in English, as the audience in the East Room laughed.</div><div><br></div><div>Mr Biden chuckled and said: \"We\'re working on it.\"</div><div><br></div><div>Russia\'s foreign ministry has said the delivery of the advanced surface-to-air missile system would be considered a provocative step.</div><div><br></div><div>Earlier on Wednesday, Mr Putin said he believed his country was not to blame for the war in Ukraine, adding both countries were \"sharing a tragedy\".</div><div><br></div><div>Since Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February, the US military estimates that at least 100,000 Russian and 100,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed or injured, along with some 40,000 civilian deaths, reports BBC</div><div><br></div><div>The UN has recorded 7.8 million people as refugees from Ukraine across Europe, including Russia. However, the figure does not include those who have been forced to flee their homes but remain in Ukraine.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-22 09:33:06', '2022-12-22 09:33:06'),
(3934, 3934, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Pakistan cricket chief Ramiz Raja has been sacked just days after the national team suffered a humiliating Test series defeat at the hands of England, according to AFP reports.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Appointments to run the sport in the cricket-mad country are highly politicised, and responsibility lies with the prime minister and cabinet.</div><div><br></div><div>England wrapped up the third Test on Tuesday to hand Pakistan their first-ever 3-0 home series whitewash.</div><div><br></div><div>But a change had been on the cards since April, when Imran Khan -- a former national captain -- was ousted as prime minister and replaced by Shehbaz Sharif.</div><div><br></div><div>Raja, a member of Khan\'s 1992 World Cup-winning side, was appointed chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) in September last year.</div><div><br></div><div>A government notice seen by AFP said Sharif\'s cabinet had dismissed Raja, and the PCB would now be run by a 14-member committee headed by Najam Sethi, who has twice served as chairman.</div><div><br></div><div>The committee also includes Shahid Afridi and Sana Mir, former captains of the men\'s and women\'s teams.</div><div><br></div><div>The government notice also said the current constitution of the board has been scrapped, and one dating from 2014 revived.</div><div><br></div><div>The committee will have 120 days to change the constitution and elect a new chairman.</div><div><br></div><div>\"The cricket regime headed by Ramiz Raja @iramizraja is no more,\" Sethi tweeted Thursday.</div><div><br></div><div>\"The 2014 PCB constitution stands restored. The Management Committee will work tirelessly to revive first class cricket.\"</div><div><br></div><div>Khan came under fire for changing the PCB\'s constitution in 2019 -- in particular for abolishing the role of government departments and private entities in first-class cricket, leaving hundreds unemployed.</div><div><br></div><div>In his tweet, Sethi said \"thousands of cricketers will be employed again\".</div><div><br></div><div>\"The famine in cricket will come to an end,\" he said.</div><div><br></div><div>Raja was not immediately available to comment, but sources said it was likely he would contest his removal through the courts.</div><div><br></div><div>The shake-up comes as New Zealand arrived Thursday for a tour that will include two Tests and three one-day internationals.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-22 09:55:12', '2022-12-22 09:55:12'),
(3935, 3935, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Awami League (AL) General Secretary and Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader said that no one is essential for the party except Sheikh Hasina.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The senior AL leader said this while talking to the reporters after visiting the venue of the 22nd National Council of Awami League at the historic Suhrawardy Udyan in the capital.</div><div><br></div><div>\"Only the president of Awami League Sheikh Hasina is essential for the party. There is none who will not support her,\" he said.</div><div><br></div><div>Noting that there is no possibility of many change in the committee in the council, the AL general secretary said that there might be a major reshuffle in the next council.</div><div><br></div><div>\"I am not thinking of major changes for now. But everything will depend on the opinion of the decision-makers or councilors. I don\'t want to say anything in advance,\" Quader said.</div><div><br></div><div>\"There are at least 10 candidates for the post of general secretary, who are eligible to become general secretary. The second session of the council will reflect the desire of the president of AL. This year\'s committee is active and it does not seem that no one will be left out. There may be changes in the next council,\" he added.</div><div><br></div><div>On the other hand, he lauded Prime Minister\'s ICT Affairs Adviser Sajeeb Wazed Joy because it would not have been possible without his cooperation.</div><div><br></div><div>\"Now the target is to build Smart Bangladesh. We will move forward to build a developed Bangladesh in 2042,\" he said.</div><div><br></div><div>\"We will ensure the largest and disciplined attendance at this council to transform crisis into possibility. Through this, we will work together to build a smart Bangladesh,\" he said.</div><div><br></div><div>Quader said the party has made a pledge to build a non-communal Bangladesh and the AL men will work to this end.</div><div><br></div><div>\"Our main goal is to make a prosperous and smart Bangladesh under the leadership of Sheikh Hasina,\" he added. \"Besides, we are ready for elections. Awami League is ready to run the next government.\"</div><div><br></div><div>Quader told that all the registered parties will be given invitations to the council.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-22 10:26:20', '2022-12-22 10:26:20'),
(3936, 3936, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Food Minister Sadhan Chandra Majumder lauded the neighboring country India saying it stands by Bangladesh all the time as a genuine fried.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The people of Bangladesh will never forget the love of Indian people that demonstrated by giving shelter to about one crore people and providing medicines, food or services sometimes, he said.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>The minister said these while speaking as the chief guest at the \'India-Bangladesh Friendship Celebration\' event at a Rajshahi hotel, organized by Assistant High Commission of India, Rajshahi, a press release said.</div><div><br></div><div>He mentioned that both the neighbouring countries are working to strengthen the friendship and confidence between Bangladesh and India.</div><div><br></div><div>Assistant High Commissioner of India in Rajshahi Shri Manoj Kumar said India supports Bangladesh in every good work, reports BSS.</div><div><br></div><div>The people of India helped gain independence standing with the neighboring country in the Great Liberation War in 1971, he said.</div><div><br></div><div>He added that the people of the two countries share a common language and culture which has strengthen the relationship between the two countries.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-22 10:37:36', '2022-12-22 10:37:36'),
(3937, 3937, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">A senior counter terrorism official said on Thursday that Ameer(chief) of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Shafiqur Rahman has confessed the involvement of his son Dr Rafat Sadiq Saifullah with the new militant outfit Jamatul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The chief of the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Asaduzzaman claimed this at a press conference in the DMP media centre on Thursday.</div><div><br></div><div>The CTTC chief said the Jamaat chief was aware that his son was involved in militancy.</div><div><br></div><div>“But he remained silent and didn’t inform the law enforcement agencies,” Asaduzzaman said.</div><div><br></div><div>“If someone wants to return to normal life after being involved in militancy, the law-enforcement agencies consider an application on behalf of the family. But he (Shafiqur) did not inform the law enforcers and concealed the whole thing,” he said.</div><div><br></div><div>Rafat, son of Shafiqur Rahman, along with one of his associates were arrested from Jatrabari area of the city on November 9.</div><div><br></div><div>Rafat was a suspected member of Ansar Al Islam and collected some supporters from the militant group to join their new militant outfit Jamatul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya, the official claimed.</div><div><br></div><div>A group of young people, who left homes recently, led by Rafat went to Bandarban from where they went to Sylhet for training from militants with Kuki-Chin National Front (KNF), an armed group in the Chattogram Hill Tracts, claimed the CTTC chief.</div><div><br></div><div>Shafiqur Rahman was arrested on December 13 for his alleged involvement in militancy.</div><div><br></div><div>Police found the evidence of supporting and funding the new militant outfit Jamatul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya by the Jamaat chief, said DMP Commissioner Khandker Golam Faruq on December 17.</div><div><br></div><div>Meanwhile, about the escape of two militants from the Dhaka court, the CTTC chief said on Thursday: “It is not time to say it yet. They’ve not escaped from the country yet.” Source: UNB</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-22 11:10:14', '2022-12-22 11:10:14'),
(3938, 3938, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Argentine Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship Santiago Andrés Cafiero is likely to visit Bangladesh in March next year, Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen said on Thursday.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The decision of opening Argentina’s embassy in Dhaka will be made during the FM’s visit, the minister told reporters after an event of book launch in the capital.</div><div><br></div><div>Momen said the Argentine side has informed the foreign ministry that their foreign minister will visit Bangladesh in March.</div><div><br></div><div>“There is a good relation between the two countries,” he said, hoping that it will be stronger in future.</div><div><br></div><div>Meanwhile, Argentine President Alberto Fernández today (Thursday) said his country is working to reopen a diplomatic mission in Dhaka next year.</div><div><br></div><div>“We’ve watched closely the celebrations of the friendly people of Bangladesh in support of the (Argentina) team,” he said in a letter to PM Hasina.</div><div><br></div><div>People and the president of Argentina were overwhelmed by the massive, heartfelt public support and celebration in Bangladesh for team Argentina throughout the World Cup and following their victory in the final. Source: UNB</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-22 12:57:51', '2022-12-22 12:57:51'),
(3939, 3939, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal  has said that there is no opportunity for a new dialogue with BNP or any other political party regarding next parliamentary elections expected to be held in January, 2024.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>He said this while speaking to the reporters after exchanging views with the government officials at the Deputy Commissioner\'s office in Patuakhali.</div><div><br></div><div>He said, “BNP has been repeatedly requested to participate in the upcoming elections. But they always rejected our request.”</div><div><br></div><div>BNP is adamant in demanding a non-partisan caretaker government and restructuring of the Election Commission, he added.</div><div><br></div><div>“In this case, there is no chance of a new dialogue with BNP or any other political party regarding the upcoming national parliamentary elections,” he said.</div><div><br></div><div>On the other hand, by-elections to the five vacant parliamentary seats of the BNP MPs will be held with EVMs (Electronic Voting Machines), he said.</div><div><br></div><div>However, the EC currently does not have necessary fund for installing CCTV cameras in polling centres in these by-elections, the CEC added.</div><div><br></div><div>At present, the Election Commission has the capacity of holding elections with EVMs in 50 to 60 seats. Financial allocation has been sought from the government to purchase more EVMs, he said.</div><div><br></div><div>Following the allocation, the commission is planning to buy new machines and hold elections with EVMs in 150 seats in the next parliamentary elections, he added.</div><div>The CEC said some EVMs have been out of service due to lack of proper maintenance. A project has been submitted to the government for their proper conservation of EVMs, and the project proposal is now with the Planning Commission.</div><div><br></div><div>“If the project is approved, it will be possible to properly maintain the EVMs. This will save the country\'s money,” said the CEC.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-22 13:12:58', '2022-12-22 16:06:00'),
(3940, 3940, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">A Dhaka court took into cognizance the charge-sheet filed against JKG Healthcare Chairperson Dr Sabrina Chowdhury in a case filed for making second national identity (NID) card using false information.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Shahidul Islam accepted the charge-sheet and transferred the case to Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court for further proceedings.</div><div><br></div><div>Dhaka Metropolitan Police\'s detective branch (DB) on November 24 filed the charge-sheet in the case. Earlier on November 17, Dhaka Additional Metropolitan Magistrate Tofazzal Hossain issued arrest warrant against Sabrina in the case.</div><div><br></div><div>Election Commission authorities filed the case with Badda Police Station on August 30, 2020, for making two NID cards. Sabrina gave different birthdates in the two NID\'s and different names in place of husband\'s name.</div><div><br></div><div>A Dhaka court on July 19, 2022, sentenced eight people including JKG Healthcare Chairperson Dr Sabrina Chowdhury and its chief executive officer (CEO) Ariful Haque Chowdhury to 11-year imprisonment each in a case for issuing fake coronavirus (Covid-19) test reports. She is in jail now. Source: BSS</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-22 14:43:47', '2022-12-22 14:43:47'),
(3941, 3941, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">A Dhaka court set January 26 for submitting probe report in a case lodged over recent escape of two militants, who have been sentenced to death, from police custody at a Dhaka court.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Farah Diba Chonda passed the order as police failed to submit the report in the case.</div><div><br></div><div>Death-row convicts Abu Siddiq Sohel and Moinul Hasan Shamim, members of banned militant outfit Ansar-al Islam, were whisked away by their associates by beating police and spraying some chemical on their eyes at Dhaka Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) court arena on November 20.</div><div><br></div><div>Court inspector Md Julhash later filed the case with Kotwali Police Station. - BSS</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-22 14:50:06', '2022-12-22 14:50:06'),
(3942, 3942, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Dozens of women gathered outside Kabul University on Thursday to protest in the first major public demonstration in the capital since the Taliban\'s decision to close universities to female students.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Female university students were turned away the previous day from campuses after the Taliban-run administration said on Tuesday that women would be suspended from tertiary education.</div><div><br></div><div>According to witnesses, about 50 mainly female protestors assembled while holding banners and chanted: \"Education is our right, universities should be opened.\"</div><div><br></div><div>The Taliban-led administration had already drawn criticism including from foreign governments for not opening girls\' high schools at the start of the school year in March, making a U-turn on signals it would do so.</div><div><br></div><div>The backlash towards restrictions on female education is complicating the Taliban-led administration\'s efforts to gain formal recognition and the lifting of sanctions that are hampering the economy, diplomats say.</div><div><br></div><div>Large-scale protesting has become rare in Afghanistan since the Taliban took over the country, as they are often shut down forcefully by security agencies. The scattered protests that have occurred are a sign of the discontent the Taliban\'s policy has generated.</div><div><br></div><div>A heavy security presence has been present in the Afghan capital, including at gatherings at universities, in recent days.</div><div><br></div><div>A spokesperson for Afghanistan\'s higher education ministry said its minister would hold a press conference on Thursday or Friday to \"to elaborate more on the closure of universities for women.\"</div><div><br></div><div>The previous day students in Nangahar University in eastern Afghanistan also protested and male medical students walked out of exams protest at their female classmates being excluded.</div><div><br></div><div>\"The female students came and asked (the male students) not to sit exams as we are not allowed to,\" said 25-year-old Zia, a male medical student at Nangahar. \"The male students demonstrated courage and left the exam site.\" - Reuters&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-22 15:57:06', '2022-12-22 15:57:06'),
(3943, 3943, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Prime Minister and Awami League President Sheikh Hasina today said how the BNP has a dream of coming to the power again, referring to 2008 general election which was accepted by all and the BNP-Jamaat alliance had got only 30 seats.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>\"How BNP dreams of going to the power again with the people\'s vote,\" she said while presiding over a meeting of the Awami League Working Committee (ALWC) in her official Ganabhaban residence here this evening.</div><div><br></div><div>The Prime Minister said the 2008 general election was held in a credible and fair manner and none could raise any question about the election.</div><div><br></div><div>She said the AL led grand alliance had achieved landslide victory in the election while BNP led alliance only got 30 seats.</div><div><br></div><div>\"Is BNP doing anything better for the country and its people through which they will build confidence and trust of the people for them which move them to send the party power again?\" she posed a question.</div><div><br></div><div>She said since its inception BNP has been playing ducks and drakes with the people\'s voting rights, referring to Ziaur Rahman\'s farcical yes/no vote and parliamentary election to hang on to the power which he grabbed illegally after violating the country\'s constitution.</div><div><br></div><div>Sheikh Hasina said Ziaur Rahman\'s wife Khaleda Zia had also held farcical election on February 15 in 1996 in which no political party took part in the polls.</div><div><br></div><div>The people of the country toppled the BNP government through movement with one and a half month of the election as the people of the country never accepted vote rigging, she said.</div><div><br></div><div>She also added that there was an attempt to hold a general election in 2006 with a voter list of having 1.23 crore fake voters which was cancelled, reports BSS</div><div><br></div><div>But, the Awami League always comes to the power with the people\'s mandate, she said.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-22 16:04:58', '2022-12-22 16:04:58'),
(3944, 3944, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Bangladesh Bank has instructed the non-banking financial institutions (NBFIs) that the institutions cannot change any of their vehicles before eight years.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Earlier, as per a 2015 directive, there was an opportunity to change vehicles after every five years.</div><div><br></div><div>In line with the government\'s decision to reduce operational and development expenditure in the context of the global economic situation, purchases of any type of vehicles (new and replacement) at the official expenses by NBFIs will be suspended during the fiscal year 2022-23.</div><div><br></div><div>The Financial Institutions and Market Department of Bangladesh Bank on Wednesday issued a circular in this regard.</div><div><br></div><div>The chief executives of financial institutions cannot be given multiple vehicles at companies’ expenses. Apart from this, BB has instructed that the officers who take car loans and maintenance cost cannot use the companies’ vehicles. - UNB</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-22 16:16:20', '2022-12-22 16:16:20'),
(3945, 3945, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Plunging temperatures wreaking havoc across the US and Canada can lead to frostbite on bare skin in only five to 10 minutes, experts are warning.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">A powerful Arctic winter storm has placed more than 135 million people under weekend weather alerts ahead of the busiest travel days of the year.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The alerts stretch from coast to coast and reach as far south as the US-Mexico border and Florida, the Sunshine State.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Major airports have cancelled thousands of flights as the storm intensifies.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The cold snap could bring the iciest Christmas in decades, say forecasters.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The National Weather Service (NWS) said temperatures of -50F (-45C) and -70F were possible by the end of this week in some parts of the country.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">They warned that even in major metro areas, like the city of Des Moines, Iowa, frostbite will be a major danger.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Frostbite is caused when blood flow is reduced, often to extremities like the nose and cheeks or fingers and toes. The lack of warm blood can lead to tissue freezing and rupturing, and in some cases, amputation.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Meteorologists say the winter storm could become a \"bomb cyclone\" by Friday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bomb cyclone is a term given to an explosive storm that intensifies rapidly, with its central air pressure dropping by at least 24 millibars in 24 hours.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"This is not like a snow day, when you were a kid, this is serious stuff,\" President Joe Biden said in a White House briefing on Thursday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Arctic air mass is projected to bring strong wind gusts and temperature of 15F (-9.4C) to El Paso, Texas, where newly arrived undocumented migrants are sleeping rough on city streets.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"It\'s been very, very cold here,\" Dylan Torres Reyes, a migrant from Venezuela who has been spending nights on the pavement outside El Paso\'s main bus terminal, told the BBC.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Florida is projected to see its coldest Christmas in 30 years.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The NWS has called it a \"once-in-a-generation\" winter weather event, saying on Thursday that \"life-threatening wind chills\" will strike the east coast on Friday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Snow and powerful winds are expected to cause damage and power outages in the Midwest and Canada.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Where has the storm and severe cold hit?</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;-The NWS warned more than 100 daily cold temperature records could be tied or broken over the next few days.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">-In Colorado, temperatures dipped to a record-breaking low of -9F from 42F on Thursday</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">-The city of Cheyenne, Wyoming, set a record for its greatest one-hour temperature drop, after going from 43F to 3F within 30 minutes. Elsewhere in the western state, temperatures have dropped as low as -35F</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">-Nearly a dozen record low temperatures were also set in neighbouring Montana</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">-Blizzard conditions have hit both North Dakota and South Dakota</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">-In Chicago, a winter storm warning is in effect until Saturday, bringing with it several inches of snow and winds topping 50mph (80km/h)</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">-In Canada, much of Ontario and parts of Quebec are also bracing for a major winter storm that is expected to last through the Christmas weekend</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Travel chaos</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">More than 5,300 flights in the US have already been cancelled on Thursday and Friday, according to the flight-tracking site FlightAware.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In anticipation of travel disruptions, major airlines including United, Delta and American have offered to waive fees for travellers who wish to reschedule their flights.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Roads along the Colorado-Wyoming border were closed on Wednesday due to nearly zero visibility.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Travellers at Chicago\'s O\'Hare International Airport have been met with flight delays and cancellations on Thursday</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">States of emergency declared</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The governors of Kentucky, North Carolina, West Virginia, New York, Georgia and Oklahoma have declared states of emergency.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Wisconsin has declared an \"energy emergency\" because of the weather.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Other states, like Maryland, have activated emergency response operations ahead of the storm, while others have opened warming shelters. BBC</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 05:41:30', '2022-12-23 05:41:30'),
(3946, 3946, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">North Korea has delivered arms to Russia\'s private military group Wagner, the White House said Thursday, calling the group a \"rival\" for power to the defense and other ministries in the Kremlin.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">The US will boost sanctions on the Wagner group following North Korea\'s sale to the group of infantry rockets and missiles last month, in violation of UN Security Council resolutions, said White House national security spokesman John Kirby.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Wagner is searching around the world for arms suppliers to support its military operations in Ukraine,\" Kirby told reporters.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"We can confirm that North Korea has completed an initial arms delivery to Wagner, which paid for that equipment,\" he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Kirby said the Wagner group, which is independent of the Russian defense establishment and is leading a bloody siege of Bakhmut, Ukraine, is spending more than $100 million each month in its Ukraine operations.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Wagner is emerging as a rival power center to the Russian military and other Russian ministries,\" Kirby said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">- \'Sign of desperation\' -</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In a statement, British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said the UK concurs with the American assessment that North Korea delivered arms to Russia for the Wagner group in violation of UN resolutions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The fact that President Putin is turning to North Korea for help is a sign of Russia\'s desperation and isolation,\" Cleverly said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"We will work with our partners to ensure that North Korea pays a high price for supporting Russia\'s illegal war in Ukraine.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">- Close to Putin -</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Wagner group is controlled by Yevgeny Prigozhin, a businessman once called \"Putin\'s chef\" for his work catering dinners for Vladimir Putin before and after he became the Russian president.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Prigozhin -- who also controls the notorious St. Petersburg internet \"troll farm\" that allegedly disrupted the 2016 US election -- has been a vocal critic of the Russian defense establishment\'s handling of the war in Ukraine.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">His mercenary-like army has been carrying out operations, ostensibly private but implicitly approved by the Kremlin, in Syria, Libya, Sudan, the Central African Republic and other countries in Africa.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In several locations they have been accused of participating in atrocities.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Ukraine, the group has served as an elite special forces-type operation that has better training, equipment and supplies than the mainstream Russian military.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">- Convict recruits sent to front -</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But Wagner has taken significant casualties, and Prigozhin has relied on prisons to supply Wagner with convicts to fill out its ranks.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Kirby estimated that the Wagner force now numbers about 50,000, including 10,000 skilled \"contractors\" and 40,000 convicts.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Bakhmut and other areas of heavy fighting, Ukraine forces say that the relatively untrained convicts have been forced to the front, where many have been killed or injured.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to US information, Kirby said, 1,000 Wagner fighters have been killed in the fighting in recent weeks, 90 percent of them convicts.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"It seems as though Mr. Prigozhin is willing to just throw Russian bodies into the meat grinder in Bakhmut,\" he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Kirby said Prigozhin appeared more interested in \"influence peddling at the Kremlin\" than protecting his troops.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"For him, it\'s all about how good he looks to Mr. Putin, and how well he\'s regarded at the Kremlin,\" Kirby said. AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 05:45:14', '2022-12-23 05:45:14'),
(3947, 3947, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>An antiviral drug tested by more than 25,000 vaccinated Covid patients has been found to reduce recovery time from the disease.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Molnupiravir was given to people twice a day, for five days at home, while they had the Omicron variant of Covid.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Those chosen were at a higher risk of death or hospitalisation from Covid due to age or underlying health conditions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Despite aiding recovery, the drug did not decrease death rates or hospital admissions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Participants taking the antiviral drug while having Covid were compared with those receiving standard care who also had the infection.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The trial was conducted to see whether it backed up previous studies on molnupiravir, which had suggested it was effective at reducing hospital admissions among patients with mild-to-moderate Covid.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">However, those trials were conducted on unvaccinated patients, before the emergence of the Omicron wave.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Research in this latest study showed the treatment reduced recovery time by around four days and also reduced the viral load - the level of infection.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The findings suggest this drug would not be suitable for the entire population but in extreme circumstances could reduce pressure on the NHS.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Molnupiravir, which is made by Merck, Sharp and Dohme (MSD), is very expensive- a seven-day course costs around £577.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It was the first antiviral drug studied as a treatment for Covid in the community - which means it was taken at home rather than in a medical setting.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Chris Butler, who is a professor of primary care in the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, says: \"Finding effective, safe and scalable early treatments for Covid-19 in the community is the next major frontier in our research response to the ongoing worldwide pandemic.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"It is in the community where treatments could have a massive reach and impact.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"But decisions about who to treat should always be based on evidence from rigorous clinical trials that involve people who would most likely be prescribed the drugs.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">To participate in the trial, people had to be within five days of the start of symptoms and either healthy and over 50 or 18-50 with underlying health conditions that made them more vulnerable to Covid.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Former deputy chief medical officer for England, Prof Sir Jonathan Van-Tam, who is pro-vice-chancellor for the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences at the University of Nottingham and study co-author, said: \"While molnupiravir was originally found to work well to reduce hospitalisation in patients with Covid, these were unvaccinated patients.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"This latest research has repeated the exercise in the highly vaccinated population, demonstrating that the vaccine protection is so strong that there is no obvious benefit from the drug in terms of further reducing hospitalisation and deaths.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"However, symptom duration and virus shedding are both markedly reduced, and we have to wait much longer to know if there will be any discernible effects on long Covid.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The findings are published in The Lancet journal. BBC</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"6\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 05:55:35', '2022-12-23 05:55:35'),
(3948, 3948, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Volodymyr Zelensky\'s visit to Washington sent Russia a message of steadfast unity and resolve, but defense analysts say he needs more concrete battlefield gains to sustain US and NATO backing through 2023 and fend off pressure to negotiate with Moscow.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">In his first trip outside Ukraine since the war began last February, Zelensky earned firm pledges of support from President Joe Biden at the White House and then from US lawmakers whom he addressed in Congress.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But the thin attendance of Republicans for the Ukraine leader\'s congressional address, and Biden\'s reticence to provide him powerful offensive weapons, citing allies\' concerns, showed there remained limits to the support.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">That adds pressure on Kyiv\'s forces to show more progress in fighting Russia\'s army in the coming months.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">\"For the next several months, Ukraine is in a good spot in terms of financial support from both the United States and European allies and partners,\" said Luke Coffey, a defense expert at the Hudson Institute.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sometime this winter Coffey expects Kyiv\'s forces to launch a new thrust toward Russian-held Melitopol in the south.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">If successful, that could shore up support over the longer term, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"But we have to start thinking like, this will be a war that\'s measured in years and not months. And we have to start planning accordingly,\" he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b>- Threat of war fatigue -</b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Washington\'s commitment was on display during Zelensky\'s lightning half-day visit.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Congress is near to approving $45 billion in aid for Ukraine, and the White House announced a new $1.85 billion arms package, including a Patriot missile battery, the Pentagon\'s most advanced air defense system.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But the White House continued to hold back on Ukraine\'s requests for more, like longer-range ATACMS missiles, advanced attack drones and F-16 fighter jets.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In explaining why in a joint press conference with Zelensky, Biden indicated fragility of allied support for the war.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"I\'ve spent several hundred hours face-to-face with our European allies and the heads of state of those countries, and making the case as to why it was overwhelmingly in their interest that they continue to support Ukraine,\" he said</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"They understand it fully, but they\'re not looking to go to war with Russia.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Michael Horowitz, head of intelligence at LeBeck International, a Middle East security consultant, said there are \"unexpressed concerns\" among allies over whether Zelensky\'s goal of retaking all of Ukraine, including Crimea, from Russia is achievable.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"As the Russian invasion stalls, Putin is counting on war fatigue, both inside and outside of Ukraine, to force Kyiv into settling,\" said Horowitz.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">That is the goal of Russia\'s \"winter strategy\" of attacking Ukraine\'s electricity network and driving up food and fuel prices globally, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"What Ukraine will need more than anything else in the coming months are new military victories. Those victories are the only effective way to truly stave off conflict fatigue,\" he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">- \'Putin\'s forever war -</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">That could be difficult. Hudson\'s Coffey said both sides will score wins and losses in the coming campaign, and any offensive by Ukraine in the south could be complicated by a mainly diversionary Russian assault from the north.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The problem is that we are not in 1944 or 1945,\" said Mykola Bielieskov, of Ukraine\'s National Institute for Strategic Studies, referring to the final years of World War II, when Germany\'s ultimate defeat was looming.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"It\'s more like the end of 1942/beginning of 1943. There is still way to go to ultimate triumph\" over Russia, he wrote on Twitter.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Seth Jones of the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington said all indications from Moscow point to a \"protracted war and willingness to spend whatever it takes.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the same day Zelensky travelled to Washington, Putin met with his top military officials and announced plans to expand and better equip his armed forces.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"We don\'t have any limits on funding. The country and the government is giving everything that the army asks for, everything,\" Putin said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"This is, every indication we have seen, Vladimir Putin\'s forever war,\" Jones said. AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 06:01:03', '2022-12-23 06:01:03');
INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(3949, 3949, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Throughout Mariupol, Russian workers are tearing down bombed-out buildings at a rate of at least one a day, hauling away shattered bodies with the debris.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Russian military convoys are rumbling down the broad avenues of what is swiftly becoming a garrison city, and Russian soldiers, builders, administrators and doctors are replacing the tens of thousands of Ukrainians who have died or left.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Many of the city’s Ukrainian street names are reverting to Soviet ones, with the Avenue of Peace that cuts through Mariupol to be labeled Lenin Avenue. Even the large sign that announces the name of the city at its entrance has been Russified, repainted with the red, white and blue of the Russian flag and the Russian spelling.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Eight months after Mariupol fell into Russian hands, Russia is eradicating all vestiges of Ukraine from it – along with the evidence of war crimes buried in its buildings, such as the famed Drama Theater where demolition started Thursday. The few open schools teach a Russian curriculum, phone and television networks are Russian, the Ukrainian currency is dying out, and Mariupol is now in the Moscow time zone. On the ruins of the old Mariupol, a new Russian city is rising, with materials from at least one European company, The Associated Press found.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But the AP investigation into life in occupied Mariupol also underlines what its residents already know all too well: No matter what the Russians do, they are building upon a city of death. More than 10,000 new graves now scar Mariupol, the AP found, and the death toll might run three times higher than an early estimate of at least 25,000. The former Ukrainian city has also hollowed out, with Russian plans to demolish well over 50,000 homes, the AP calculated.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Associated Press journalists were the last international media in Mariupol to escape heavy shelling in March, before Russian forces took the city over. This is the story of what has happened since. AP reconnected with many people whose tragedies were captured in photos and video during the deadliest days of the Russian siege.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Death surrounds Mariupol in the rapidly growing cemeteries on its outskirts, and its stench lingered over the city into the autumn. It haunts the memories of survivors, both in Mariupol and in exile.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Every one of the dozens of residents the AP spoke with knew someone killed during the siege of Mariupol, which began with the Feb. 24 invasion. As many as 30 people arrive at the morgue each day in hopes of tracking down a loved one.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Lydya Erashova watched her 5-year-old son Artem and her 7-year-old niece Angelina die after a Russian shelling in March. The family hastily buried the young cousins in a makeshift grave in a yard and fled Mariupol.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">They returned in July to rebury the children, only to learn while on the road that the bodies had already been dug up and taken to a warehouse. As they approached the city center, each block was bleaker than the last.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“It is horror. Wherever you look, whichever way you look,” said Erashova. “Everything is black, is destroyed.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Neither she nor her sister-in-law could bear to go inside the warehouse to identify the bodies of their children. Their husbands, who are brothers, chose the tiny coffins – one pink and one blue – to be placed together in a single grave.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Erashova, who is now in Canada, said no Russian rebuilding plan could possibly bring back what Mariupol lost.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Our lives have been taken from us. Our child was taken from us,” she said. “It’s so ridiculous and stupid. How do you restore a dead city where people were killed at every turn?”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The AP investigation drew on interviews with 30 residents from Mariupol, including 13 living under Russian occupation; satellite imagery; hundreds of videos gathered from inside the city, and Russian documents showing a master plan. Taken together, they chronicle a comprehensive effort to suppress Mariupol’s collective history and memory as a Ukrainian city.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Mariupol was in the crosshairs of the Kremlin from the first day of the invasion. Just 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the Russian border, the city is a port on the Sea of Azov and crucial for Russian supply lines.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The city was hit relentlessly with airstrikes and artillery, its communications severed, its food and water cut off. Yet Mariupol refused to give in for 86 days. By the time the last Ukrainian fighters holed up in the Azovstal steel mill surrendered in May, Mariupol had become a symbol of Ukrainian resistance.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">That resistance came at a high price. The thoroughness of Russia’s destruction of Mariupol can still be seen today. Videos taken across the city and satellite images show that munitions have left their mark on nearly every building across its 166 square kilometers (64 square miles).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Large swaths of the city are devoid of color and life, with fire-blackened walls, grey demolition dust and dead trees with shredded foliage. But the worst destruction Mariupol suffered may be measured in its death toll, which will never be fully known.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">An AP analysis of satellite imagery taken over the past eight months of occupation shows 8,500 new graves in the outlying Staryi Krym cemetery alone, with possibly multiple bodies beneath each mound. There are at least three other trench gravesites around the city, including one created by Ukrainians themselves at the beginning of the siege.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In all, a total at least 10,300 new graves are scattered around Mariupol, according to AP’s methodology, confirmed by three forensic pathologists with expertise in mass graves. Thousands more bodies likely never even made it to the graveyard.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Back in May, when the city finally fell, the municipal government in exile estimated 25,000 people at a minimum had died. But at least three people in the city since June say the number killed is triple that or more, based on conversations with workers documenting body collection from the streets for the Russian occupation authorities.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Svitlana Chebotareva, a Mariupol resident who fled in March, said her neighbor died in a flat nearby, and the body is still there. Chebotareva returned home this autumn for just long enough to retrieve her belongings, since residents are free to come and go so long as they pass checkpoints. She said the Russians expect gratitude with their offer of a few new apartments.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I don’t know how it’s possible now to give us ‘candies’ in exchange for destroyed homes and killed people,” she said in Kyiv. “As if there’s something to believe in.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">This is how those who remained in Mariupol learn their buildings are scheduled for imminent demolition. Often, despite shattered windows, frozen pipes and no electricity, they are still living inside because they have nowhere else to go.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In a review of hundreds of photos and video clips along with documents from occupation authorities, the AP found that more than 300 buildings in Mariupol have been or are about to be demolished. Some are individual homes, but most are multistory apartment blocks in the khrushchyovka style, launched by Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev in a housing crisis in the 1960s. With around 180 apartments inside or more, each building was designed to house as many families as possible.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">That means in all, the demolitions will remove well over 50,000 homes, according to AP calculations.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“There is no discussion, people aren’t prepared,” said an activist in Mariupol, who like all inside Mariupol requested anonymity for fear of retribution. “People still live in the basements. Where they can go is unclear.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Only Russians handle the debris itself, according to another resident still in the city who works on the sites. The stated reason is to avoid accidents, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But Petro Andryushchenko, an aide to Mariupol’s mayor who is exiled in Dnipro, believes the real reason is to ensure that people don’t see the rotting corpses being hauled away. He said many of the buildings, especially in the neighborhood around Azovstal , contain 50 to 100 bodies each that will never get a decent burial. Those deaths will go unrecorded.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">110 Mytropolytska is one of the buildings on Russia’s demolition list, scheduled to come down any day.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The smell of fresh-baked bread still brings Inna Nepomnyshaya, a doctor, back to her last night in March in her sixth-floor apartment there. When she saw the street price of bread in her besieged city, she decided to bake her own.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The smell warmed the air the next morning when her son-in-law arrived. It was time to leave, he insisted. Russian forces were closing in.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Nepomnyshaya was at her daughter’s building when Russian tanks rolled up to her own at dusk on March 11. As AP journalists watched and recorded from the upper floor of nearby Hospital No. 2, one tank raised its gun at 110 Mytropolytska and fired.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The shell shattered the walls of Nepomnyshaya’s apartment and obliterated those of the neighbors above, below and behind her. Most of the neighbors were huddled in the basement, but two elderly women, Lydya and Nataliya, couldn’t make the trip up and down the stairs.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Their bodies would be buried in the courtyard soon after. Weeks later, AP video showed the rough graves still there.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">With communications to the city cut, Nepomnyshaya did not learn of the fate of her apartment until her family had escaped to Ukrainian-held territory. Like many who left Mariupol, she still speaks of the city in the present tense.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I live in Mariupol, this is my home,” she said, speaking by candlelight in a café in Dnipro, another city that had lost power. “This house was my fortress, and they took it away from me.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Also on the demolition list are the buildings on either side. One was hit by at least one airstrike on March 11; the walls of another are in ruins.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Russia is now moving into the historic city center. Russian authorities in October dismantled Mariupol’s memorial to victims of the Holodomor, the Soviet-engineered famine in the 1930s that killed millions of Ukrainians, according to video posted on Russian television. They also painted over two murals commemorating victims of Russia’s 2014 attack on Ukraine, images obtained by the AP show.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“They spend an inordinate amount of time focusing on things like erasing demonstrations of Ukrainian identity and very little time tending to the needs of the Mariupol people,” said Michael Carpenter, U.S. ambassador to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which for years monitored eastern Ukraine. “It’s really a very brutal inhuman colonial experiment unfolding before our eyes.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As it tries to raze the remains of Ukraine, Russia has laid out a plan for a new city with a new population. At its heart will lie the historic Mariupol theater, according to the master plan first reported by the Russian site The Village in August and seen by The Associated Press.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The majestic Drama Theater became the city’s main bomb shelter until twin Russian airstrikes hit on March 16. Hundreds died, an AP investigation found, and residents said the site reeked of bodies all summer. To mask the ruins, Russian authorities put up a screen so tall it can be seen from space, etching the theater’s outline on the paneling in a ghostly reminder of its previous life.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Thursday, the theater itself fell victim to the demolition campaign, according to video from the city seen by The Associated Press.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Also in the Russian documents are plans to restore the ruins of the obliterated Azovstal steel mill, the last Ukrainian holdout. The site is slated to be transformed into an industrial park by the end of next year, though there are no signs that any work has begun.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But a Russian military compound went up in record time, according to satellite imagery from Maxar Technologies that showed the vast U-shaped building with the Russian Army slogan emblazoned on the rooftop.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Russia already has constructed at least 14 new apartment buildings — a small fraction of the number coming down — and is repairing at least two of the hospitals it damaged by shelling. Video obtained by The Associated Press showed rows of pallets stacked with insulation from the Danish company Rockwool, which maintains its division in Russia despite criticism. Construction materials are not subject to sanctions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In a statement, Rockwool’s Vice President of Communications Michael Zarin said the insulation panels were distributed without the company’s “knowledge or consent,” and that he hopes its products help restore health care, warmth and shelter to Ukrainians.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Videos show no furniture visible in the windows of the new apartments and few people on the sidewalks outside. Only pensioners, the disabled and those affiliated with the occupation seem to be getting them, according to multiple people still in Mariupol.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">One man applied to the list in September and found himself in 11,700th place. He has friends in the 2,000 range who are still waiting, like him. And an old man he knows, whose number was in the 9,000s has already moved into one of the new buildings.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I don’t know how it happens. I won’t speculate,” he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">However, the man said he has no issue with the demolition of buildings that aren’t fit to live in. He is cautiously relaunching his own company in the new city.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But the plans for a Russian Mariupol depend on a population that simply no longer exists.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Thousands of Mariupol’s former residents were sent to Russia with little or no choice, and thousands more fled into other areas of Ukraine. Of Mariupol’s former population of around 425,000, just over a quarter stayed, according to estimates from Andryushchenko.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Russian master plan for Mariupol calls for a population of 212,000 in 2022, and back to 425,000 by 2030. Right now, about 15,000 of the people in Mariupol people are Russian troops, said Andryushchenko, who drew his estimate from information about the soldiers taking over homes and public buildings. He said Russian riot police have begun patrolling the city to head off protests over the lack of heat, electricity and water.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Videos seen by the AP showed military convoys, along with construction trucks, clogging the streets. The activist the AP spoke with also confirmed an increase in the number of soldiers since Russian forces retreated from the Kharkiv and Kherson regions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Construction workers from Russia show no signs of leaving, and tents were visible outside the Port City mall until the winter. Doctors and city administrators also have come in from Russia, according to Russian government announcements and physicians who left the city after refusing to work for the occupation authorities.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“There is no more Russian city now than Mariupol,” Dmitry Sablin, a Russian lawmaker born in Mariupol, said in an interview with Russian media in June after visiting the city.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Kremlin is moving as swiftly as it can to ensure that those Ukrainians who stay see their future as Russians.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Nov. 15, Russian President Vladimir Putin awarded Mariupol the title of “City of Military Glory” for the heroism of people he described as its defenders. On Dec. 7, Putin said his war against Ukraine had turned the Sea of Azov into “Russia’s internal sea.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">This suits many of those who remained behind just fine. Mariupol has always had some residents who considered themselves Russian.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Whoever doesn’t like it, doesn’t come back,” one woman said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Russia’s occupation of Mariupol has divided families and friends into two categories: Those who stayed and those who fled. Both grapple with what Mariupol once was and will be.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">When Ivan Kalinin escaped, he left behind the body of his wife Iryna and their unborn first child, both killed in the March 9 Russian airstrike on the maternity hospital. His parents and hers stayed in Mariupol.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He last saw his wife that morning when her labor began, and she sent him to fetch clothes and diapers. He learned about the airstrike at a military blockade on the way to the hospital. He and his father found her body the next day at another hospital.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I do not even know how I survived it,” he said quietly. “I was drinking every day to fall asleep.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Kalinin, who now lives in Wales, cannot imagine going home. Nor can he imagine life anywhere else.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“It is too painful for me to be there. I might return at some point — it is my hometown, after all,” he said. “I fall asleep every day hoping this is a dream. And I wake up with understanding that it is a reality.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Mariupol is now torn between Russia and Ukraine. Some people who stayed are waiting for Russian citizenship just to get on with their lives. Yet the Ukrainian letter ï , which is not found in Russian, is appearing as graffiti around the city — a small act of defiance in a place many described as full of fear.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Nepomnyshaya, whose apartment was struck by a Russian shell, dreamed recently that she’d returned home and smelled bread. But she is not sure if she ever can or will go back.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I believe that Mariupol will be rebuilt, that it will be Ukraine after all,” she said. “But I know that this smell is just a memory.” AP/UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 06:21:46', '2022-12-23 06:21:46'),
(3950, 3950, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman spoke on the phone with State Minister for Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh Shahriar Alam on Thursday.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">The deputy secretary and state minister discussed strengthening US-Bangladesh relations, the importance of holding free and fair elections, and the safety and security of US embassy personnel, according to US State Department Spokesperson Ned Price.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen on December 19 (Monday) said there is nothing to worry about when it comes to the security of foreign diplomats stationed in Dhaka.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Our government will guarantee full protection of all diplomats,\" he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The US side said they raised the December 14 Shaheenbagh incident at the \"highest levels\" of the Bangladesh government, as well as with the Bangladesh Embassy in Washington, DC.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The ambassador (Peter Haas) is a bit panicked about his security. Our ambassador conveyed there is no reason to get panicked,\" Momen said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Earlier, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan on December 18 said there had been no shortage of security when US Ambassador Peter Haas visited Shaheenbagh on the 14th. \"Police personnel rushed to the spot immediately.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The US Embassy in Dhaka said they take \"seriously\" all allegations of human rights violations and regularly meet with a wide variety of human rights organisations.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The US Embassy had not received any prior communication from Mayer Kanna over the last several years,\" said a US Embassy spokesperson on Sunday, in light of various articles and statements surrounding Ambassador Haas\' meeting with Mayer Dak on December 14 – the purpose of his trip to Shaheenbagh- but apparently snubbing the former.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Whereas the US ambassador had to end his \"prescheduled\" meeting with Mayer Dak on December 14 due to \"security concerns,\" Mayer Kanna were looking to catch his attention or communicate with him for the very first time that day.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The meeting was interrupted by protestors (Mayer Dak personnel), who attempted to enter the building where the ambassador was located. Other protestors surrounded the ambassador\'s vehicle,\" said the spokesperson. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 06:58:52', '2022-12-23 06:58:52'),
(3951, 3951, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The 22nd national council of ruling Awami League will be held in the capital tomorrow with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina as its longest-serving president while the party saw eight chiefs and nine secretaries since its founding on June 23, 1949.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina has been serving as the longest serving president of AL, which led the country\'s 1971 Liberation War, for highest nine consecutive terms for the last four decades since her election to the position on February 16, 1981.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">So far, 9 leaders served the AL as general secretary with Bangabandhu and Zillur Rahman serving in that position for the highest four terms each.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman became the party president on January 25, 1966 and steered the party for eight years till January 18, 1974.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The first party chief, Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani served for seven years from June 23, 1949 to July 27, 1956. Shamshul Haque was elected as general secretary while Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as joint general secretary.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman were elected president and general secretary respectively in the AL\'s second council held in 1953.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Third council was held in 1955 and Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani and Sheikh Mujibur Rahman were reelected president and general secretary.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy served as the acting party president for one year from July 27, 1956 to October 10, 1957.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Maulana Abdur Rashid Tarkabagish was elected as acting president and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was elected general secretary for the third time in the fourth council of Awami League held in 1957.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Maulana Abdur Rashid Tarkabagish was elected as president and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was elected general secretary for the fourth time in fifth council of the party held in 1964.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The sixth council of Awami League held in 1966 was a historic one as it endorsed historic 6-point of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was elected as AL president first time and Tajuddin Ahmed was elected as its general secretary.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The seventh council was held in 1968 and Bangabandhu was in jail in connection with Agartala conspiracy case. Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Tajuddin Ahmed were reelected as president and general secretary respectively of the party.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The eighth council of AL was held in 1970 and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Tajuddin Ahmed were elected as president and general secretary respectively of the party again.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The ninth council was held in the independent Bangladesh in 1972 and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Zillur Rahman were elected president and general secretary respectively of AL.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A H M Quamaruzzaman and Zillur Rahman were elected as president and general secretary respectively of AL in the 10th council held in 1974.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The 11th council was held in 1977 and Syeda Zohra Tajuddin was elected the party\'s convener.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Abdul Malek Ukil and Abdur Razzak were elected president and general secretary respectively of AL in the 12th council held in 1978.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The 13th council was held in 1981 and it was a turning point for AL as around 4,000 councilors and delegates elected Sheikh Hasina as president while she was in exile. Abdur Razzak was elected as general secretary. Abdur Razzak resigned from the post in 1982 and Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury became acting general secretary.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The 14th council was held in 1987 and Sheikh Hasina and Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury were elected as president and general secretary respectively of the party.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina and Zillur Rahman were elected as president and general secretary respectively in the 15th council of the part held in 1992.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina and Zillur Rahman were elected president and general secretary respectively again in 16th council held in 1997.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The 17th council was held 2002 and Sheikh Hasina and Abdul Jalil were elected president and general secretary respectively.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina and Sayed Ashraful Islam were elected as president and general secretary respectively of AL in 18th council held in 2007.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Both Sheikh Hasina and Sayed Ashraful Islam were elected as president and general secretary respectively again in 19th council held in 2012.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The 20th council of AL was held in 2016 and Sheikh Hasina and Obaidul Quader were elected as president and general secretary respectively.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The 21st council was held on December 20-21 in 2009 at the historic Suhrawardy Udyan. Sheikh Hasina and Obaidul Quader were reelected as president and general secretary respectively in the council. BSS</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 07:03:37', '2022-12-23 07:03:37'),
(3952, 3952, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Taijul Islam claimed three wickets as Bangladesh made India struggle on the second day of the second Test in Dhaka on Friday.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Resuming at 19-0, the visitors reached 86-3 at lunch, still trailing Bangladesh by 141 runs.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Former skipper Virat Kohli was batting on 18 with Rishabh Pant 12 not out at the break.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Taijul had KL Rahul (10) and Shubman Gill (20) out leg-before in successive overs before he dismissed Cheteshwar Pujara for 24.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rahul was initially declared not out but the decision was overturned on review.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Gill walked off after he was struck plumb in front by Taijul in the next over.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The left-arm spinner then broke the fledging 34-run partnership between Pujara and Kohli just as the duo looked set.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Pujara, who completed 7,000 Test runs during the innings, was caught by Mominul Haque at forward short leg.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Liton Das dropped Kohli at 16 off Taijul before Bangladesh missed a run out chance in the same over.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On day one Umesh Yadav and Ravichandran Ashwin claimed four wickets apiece as India bowled out Bangladesh for 227 runs in the first innings.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">India won the first Test of the two-match series by 188 runs in Chittagong. AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 07:07:30', '2022-12-23 07:07:30'),
(3953, 3953, '<p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">A light to thick blanket of fog is likely to envelope large parts of Bangladesh for up to 12 hours from Friday midnight.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Moderate to thick fog may occur over the river basins and northern part of the country and light to moderate fog elsewhere over the country from midnight to morning, the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) said today.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The weather may remain dry with temporary partly cloudy skies over the country, it added. \"Night and day temperatures may fall slightly over the country.\"</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The lowest temperature in the country was recorded at 8.4-degree Celsius in Badalgachhi of Rajshahi division in the last 24 hours till 6am Friday.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The highest temperature was recorded at 29.6-degree Celsius in Teknaf of Chattogram division. UNB</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">bnbd24/kh</span><br></p>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 07:58:25', '2022-12-23 07:58:25'),
(3954, 3954, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The Kremlin on Thursday accused Kyiv and Washington of turning a deaf ear to its concerns and charged the United States was using Ukraine as a battleground to weaken Russia.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It came as President Vladimir Putin insisted Russia was aiming for a speedy end to the fighting.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Our goal is... to end this conflict. We are striving for this\", he told reporters. \"We will seek to make sure that it all ends, and the sooner, the better\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"All conflicts end, some way or another, with talks... The faster our adversaries (in Kyiv) understand that, the better it will be,\" Putin said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Moscow\'s military chief has said Russian forces are now concentrated on wresting control of the eastern Donetsk region where the battered city of Bakhmut has become an epicentre of fighting.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Officials in Moscow have repeatedly said in recent months that they have not ruled out talks with Ukraine.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">They blamed the closure of diplomatic channels on President Zelensky, who has said he will not negotiate while Putin is in power.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Ukrainian leader has returned from a historic trip to Washington, where he told Congress his country was \"alive and kicking\" and supporting it was an investment in global security.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He enjoyed a hero\'s welcome on the lightning trip on Wednesday, in which US President Joe Biden committed nearly $1.8 billion in military supplies including, for the first time, the Patriot missile defence system.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Putin warned this could further draw out the conflict, saying: \"Those who are confronting us say this is a defensive weapon... There will always be an antidote.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The people who are doing this are doing it in vain. It\'s just prolonging the conflict, that\'s all,\" he told reporters.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Earlier, the Kremlin said Biden and Zelensky were not listening to \"Russia\'s concerns\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Not a single word was heard warning Zelensky against the continued shelling of residential buildings in towns and villages in Donbas and there were no real calls for peace,\" spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"This suggests that the United States is continuing its line of de facto fighting an indirect war with Russia to the last Ukrainian,\" he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">- Focus on Donetsk -</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Russia\'s army chief Valery Gerasimov said Russian troops are \"focused on completing the liberation\" of Donetsk.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The eastern Ukrainian region is one four Moscow claims to have annexed -- despite never fully controlling it.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Gerasimov also said that Russia had used hypersonic missiles for the first time in Ukraine including Kinzhal missiles -- part of an arsenal of weapons Putin has described as \"invincible\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Damage continues to be inflicted on critical transport and energy infrastructure deep inside Ukrainian territory,\" Gerasimov added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Ukraine fears a rising onslaught of missiles and has faced a slew of attacks from drones, many bought by Russia from Iran, as Moscow pummels power plants and other civilian infrastructure while the country shivers in the winter cold.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Donetsk, an AFP reporter visited the frontline village of Bogorodychne, from which the Russians had been pushed out.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Its pre-conflict population of around 1,000 people had been reduced to Yuri Ponomarenko, 54, who returned several weeks ago, and \"a mother and son who never left,\" he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"I felt that I needed to come back, I just had to,\" said Ponomarenko, who braved landmines to return home, where debris and wrecked cars littered the looted village.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">- Car blast -</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In the southern region surrounding the recently recaptured town of Kherson -- which has been shelled persistently by Russian forces -- officials said they had uncovered a grave with six people showing \"signs of torture\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Thursday, Zelensky said that he stopped in Poland on his return journey from the United States and \"discussed strategic plans for the future\" with Polish President Andrzej Duda.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Meanwhile a car blast killed an official in the Russian-controlled village of Lyubimivka in southern Ukraine, Moscow-installed authorities said, the latest in a series of attacks against Russian-linked officials.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Today Andrei Nikolayevich Shtepa, a sincere patriot of his native land, died tragically as a result of a car explosion,\" authorities said on Telegram, blaming \"Ukrainian terrorists\" for the death.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Lyubimivka is on the eastern bank of the Dnipro river, which is occupied by Moscow\'s troops after they retreated from Kherson city last month rendering the river a new front line. AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 08:15:01', '2022-12-23 08:15:01'),
(3955, 3955, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles Friday, Seoul\'s military said, the latest in a recent flurry of sanctions-busting weapons tests.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">It has been a year of unprecedented tests by the North, including the launch of its most advanced intercontinental ballistic missile last month, the test of what Pyongyang says was a new rocket engine last week, and claims this week it has developed new capabilities to take images from space.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Our military spotted two short-range ballistic missiles launched by North Korea into the East Sea from the Sunan area of Pyongyang at around 16:32 (0732 GMT) today,\" South Korea\'s Joint Chiefs of Staff said, referring to the body of water also known as the Sea of Japan.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Our military maintains a full readiness posture while closely cooperating with the US while strengthening surveillance and vigilance.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The United States and South Korea have warned for months that Pyongyang is preparing to conduct its seventh nuclear test.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The two countries held a joint air drill on Tuesday, and deployed a US B-52H strategic bomber to the Korean peninsula, according to the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The long-range heavy bomber was part of an exercise that included the US and South Korea\'s most advanced jets -- including the F-22 and the F-35 stealth fighters.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Friday\'s launch came hours after the White House said Pyongyang had delivered arms to the Russian private military group Wagner.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Disclosing the delivery on Thursday US time, the White House called Wagner a \"rival\" for power to the defence and other ministries in the Kremlin.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">- \'Putin\'s chef\' -</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Wagner group is controlled by Yevgeny Prigozhin, a businessman once called \"Putin\'s chef\" for his work catering dinners for the powerful leader before and after he became the Russian president.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency, the North Korean foreign ministry denied conducting any arms transaction with Russia, saying the story was \"cooked up by some dishonest forces for different purposes\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Despite heavy international sanctions over its weapons programmes, Pyongyang has built up an arsenal of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Last week, North Korea tested a \"high-thrust solid-fuel motor\", with state media describing it as an important test \"for the development of another new-type strategic weapon system\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">All its known ICBMs are liquid-fuelled, and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has placed strategic priority on developing solid-fuel engines for more advanced missiles.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">His powerful sister also insisted earlier this week that the North had developed advanced technologies to take images from space using a spy satellite.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Kim said this year that he wants North Korea to have the world\'s most powerful nuclear force, and declared his country an \"irreversible\" nuclear state.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The wishlist he revealed last year included solid-fuel ICBMs that could be launched from land or submarines.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The latest motor test was a step towards that goal, but it is not clear how far North Korea has come in the development of such a missile, analysts said. AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 09:20:02', '2022-12-23 09:20:02');
INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(3956, 3956, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) Director General (DG) M Khurshid Hossain Friday said the escape of two convicted militants from a Dhaka court on November 20 and the fact that they are yet to be arrested is a \"failure.\"</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">\"We believe in self-criticism. Two militants escaped; we are not going to deny it. It was our failure as two militants escaped (from the court premises) like that,\" the Rab DG told the media after visiting the Suhrawardy Udyan in the capital ahead of the 22nd national council of the Awami League there Saturday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The militants had been planning the escape for a long time, and we are yet to track them down. However, efforts are underway to arrest them,\" he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Abu Siddiq Sohel and Moinul Hasan Shamim, members of the banned militant outfit Ansar-al Islam, were sentenced to death for killing publisher Faisal Arefin Dipan.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On November 20, the militants\' associates whisked them away from the premises of Dhaka Chief Judicial Magistrate\'s Court by beating the law enforcers and spraying some chemicals on their eyes.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Later, a case was filed at Kotwali Police Station over the incident. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 09:54:35', '2022-12-23 09:54:35'),
(3957, 3957, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The Pakistan Taliban claimed a suicide attack that killed at least one police officer Friday in the country\'s capital, the first such attack in the city for years.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Islamabad has largely been spared the low-level attacks carried out in Pakistan\'s megacities of Lahore and Karachi, and also along the border areas near Afghanistan.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Senior police official Sohail Zafar Chattha said officers had been following a suspicious taxi occupied by a male driver and a woman passenger when he detonated a device inside the car.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"They were stopped and the long-haired man was asked to come out,\" Chattha told AFP at the scene.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"He came out, but quickly went back inside and pressed a button that blew up the car.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said the fate of the passenger was not certain, but a policeman was confirmed dead and six people were wounded -- including four officers.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) later claimed responsibility for the blast, saying the attack \"on the enemies of Islam\" was in retaliation for the recent killing of a senior member.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The group, which is separate from the Afghan Taliban but with a similar hardline Islamist ideology, called off a stop-start ceasefire with the government in November.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Haji Mohammad Saeed, 60, a retired government official living in the neighbourhood where the attack happened, said authorities should end all negotiations with the TTP.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"They are taking advantage of this dialogue and causing violence.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Pakistan was for a time plagued with almost daily bomb blasts across the country, but security vastly improved after a military crackdown that began in 2016.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Violence against security officials has risen in the northwestern border areas with Afghanistan over the past year -- blamed on militant groups linked to the Pakistan Taliban.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Earlier this week, Pakistani defence minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif called for a fresh security operation against the TTP after suspected militants being held at a police station overpowered their captors and held them hostage for three days.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Terrorism is on the rise again,\" he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"There\'s a spillover effect from the situation in Afghanistan and that\'s affecting Pakistan, we have to launch this operation.\" BSS</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 10:15:11', '2022-12-23 10:15:11'),
(3958, 3958, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Facebook parent Meta has agreed to pay $725 million to settle a long-running lawsuit that accused the social network of allowing third parties, including Cambridge Analytica, to access users\' private data.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The amount was disclosed in a court filing late on Thursday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The proposed settlement of $725,000,000 is the largest recovery ever achieved in a data privacy class action and the most Facebook has ever paid to resolve a private class action,\" lawyers for the plaintiffs said in the filing.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Facebook has not admitted any wrongdoing as part of the settlement, which must still be approved by a judge in the San Francisco division in the US District Court.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It was reported in August that Facebook had reached a preliminary agreement, although the amount and terms of the settlement were not then announced.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The lawsuit was initiated in 2018, when Facebook users accused the social network of violating privacy rules by sharing their data with third parties that included the British firm Cambridge Analytica, which had been linked to Donald Trump\'s 2016 presidential campaign.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Cambridge Analytica, which has since shut down, then collected and exploited the personal data of 87 million Facebook users without their consent, the lawsuit alleged.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">That information was allegedly used to develop software to steer US voters in favor of Trump.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Facebook has since removed access to its data from thousands of apps suspected of abusing it, restricted the amount of information available to developers, and made it easier for users to calibrate restrictions on personal data sharing.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Federal authorities fined Facebook $5 billion in 2019 for misleading its users and imposed independent oversight of its personal data management. AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"18\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 11:05:24', '2022-12-23 11:05:24'),
(3959, 3959, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Khandker Golam Faruq Friday said they have scaled up security ahead of the 22nd national council of the Awami League (AL) in the Suhrawardy Udyan in the capital Saturday.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">He, however, dismissed any security threat surrounding the council which is likely to see the participation of \"more than one lakh leaders and activists\" of the ruling party.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The DMP commissioner was speaking with the media after visiting the Suhrawardy Udyan Friday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The security arrangements in the area were made keeping Awami League President and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in mind, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The prime minister survived many attempts on her life in the past. So, we have beefed up security and vigilance this time,\" Golam Faruq added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">About the escape of two convicted militants from a Dhaka court on November 20, he said: \"They will be arrested soon. We have been able to identify their associates already. We will arrest the rest of them soon.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"There is no terrorist threat (in the country now),\" the DMP commissioner added. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"4\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 11:09:17', '2022-12-23 11:09:17'),
(3960, 3960, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Thirty-nine more people were hospitalised with dengue in the 24 hours to Friday morning.</span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">However, the official death toll from the mosquito-borne disease remained unchanged at 274 – the highest on record after the 179 deaths recorded in 2019 – as no fatalities were reported during this period, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A total of 516 dengue patients, including 287 in the capital, are now receiving treatment at hospitals across the country.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The DGHS has recorded 61,883 dengue cases and 61,093 recoveries so far this year. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"6\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 11:58:56', '2022-12-23 11:58:56'),
(3961, 3961, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader today said the AL, led by its President Sheikh Hasina, is the only political party in the country that practices democracy inside it.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b> </b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">\"The Awami League under the leadership of Sheikh Hasina is the only party in Bangladesh that has the practice of democracy within the party. I do not know whether there is any other party holding regular councils in line with its constitution,\" he told a press conference at the AL\'s Bangabandhu Avenue central office here this morning.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The press conference was organised on the occasion of the 22nd National Council of the ruling Awami League.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Quader, also the road transport and bridges minister, said the AL wants to give a message to the country\'s people by spontaneously holding the national council that the party is beside them and it will remain beside them in the future too.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Taking advice from the people in the next elections as well, the Awami League wants to build a \'Smart Bangladesh\' by learning from its past mistakes,\" he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Responding to a question, Quader said, \"I am not a perfect leader. There may be mistakes in performing my duties. Along with successes, the big parties have failures too\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">About the AL national council, he said the meeting will begin at 10:30 am at Suhrawardy Udyan here on Saturday, while AL presidium members, advisory council members, and executive committee members will sit on the conference stage.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The second session of the conference will begin at the Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh (IEB) at 3 pm, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The AL general secretary said at the beginning of the council, party president Sheikh Hasina will hoist the national flag while the party flag will be hoisted by him.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Besides, the presidents and general secretaries of AL\'s 78 organisational district units will stand at the designated place and hoist the party flags, Quader said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">AL presidium members Dr Abdur Razzaque, Shajahan Khan, Jahangir Kabir Nanak, Abdur Rahman, Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya, Bir Bikram, and Quamrul Islam, joint general secretaries - Mahbubul Alam Hanif, Dr Hasan Mahmud (also the information and broadcasting minister) and AFM Bahauddin Nasim, organising secretaries - Ahmad Hossain, BM Mozammel Haque, Mirza Azam, Afzal Hossain and Safiul Alam Chowdhury Nadel, culture affairs secretary Ashim Kumar Ukil, relief and social welfare affairs secretary Sujit Roy Nandi, publicity and publication secretary Dr Abdus Sobhan Golap, science and technology affairs secretary Abdus Sabur, office secretary Biplab Barua, law affairs secretary Najibullah Hiru, agriculture and cooperatives affairs secretary Faridunnahar Laili, education and human resources affairs secretary Shamsun Nahar Chapa, and executive members Dr Mustafa Jalal Mohiuddin, Riazul Kabir Kawsar, Sahabuddin Faraji, Anwar Hossain and Syed Abdul Awal Shamim were, among others, present at the press conference. BSS</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"4\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 12:28:47', '2022-12-23 12:28:58'),
(3962, 3962, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Awami League has launched a theme song for the first time for its 22nd national council to be held at the historic Suhrawardy Udyan in the capital tomorrow.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">The theme song written on the spirit of the party\'s progress politics was uploaded at AL\'s verified facebook page at 9pm on Thursday.&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">National Film Award winning lyricist Zulfiqer Russell penned the lyrics of the song while Pavel Arin is the composer and the music director of the song.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Indian classical music instrumentalist Vishwa Mohan Bhatt played Mohan veena in the song while singers Pantho Kanai, Chandana Majumder, Dilshad Nahar Kona and Masha Islam sang the chorus song.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The music video was directed by Ishtiaq Mahmud in association with Yasir Mahmud Khan.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Awami League Office Secretary Barrister Biplab Barua led the initiative.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Biplab Barua said AL is an old and traditional political party and Bangladesh achieved independence under the leadership of AL.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The party has arranged many councils in its journey in the 73 years and if anyone searches, he or she can find unique arrangement in every council, he said, adding that a theme song has been made under the arrangement of the party\'s office wing for the first time.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Biplab Barua said AL\'s cultural wing arranged various programme in its different council and in continuation of the tradition, there will be many arrangement in the council this time too.&nbsp; BSS</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"4\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-23 13:11:56', '2022-12-23 13:11:56'),
(3963, 3963, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Some 200 million Americans are feeling the icy grip of a massive winter storm that has been linked to at least 12 deaths ahead of the holiday weekend.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">More than 1.5 million people lost power and thousands of flights were cancelled on Friday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In South Dakota, some snowed-in Native Americans reportedly burned clothes for warmth after running out of fuel.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Canada, Ontario and Quebec were bearing the brunt of the storm, with power cuts for hundreds of thousands.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Much of the rest of the country, from British Columbia to Newfoundland, is under extreme cold and winter storm warnings.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A bomb cyclone, when atmospheric pressure plummets, brought blizzard-like conditions to the Great Lakes on the US-Canada border.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The vast storm spans 2,000 miles (3,200km) from Texas to Maine, and the National Weather Service (NWS) said its Friday map \"depicts one of the greatest extents of winter weather warnings and advisories ever\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Temperatures in Elk Park, Montana, dropped to -50F (-45C) while the town of Hell, Michigan, has frozen over.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The community is covered in several inches of snow and it was 1F (-17C) there on Friday night.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Emily, a bartender at Smitty\'s Hell Saloon, told the BBC: \"It\'s pretty cold here, but we\'re having a hell of a time.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Heavy snowfall was forecast in areas of Pennsylvania and Michigan. Buffalo, New York, was expecting at least 35in (89cm).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Coastal flooding has been seen in New England, New York and New Jersey.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Even the usually milder southern states of Louisiana, Alabama, Florida and Georgia were experiencing hard-freeze warnings.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A number of the storm-related fatalities have involved road traffic accidents, including a 50-car pile-up in Ohio that left at least one person dead.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Travel problems across the country were being exacerbated by a shortage of snow plough operators, with low pay blamed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">More than 8,000 flights were cancelled on Friday, reported tracking site FlightAware, wreaking yet more travel chaos as travellers battle to make it home for Christmas.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">By Friday evening 1.2 million customers had no electricity across the US, according to PowerOutage.us.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Utilities throughout the Tennessee Valley were implementing rolling blackouts to save power.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The National Weather Service says more than 100 daily cold temperature records could be tied or broken over the next few days. Decades-old records have already been matched:</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Denver, Colorado, dropped to -24F on Thursday, its lowest point since the 1990s. Craig McBrierty, 34, who is originally from Scotland, but now lives in Denver, told the BBC it is \"colder than I have ever experienced\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">New York, West Virginia, Kentucky, Georgia, North Carolina and Oklahoma have declared states of emergency, while Wisconsin declared an \"energy emergency\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In South Dakota, some Native American tribe members have run out of fuel and food and are trapped by massive snow drifts.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"We\'re fighting a losing battle,\" Oglala Sioux Tribe President Frank Star Comes Out told the BBC. He said it was unclear how many of the tribe\'s 46,000 members were trapped across the 4,200 sq mile region.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Machinery is failing as diesel fuel turns to gel in the freezing cold. Some rescuers are using horses and sleds, or walking.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Anna Halverson, who represents the Pass Creek District on the Pine Ridge Reservation, told the Darsha Dodge Rapid City Journal: \"We\'re in a really extreme emergency down here.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"We have drifts as high as some houses that stretch 60, 70 yards at a time.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She said one family had run out of infant formula, food and fuel and spent four days trapped inside before walking eight miles to get help because their baby was starving.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"I\'ve seen across the reservation some members were burning clothes in their wood stove because they couldn\'t get access to wood,\" Ms Halverson said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem has activated the state\'s National Guard to haul firewood from a nearby national forest to the Rosebud Sioux Tribe and the Oglala Sioux Tribe. BBC</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 02:28:33', '2022-12-24 02:28:33'),
(3964, 3964, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">King Charles is set to include a tribute to his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, in his first Christmas message as monarch.</span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">An image of Charles delivering his speech, which is due to be broadcast on Christmas Day at 15:00 GMT, shows the King in St George\'s Chapel, Windsor.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In her final Christmas message, the late Queen spoke of \"passing the baton\" to the next generation.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">And her son\'s first Christmas Day message will remember her legacy.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">This will be the first televised annual royal Christmas Day broadcast not to be presented by the late Queen, who appeared in the first TV message in 1957.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The photo of the King shows him recording this year\'s message in the chapel where a committal service was held during the Queen\'s funeral in September.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Both his mother and father, Prince Philip, are buried in the George VI Memorial Chapel within St George\'s Chapel.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The picture, released by Buckingham Palace, shows King Charles standing in front of a Christmas tree with plastic-free, recyclable decorations and arrangements of holly and ivy in the background.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">This year sees the King and Camilla the Queen Consort return to the tradition of spending Christmas in Sandringham, Norfolk, after concerns about Covid and Queen Elizabeth\'s health kept the Royal Family in Windsor last year.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Prince and Princess of Wales are among the senior royals expected to be with King Charles for Christmas.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In her 2021 Christmas message, the Queen gave a highly personal tribute to her \"beloved\" Prince Philip, who died in April of that year.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Her broadcast was the most watched programme on Christmas Day in 2021, drawing almost nine million viewers.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The King\'s Christmas Day broadcast continues a tradition going back 90 years.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The first royal Christmas broadcast was a live radio speech in 1932, delivered from Sandringham by George V, with the script written by the author Rudyard Kipling.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In 1957, Elizabeth II delivered the first televised message, saying that it was a technological landmark that \"television has made it possible for many of you to see me in your homes on Christmas Day\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The message became part of many families\' Christmas celebrations and the first televised broadcast in 1957 set a familiar pattern.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The national anthem was followed by the monarch speaking directly to the camera, with a speech that included Christmas greetings, a religious lesson, support for the Commonwealth, a round-up of the royal year and a moral message for the times.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In 1957 it meant a warning about values in public life, criticising a culture of \"self-interest\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The timing of the Christmas broadcast was originally set for 15.00 GMT as best for reaching the most countries in different time zones around the world. BBC</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 02:33:48', '2022-12-24 02:33:48'),
(3965, 3965, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">England\'s Sam Curran has become the most expensive auction buy in the history of the Indian Premier League (IPL) after being bought by Punjab Kings for £1.85m.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Six franchises made a bid for the 24-year-old all-rounder before Punjab were eventually successful.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Yorkshire\'s Harry Brook has been sold to Sunrisers Hyderabad for £1.35m.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The 23-year-old was the leading run-scorer for England in their recent 3-0 Test series win in Pakistan.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Curran was named player of the tournament at this year\'s Twenty20 World Cup after helping England to become double white-ball world champions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He took 13 wickets at an average of 11.38 in last month\'s event in Australia and has improved his batting to become a genuine all-rounder.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Back to where it all started! Looking forward to it,\" Curran tweeted.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The previous most expensive IPL player was South Africa all-rounder Chris Morris, who was signed by Rajasthan Royals for £1.6m in April 2021.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">That figure was overtaken again on Friday when Mumbai Indians paid £1.75m for Australian all-rounder Cameron Green.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">England red-ball captain and all-rounder Ben Stokes was acquired for £1.63m by Chennai Super Kings - one of the franchises to miss out on Curran.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Adil Rashid will join Brook in Hyderabad, while Will Jacks and Reece Topley have been signed by Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Capitals took Phil Salt.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Former Test captain Joe Root initially went unsold but was later bought by Rajasthan Royals for £100,000.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Left arm seamer Josh Little became the first Ireland player to win a full IPL contract as he was signed by Gujarat Titans for nearly £450,000.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">England\'s 18-year-old leg spinner Rehan Ahmed, Tom Curran and Chris Jordan all went unsold. BBC</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 02:37:44', '2022-12-24 02:37:44'),
(3966, 3966, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Bangladesh Test and T20 captain Shakib Al Hasan, along with the stylish yet destructive Litton Kumer Das, a top order bat who can also keep wickets, have been signed by Kolkata Knight Riders for the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), in an auction held Friday.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">While Shakib is a familiar figure in the IPL, Litton has received his inaugural call to the highly lucrative T20 tournament.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shakib, one of the best allrounders of the current age, went unsold when his name was first called at Friday\'s auction. Despite his reputation, no team showed interest in signing him. However, Kolkata picked him up for INR 1.5 crores when his name was called again. Litton also found his home with the team owned by Bollywood superstar Shahrukh Khan, going for INR 50 lakhs.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Litton scored 1388 runs with eight fifties in 65 T20I matches he played for Bangladesh. In domestic level T20s, he played 160 matches and scored 3443 runs with the highest score of 78 not out.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Undoubtedly what made the difference for him this time is the blazing assault he launched against the Indian attack when Bangladesh and India squared off in October\'s ICC T20 World Cup. Opening the innings for the Tigers after India had posted a stiff target of 186 to win for their smaller neighbours, Das threatened to take the game away from the Indians with a 21-ball 50: the second-fastest by a Bangladeshi batsman in T20Is, next to Mohd. Ashraful, who did it off 20 balls against the West Indies.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Once Das was unluckily run out for a memorable 60 off just 27 balls, featuring seven hits to the fence and three that went over it, Bangladesh\'s hopes in that game quickly faded.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shakib\'s IPL performance over the span of 2011-2021 has been decent during this period, he played a total of 71 matches for two teams— Kolkata and Sunrisers Hyderabad.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He has scored a total of 793 runs with the highest score of 66*, and a batting average of 19.82. He took 63 wickets with the best bowling of 3/17 and an average of 29.19. He has yet to take a five-wicket haul in IPL.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The other Bangladeshi player who will play in the next IPL is Mustafizur Rahman. The Delhi Capitals retain the left-arm pacer. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 02:47:11', '2022-12-24 02:47:11'),
(3967, 3967, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Facebook’s corporate parent has agreed to pay $725 million to settle a lawsuit alleging the world’s largest social media platform allowed millions of its users’ personal information to be fed to Cambridge Analytica, a firm that supported Donald Trump’s victorious presidential campaign in 2016.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Terms of the settlement reached by Meta Platforms, the holding company for Facebook and Instagram, were disclosed in court documents filed late Thursday. It will still need to be approved by a judge in a San Francisco federal court hearing set for March.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">The case sprang from 2018 revelations that Cambridge Analytica, a firm with ties to Trump political strategist Steve Bannon, had paid a Facebook app developer for access to the personal information of about 87 million users of the platform. That data was then used to target U.S. voters during the 2016 campaign that culminated in Trump’s election as the 45th president.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Uproar over the revelations led to a contrite Zuckerberg being grilled by U.S. lawmakers during a high-profile congressional hearing and spurred calls for people to delete their Facebook accounts. Even though Facebook’s growth has stalled as more people connect and entertain themselves on rival services such as TikTok, the social network still boasts about 2 billion users worldwide, including nearly 200 million in the U.S. and Canada.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The lawsuit, which had been seeking to be certified as a class action representing Facebook users, had asserted the privacy breach proved Facebook is a “data broker and surveillance firm,” as well as a social network.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The two sides reached a temporary settlement agreement in August, just a few weeks before a Sept. 20 deadline for Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his long-time chief operating officer, Sheryl Sandberg, to submit to depositions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The company based in Menlo Park, California, said in statement Friday it pursued a settlement because it was in the best interest of its community and shareholders.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Over the last three years we revamped our approach to privacy and implemented a comprehensive privacy program,\" said spokesperson Dina El-Kassaby Luce. “We look forward to continuing to build services people love and trust with privacy at the forefront.” AP/UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"18\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 03:10:54', '2022-12-24 03:10:54'),
(3968, 3968, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Former military commander Sitiveni Rabuka was on Saturday confirmed as Fiji\'s prime minister, after accusing the outgoing government of stoking \"fear and chaos\" to derail his return to power.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Rabuka replaces the imposing Frank Bainimarama, who toppled the government in a 2006 coup and became prime minister a year later.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The 74-year-old Rabuka said he felt \"humbled\" as he made his way out of parliament to be sworn in by the country\'s president.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The two-time coup leader and former prime minister -- nicknamed \"Rambo\" -- narrowly triumphed over Bainimarama by 28 votes to 27 in a secret ballot held in parliament, speaker Naiqama Lalabalavu announced.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A chorus of cars honked in celebration as they drove past the parliamentary building in the capital Suva after the vote.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">European Union ambassador for the Pacific Sujiro Seam tweeted his congratulations to Rabuka shortly after the announcement.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The military had been deployed on the streets of Suva as Rabuka and Bainimarama raced to cobble together a coalition government following a deadlocked general election.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Citing unsubstantiated reports of ethnic violence, Bainimarama said the military was needed to maintain \"law and order\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But Rabuka -- who served as prime minister between 1992 and 1999 -- said the government was \"sowing fear and chaos\" and \"trying to set the nation alight along racial lines\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bainimarama is yet to concede defeat, and it was not immediately clear whether he would sit in opposition or resign as the leader of the Fiji First party.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;- \'Climate of fear\' -</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Many Fijians feared the government\'s claims of ethnic violence -- and the subsequent military deployment -- were a pretext for a \"creeping coup\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">While not an outright autocrat, Bainimarama\'s government had frequently used the legal system to sideline opponents, silence critics and muzzle the media.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Police summoned Rabuka for questioning after he asked the military to step in and help resolve an election night \"glitch\" that delayed results for hours.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The way this government has operated, we\'ve been talking about a climate of fear,\" he said at the time.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"This is how they instil that fear.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It marks an extraordinary political comeback for Rabuka.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The former Fijian rugby international locked in a coalition deal to form a government on Friday afternoon, after successfully wooing the kingmaker SODELPA party.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">SODELPA had earlier chosen Rabuka\'s People\'s Alliance over Bainimarama\'s Fiji First, but that first vote was ruled invalid by the country\'s election supervisor.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Fiji has been upended by four coups in the past 35 years. AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 03:23:46', '2022-12-24 03:23:46'),
(3969, 3969, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Polar bears are disappearing fast from the Western part of Hudson Bay, on the southern tip of the Canadian Arctic, according to a new government survey.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b>&nbsp;</b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The number of female bears and cubs in particular has seen a dramatic decline.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Researchers have flown over the region -- which includes the town of Churchill, a tourist destination touted as the \"polar bear capital of the world\" -- every five years to count the number of bears and extrapolate population trends.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">During the last survey in late August and early September 2021, the results of which were released earlier this month, they spotted 194 bears and, based on that count, estimated a total population of 618 bears, down from 842 five years earlier.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Comparison to aerial surveys estimates from 2011 and 2016 suggests that the WH (Western Hudson Bay population) may be decreasing in abundance,\" the study said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It also \"revealed significant declines in the abundance of adult female and subadult bears (cubs) between 2011 and 2021.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The observed declines are consistent with long-standing predictions regarding the demographic effects of climate change on polar bears,\" the researchers said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">They also cited possible displacements of bears to neighboring regions and hunting for the population decline.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The bears\' sea-ice habitat has been disappearing at an alarming rate, with the far north warming up to four times faster than the rest of the world.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The sea ice has become less thick and is breaking up earlier in the spring as well as freezing later in the fall.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The bears rely on the ice for foraging for seals, movement and reproduction.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Since the 1980s, the ice pack in the bay has decreased by nearly 50 percent in summer, according to the US National Snow and Ice Data Center.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A report published two years ago in the journal Nature Climate Change suggested this trend could lead to the near-extinction of these animals, noting there were 1,200 polar bears on the western shores of Hudson Bay in the 1980s. AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 04:15:24', '2022-12-24 04:15:24');
INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(3970, 3970, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Half a million people in a single Chinese city are being infected with Covid-19 every day, a senior health official has said, in a rare and quickly censored acknowledgement that the country\'s wave of infections is not being reflected in official statistics.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">China this month has rapidly dismantled key pillars of its zero-Covid strategy, doing away with snap lockdowns, lengthy quarantines and travel curbs in a jarring reversal of its hallmark containment strategy.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Cities across the country have struggled to cope as surging infections have emptied pharmacy shelves, filled hospital wards and appeared to cause backlogs at crematoriums and funeral homes.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But the end of strict testing mandates has made caseloads virtually impossible to track, while authorities have narrowed the medical definition of a Covid death in a move experts have said will suppress the number of fatalities attributable to the virus.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A news outlet operated by the ruling Communist Party in Qingdao on Friday reported the municipal health chief as saying that the eastern city was seeing \"between 490,000 and 530,000\" new Covid cases a day.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The coastal city of around 10 million people was \"in a period of rapid transmission ahead of an approaching peak\", Bo Tao reportedly said, adding that the infection rate would accelerate by another 10 percent over the weekend.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The report was shared by several other news outlets but appeared to have been edited by Saturday morning to remove the case figures.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">China\'s National Health Commission said Saturday that 4,103 new domestic infections were recorded nationwide the previous day, with no new deaths.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Shandong, the province where Qingdao is located, authorities officially logged just 31 new domestic cases.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">China\'s government keeps a tight leash on the country\'s media, with legions of online censors on hand to scrub out content deemed politically sensitive.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Most government-run publications have downplayed the severity of the country\'s exit wave, instead depicting the policy reversal as logical and controlled.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But some outlets have hinted at shortages of medicine and hospitals under strain, though estimates of actual case numbers remain rare.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The government of eastern Jiangxi province said in a Friday social media post that 80 percent of its population -- equivalent to around 36 million people -- would be infected by March.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">More than 18,000 Covid patients had been admitted to major medical institutions in the province in the two weeks up to Thursday, including nearly 500 severe cases but no deaths, the statement said. AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"6\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 04:40:28', '2022-12-24 04:40:28'),
(3971, 3971, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Thousands of Awami League leaders and activists have gathered at Dhaka’s Suhrawardy Udyan this morning to make their 22nd National Council a success.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">The theme of this year’s council is: “Development journey under the leadership of Sheikh Hasina with the determination to build a developed, prosperous and smart Bangladesh of Bangabandhu’s dream”.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to party sources, the council usually goes on for two days but this time, it will be held for a day. Keeping the global recession in mind, AL has taken this initiative of curtailing the programme.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">About 7,000 councilors and lakhs of delegates are expected to participate in this year’s National Council.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The first session will begin at 10:30 am today. There will be a break for lunch and prayers.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Party sources said that Awami League will form its executive committee, taking into consideration the 12th national election scheduled for early 2024.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Those who will assume leadership will confront all domestic and foreign conspiracies and work to implement the election manifesto of Awami League.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A spectacular stage has been erected in the shape of a boat at Suhrawardy Udyan. The stage is 80 feet long and 44 feet wide.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">There will be five gates for entry. One of these is a VIP gate, while the other four are for councilors. The gates were opened for councilors and delegates from 7 am. Councilors and delegates are seen entering the venue through the gates amid tight security. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 04:43:39', '2022-12-24 04:43:39'),
(3972, 3972, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today inaugurated the 22nd national council of one of the sub-continent\'s largest political parties, Bangladesh Awami League.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">She opened the council by hoisting the national flag and releasing pigeons and balloons at 10.30am at the historic Suhrawardy Udyan, amid tight security.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On her arrival at the venue, Sheikh Hasina, also president of the AL, was received by the party\'s senior leaders.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The main theme of this year\'s council is \'Unnoyon Abhijatrai Deshratna Sheikh Hasinar Netritte Bangabandhur Swapner Unnoto, Samridho O Smart Bangladesh Gorar Protoye\'.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> <span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader, MP, will place the report of the general secretary while AL Presidium Member and reception committee convener Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim,MP, is expected to deliver the address of welcome.</span></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Barrister Biplab Barua will place the obituary references.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Around 7,000 each councilors and delegates and thousands of the AL leaders and activists thronged the venue.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">   </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">There will be a break for lunch and prayers after the end of the inaugural session. Then the council session will be held in the auditorium of Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh (IEB). Party\'s president and general secretary will be elected in the session.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A three-member election commission has already been formed to elect the leadership.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A total of 11 sub-committees are working for the council. As per the tradition, party president Sheikh Hasina is chairman of the council preparatory committee and general secretary Obaidul Quader is its member secretary.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The stage was made in the shape of a boat along with Padma Bridge which is 80 feet long and 44 feet wide.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Besides, LED monitors are put in the council venue.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The party\'s manifesto for the election will focus on \"smart Bangladesh\" by 2041.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The AL has not invited any representatives of foreign political parties to the inaugural session of the council, butl invited leaders of other political parties in the country, including the BNP and Jatiya Party.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Foreign envoys stationed in Dhaka were invited alongside eminent personalities of the country, ministers, and lawmakers.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The venue and adjoining areas have been decorated with the images of some achievements of the government, including Padma Bridge, metro rail, and Bangabandhu satellite and pictures and portraits of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and their family members.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The party was initially floated as the East Pakistan Awami Muslim League at the historic Rose Garden in Dhaka, but the word \"Muslim\" was dropped during its third council in 1955 to make the party more inclusive and secular.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina has been the party president nine times while Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman while Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani were president of the party four times.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangabandhu was AL general secretary five times, Tajuddin Ahmed four times, Zillur Rahman and Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury were AL general secretaries three times.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As part of maintaining austerity in view of the global economic crisis, the council is being arranged in a simple manner.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Previous councils were held in two days but this time council is being held on a single day to minimize costs.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> The 21st council of the party was held on December 20-21. The budget of the last council was Taka 3.43 crore. The national committee of the party has approved Taka 3.13 crore for this 22nd national council. BSS</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 04:53:00', '2022-12-24 06:10:02'),
(3973, 3973, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Dhaka’s air quality continues to be in the \'unhealthy\' zone. With an air quality index (AQI) score of 196 at 9:25 am on Saturday, Dhaka ranked third in the list of world cities with the worst air quality.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">India’s Kolkata and Ghana’s Accra occupied the first two spots, with AQI scores of 228 and 196 respectively.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">An AQI between 101 and 200 is considered \'unhealthy\', particularly for sensitive groups.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Similarly, an AQI between 201 and 300 is said to be \'poor\', while a reading of 301 to 400 is considered \'hazardous\', posing serious health risks to residents.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">AQI, an index for reporting daily air quality, is used by government agencies to inform people how clean or polluted the air of a certain city is, and what associated health effects might be a concern for them.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Bangladesh, the AQI is based on five criteria pollutants -- Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2 and Ozone.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Dhaka has long been grappling with air pollution issues. Its air quality usually turns unhealthy in winter and improves during the monsoon.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Air pollution consistently ranks among the top risk factors for death and disability worldwide. Breathing polluted air has long been recognised as increasing a person’s chances of developing a heart disease, chronic respiratory diseases, lung infections and cancer, according to several studies.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As per the World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution kills an estimated seven million people worldwide every year, largely as a result of increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer and acute respiratory infections. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 05:11:34', '2022-12-24 05:11:34'),
(3974, 3974, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Dhaka-The Assembly of the Republic (Parliament) of Portugal has formed its very first 10-member Parliamentary Group for Portugal-Bangladesh Friendship.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Vice-President of the Assembly of the Republic (Deputy Speaker of Parliament) Dr. Adão Silva officially confirmed this to Bangladesh Portuguese Parliament creates first-ever friendship group for Bangladesh</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Ambassador Tarik Ahsan in Lisbon, the Bangladesh Mission said in a release on Friday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Recently, Bangladesh had been included in the updated list of Parliamentary Friendship Groups for the (current) 15th Parliament of Portugal, along with 58 other countries including two others from South Asia, it said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The said Group would be presided over by Deputy Speaker of Portuguese Parliament Dr. Adão Silva from centre-right Social Democratic Party (PSD).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Parliamentary Groups for Friendship of Portugal are mandated to engage in dialogue and cooperation with the parliaments of countries that are friends of Portugal. They are responsible for promoting the actions needed to intensify relations with the parliaments and parliamentarians of other states, particularly regarding the exchange of knowledge and experiences, the exchange of information and mutual consultations, and the publicizing and promotion of common interests in the political, economic, social and cultural fields.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">This is the fruition of an idea of Parliamentary cooperation that was floated during a meeting between Bangladesh State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md. Shahariar Alam, MP and Deputy Speaker Dr. Adão Silva held in Lisbon in May 2022.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Formation of this Group is undoubtedly a friendly gesture of the people of Portugal toward Bangladesh and it will strengthen the ties of friendship between the two countries. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 05:33:18', '2022-12-24 05:33:18'),
(3975, 3975, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Dhaka- A light to thick blanket of fog is likely to envelop large parts of Bangladesh for up to 12 hours from Friday midnight.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Moderate to thick fog may occur over the river basins and northern part of the country and light to moderate fog elsewhere over the country from midnight to morning, the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) said today.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The weather may remain dry with temporary partly cloudy skies over the country, it added. \"Night and day temperatures may fall slightly over the country.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The lowest temperature in the country was recorded at 8.4-degree Celsius in Badalgachhi of Rajshahi division in the last 24 hours till 6am Friday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The highest temperature was recorded at 29.6-degree Celsius in Teknaf of Chattogram division. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 06:06:05', '2022-12-24 06:06:05'),
(3976, 3976, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Actor Kriti Sanon took to Instagram and shared a video and a picture with actor Shahid Kapoor. She had a crazy time while travelling with Shahid on a flight. She brought her inner child out to annoy him while extending wishes for Christmas on Friday.&nbsp;</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She also shared a happy picture with him from their fun time. Shahid also shared a video with Kriti on his social media handle. He called her ‘annoying co passenger.’</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Taking to Instagram Stories, Kriti shared a video with Shahid. She can be seen annoying Shahid with a red Christmas cap. She rubbed the fur ball of the cap all over his head and face. Shahid pretended to sneeze as she brought the fur ball to his nose.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Kriti wore a black woolen sweater while Shahid opted for a white one. Kriti captioned the clip, “My way of wishing a “Merry Christmas\" along with Santa and Christmas tree emojis.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Kriti also shared a happy picture with Shahid from the flight and wrote, “KS &amp; SK.” Reacting to the picture, one of Kriti\'s fans wrote, “Waiting for Kriti-Shahid together.” Another fan commented, “Waiting to see your chemistry with @shahidkapoor sir. All the best to both of you (smiling face with red heart eyes emojis).”&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Other fan wrote, “You guys are looking awesome together (red heart and smiling face with red heart eyes emojis).” “Can\'t wait to know more about the film! Sounds so cool”, added another. Many fans dropped heart emojis on the post.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Taking to Instagram Stories, Shahid also shared a video in which he annoyed Kriti with a fur ball as she held a bottle in her hand. He later made a gun expression with his hand. Shahid captioned, “When you have a really annoying over enthu co passenger.” Kriti and Shahid are rumoured to be working together on Dinesh Vijan\'s next movie. The official announcement is yet to be made.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Kriti was recently seen in Bhediya alongside Varun Dhawan, helmed by Amar Kaushik. The film released on November 25, 2022. It also stars Abhishek Banerjee, Deepak Dobriyal and Paalin Kabak. She will be next seen in Om Raut\'s epic Adipurush, an adaptation of the Ramayana with Prabhas and Saif Ali Khan. The film is set to release in 2023.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shahid is set to make his digital debut with director Raj and DK\'s upcoming action thriller series, Farzi, along with Vijay Sethupathi. It will premiere exclusively on Amazon Prime Video. Apart from that, he also has director Ali Abbas Zafar\'s next Bloody Daddy as his upcoming project. HT</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"13\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 06:47:38', '2022-12-24 06:47:38'),
(3977, 3977, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">A teenager was killed during a shooting at the Mall of America on Friday that sent frightened customers at the nation’s largest shopping center racing into a lockdown just before the holiday weekend, police said.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Bloomington Police Chief Booker Hodges said the victim was a 19-year-old man. A bystander’s jacket was also grazed by a bullet during the shooting at the mall’s Nordstrom location.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">There appeared to be some type of altercation between two groups and at one point, someone pulled out a gun and shot the victim multiple times, the chief said. The entire incident lasted about 30 seconds.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Hodges urged the gunman and the others involved in the fight to turn themselves into police.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We are going to catch you, we are going to lock you up and you are going to get an orange jumpsuit,” he said. “It’s just a matter of when it’s going to happen.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He also warned people against aiding the suspects in avoiding arrest.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“If anybody helps these people — I mean so much as buy them a Happy Meal, give them a ride,” the visibly upset chief said. “We’re going to lock you up with them.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The mall is expected to reopen Saturday but the Nordstrom store will remain closed, Hodges said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Since it opened in 1992, the mall has been a tourist destination and community gathering spot. It bans guns on the premises but shoppers have generally not been required to pass through metal detectors. The mall said in October it was testing a “weapons detection system” at one of its entrances.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Hodges said the mall is continuously evaluating its security measures, including the possibility of adding metal detectors. Still, the chief added, “if we have an incident where someone decides they want to pull out a gun and shoot somebody with a complete lack of respect for human life, then I still don’t know what we can do to stop that.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Police did not identify the man who was killed but Hodges said he and Bloomington Mayor Tim Busse spoke to the victim’s relatives on Friday night.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The family here — I really feel bad for them,” Hodges said. “Their last week before Christmas and now they’re having to bury one of their loved ones.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Mall video surveillance showed the altercation between the two groups — estimated as five to nine people — erupt into a fistfight before one person pulled out a gun and opened fire, the chief said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We don’t know why it happened or what happened,” Hodges said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A nearby Bloomington police officer — one of 16 stationed at the mall Friday — heard the gunshots around 7:50 p.m. The officer tried life-saving measures but the victim died.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The lockdown lasted for about an hour before the mall tweeted that shoppers were being sent outside. Videos posted on social media show shoppers hiding in stores, and an announcement in the mall warned people to seek shelter. Some videos show shoppers running for cover after a loud bang is heard.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The reported shooting comes as shopping centers and malls across the U.S. see an influx of customers just days before Christmas.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Jenny Hefty of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and her 16-year-old daughter had just gotten off the escalator up to the mall’s second floor, in front of the Nordstrom store, when people started running toward them and screaming. Her daughter thought she heard gunshots, although Hefty did not.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“At first we thought they were just messing around,” she told The Associated Press on Friday night. “It was like ‘why are all these kids running by us?’”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Retailers began shutting their doors and her husband told them to run as armed guards rushed toward Nordstrom, where Hefty had been trying perfume about 20 minutes earlier.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The trio raced to their hotel in the mall complex and frantically tried to reach the couple’s 18-year-old daughter, 21-year-old son and their friends on their cellphones. They had been shut inside stores or whisked into safer spots as the mall locked down.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The family, which often travels the four hours to the mall, was in town for the Minnesota Vikings football game against the New York Giants on Saturday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Of course we wanted to come early and do some Christmas shopping,” Hefty said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Giants were staying at a hotel adjacent to the mall. Pat Hanlon, the team’s executive vice president of communications, said he believes some players were in the mall at the time of the shooting.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Everyone is back in the hotel and accounted for now,” Hanlon said Friday night.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The mall was placed on lockdown in August after a reported shooting at the suburban Minneapolis shopping complex sent some shoppers running for cover and two people were wounded last New Year’s Eve during an apparent altercation.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Representatives from the city of Bloomington and Nordstrom did not immediately return requests for comment. AP/UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 07:09:40', '2022-12-24 07:09:40'),
(3978, 3978, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The depression over southwest Bay of Bengal and adjoining area moved west-northwestwards at 6 am on Saturday.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It is likely to move west-southwestwards afterwards, said a special bulletin of Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">All fishing boats and trawlers over north Bay and deep sea have been advised not to venture into the depression area. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 07:39:05', '2022-12-24 07:39:05'),
(3979, 3979, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Awami League President and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today made a call to world leaders not to provoke Ukraine-Russia war and end it immediately.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">“I will urge the world leaders, stop the Ukraine-Russia war, stop provoking them. We want peace,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The ruling party chief was delivering her inaugural speech at the 22nd national council of the country’s oldest political party, aiming to elect new leadership.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The theme of this year\'s council is “Development journey under the leadership of Sheikh Hasina with the determination to build a developed, prosperous, and smart Bangladesh of Bangabandhu’s dream”.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina said that all countries are independent and all have the right to act independently.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Saying that Bangladesh does not want war, she added that the country also does not want sanctions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We do not want war, we do not want sanctions… war causes suffering for humanity,” she added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In this regard she recalled the experience during the Liberation War in 1971.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We know the adversity of war, we experienced that in 1971,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina mentioned that women are affected the most during wars and children are also negatively impacted.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Their (women and children) human rights are violated, children are suffering from the cold winter… We do not want war,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The PM said that Bangladesh was just coming out from the adverse impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“This war is just demolishing all our advancements,” she said. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 08:56:58', '2022-12-24 08:56:58'),
(3980, 3980, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Awami League President and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday asked party leaders and activists to remain united in order to resist conspiracies and advance the country towards prosperity.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>“There will be blows and conspiracies, but AL leaders and activists will remain united and move forward facing adversity,” she said.</div><div><br></div><div>The ruling party chief was delivering her inaugural speech at the 22nd national council of the country\'s oldest political party - aiming to elect new leadership.</div><div><br></div><div>Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the council by hoisting the national flag at the historic Suhrawardy Udyan.</div><div><br></div><div>The theme of this year\'s council is “Development journey under the leadership of Sheikh Hasina with the determination to build a developed, prosperous, and smart Bangladesh of Bangabandhu’s dream”.</div><div><br></div><div>Sheikh Hasina reiterated that Bangladesh will never move back.</div><div><br></div><div>“InshAllah we will materialize the dreams of the Father of the Nation,” she said.</div><div><br></div><div>She said that the economy is heading in the right direction.</div><div><br></div><div>“Only AL can advance a country and develop it,” she added.</div><div>The PM mentioned that evil forces are engaged in hatching conspiracies against the country to derail it from the path of development and prosperity, reports BSS</div><div><br></div><div>“No matter how many conspiracies the evil forces hatch against us, the nation will move forward, and we will fulfill the dreams of the Father of the Nation,” she added.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 09:30:03', '2022-12-24 09:30:03'),
(3981, 3981, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Riding on the fifties of Zakir Hasan and Liton Das, Bangladesh set a target of 145 for India to win the Dhaka Test. Given the situation they were in, it was a good effort from the tailenders of the hosts.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Bangladesh ended their first innings on 231, with Liton scoring the highest of 73.</div><div><br></div><div>They started the day with seven without losing any wickets. But in the first session of the day, Bangladesh lost four wickets, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mominul Haque and Mushfiuqr Rahim failing to offer any challenge to the Indian bowlers.</div><div><br></div><div>But Zakir and Liton proved that a little patience would have resulted in a bigger score for the Tigers.</div><div><br></div><div>Axar Patel bagged three wickets for India while Ravichandran Ashwin and Mohammad Siraj took two wickets each.</div><div><br></div><div>Nurul Hasan Sohan and Taskin Ahmed posted 31 each, helping the hosts to get a lead close to 150.</div><div><br></div><div>India will have around 23 overs on the third day.</div><div><br></div><div>Earlier, India posted 314 in their first innings in reply to Bangladesh’s 227 and secured a first-innings lead of 87 runs.</div><div><br></div><div>Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer were India\'s most successful batters, posting 93 and 87 runs, respectively. Source: UNB</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'sports Desk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 10:40:37', '2022-12-24 10:40:37'),
(3982, 3982, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">At least 5 people were killed and 5 were injured in road accidents in Kurigram and Savar on Saturday morning.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>In Kurigram, three people died and five were injured in two accidents that took place in Trimohini area of the Kurigram-Rangpur road and on Phulbari-Dharla road in Phulbari upazila.</div><div><br></div><div>According to police and locals, at around 8 am, a dhaka-bound bus of Aman Paribahan lost control and hit an auto-rickshaw and a nearby grocery store. The accident left the passenger of the auto-rickshaw and a passerby dead on the spot.</div><div><br></div><div>One of the deceased is Md Abdul Hannan, 45, but the identity of the other could not be ascertained.</div><div><br></div><div>Five injured passengers were admitted to Kurigram General Hospital. Abdus samad, one of the injured, was later transferred to Rangpur Medical College and Hospital due to critical condition.</div><div><br></div><div>Confirming the matter, Sub-Inspector (SI) of Kurigram Sadar Police Station, Zahid Hasan, said they seized the bus after recovering the dead bodies. The bus driver was sent to Rangpur for treatment.</div><div><br></div><div>In another incident, a tractor helper, Shariful Islam, 16, fell off the tractor as the driver suddenly hit the brake.</div><div><br></div><div>According to locals, the teenager was in a critical condition as he was run over by a truck.</div><div><br></div><div>Shariful later died after being taken to the hospital.</div><div>Confirming the matter, Sarwar Parvez,In-charge (Investigation) of Phulbari Police Station, said legal action will be taken in this regard.</div><div><br></div><div>In Savar, two people were killed when a bus hit a motorbike at the Noyarhar area on the Dhaka-Aricha Highway.</div><div><br></div><div>According to Savar highway police, the accident left one person dead on spot. Another passenger later died after being taken to the hospital.</div><div><br></div><div>The identity of the deceased is yet to be known. - UNB</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 13:22:14', '2022-12-24 13:22:14'),
(3983, 3983, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">A BNP leader (Abdur Rashid) was killed during a fierce clash between the party activists and police in Panchagarh. Over 50 people including police were injured during the incident as well.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The deceased leader was identified as Abdur Rashid Arefin (50) joint convener of Maidandighi union unit BNP on Saturday.</div><div><br></div><div>He died while undergoing treatment at Panchagarh Modern Sadar Hospital.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>On the other hand, he was taken to the hospital in a critical condition, District BNP committee member Mirza Nazmul Islam confirmed the matter to media.</div><div><br></div><div>As part of the scheduled program on Saturday afternoon, BNP leaders and activists took out a procession from the district BNP office located in Panchagarh around 2:30pm.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>When the police obstructed the procession, a chase and counter chase between BNP activists and the law enforcers ensued. The clash lasted for about an hour and a half.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>According to locals, the deceased BNP leader was injured by police batons.</div><div><br></div><div>Panchagarh Sadar police station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Abdul Latif Miah said at least eight policemen were injured.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 13:33:54', '2022-12-24 13:33:54'),
(3984, 3984, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Bangladesh fought their way into what earlier appeared a lost cause on Saturday, knocking over four Indian wickets to leave the visitors teetering after Liton Das compiled a gritty half-century on the third day of the second Test in Dhaka.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The Bangladesh bowlers were given 145 runs to defend after Liton\'s steely 73 and a wagging tail steered the hosts to 231 all out.</div><div><br></div><div>Despite the subpar score, spinners Mehidy Hasan and Shakib Al Hasan rose to the challenge, reducing India to 45-4 at stumps with 100 still left to chase, leaving the match unexpectedly hanging in the balance.</div><div><br></div><div>Mehidy claimed three wickets after Shakib\'s initial breakthrough, removing Cheteshwar Pujara (six), Shubman Gill (seven) and Virat Kohli (one). Shakib started the slide with the wicket of captain K.L. Rahul for two.</div><div><br></div><div>Axar Patel survived the day to stay unbeaten on 26 alongside nightwatchman Jaydev Unadkat (three), with first-innings heroes Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer yet to come in.</div><div><br></div><div>Axar had earlier downed three Bangladesh batters and all of India\'s bowlers were among the wickets. Liton rode his luck in an innings where he was dropped twice by Kohli -- first off Axar and then Ravichandran Ashwin -- to score what could be 73 vital runs.</div><div><br></div><div>There was little support on the other end for Liton after opener Zakir Hasan (51) fell soon after lunch until wicketkeeper Nurul Hasan joined him at the crease and the pair compiled an aggressive 46-run stand.</div><div><br></div><div>That stand was broken by Axar when he drew Nurul out of his crease to set up an easy stumping for Pant.</div><div><br></div><div>Liton then added another brisk 60 runs alongside Taskin Ahmed (31 not out) before he was bowled by a Mohammed Siraj delivery that nipped back in and found the gap between bat and pad.</div><div><br></div><div>Even with those small pockets of resistance, India looked to be in complete control of the match, picking up regular wickets with all their bowlers getting a part of the spoils.</div><div><br></div><div>Ashwin had Najmul Hossain trapped leg-before for five in the second over of the day before Siraj removed Bangladesh\'s first-innings top-scorer Mominul Haque for the same score.</div><div><br></div><div>Unadkat then got skipper Shakib (13) to spoon a length delivery to Gill at cover in his first over of the day.</div><div><br></div><div>With the hosts struggling, Axar added to their misery on the stroke of lunch, trapping the experienced Mushfiqur Rahim lbw for nine.</div><div><br></div><div>He added two more to his tally after the break, getting Mehidy lbw for nought before dismissing Nurul for 31.</div><div><br></div><div>Siraj, Ashwin, and a run-out accounted for the final three wickets.</div><div><br></div><div>The Bangladesh bowlers had given their side a glimmer of hope in Friday\'s final session, restricting India\'s lead to 87 runs just when the visitors looked like they might amass a mammoth score.</div><div><br></div><div>Pant and Iyer were running rampant, with both crossing fifty at rapid pace, ending at 93 and 87 respectively, but Bangladesh knocked over the last six Indian wickets for 61 runs.</div><div><br></div><div>India won the first Test of the two-match series by 188 runs in Chittagong. Source: AFP </div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'sports Desk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 14:20:48', '2022-12-24 14:24:38'),
(3985, 3985, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">With two more deaths reported from dengue in 24 hours till Saturday morning, the official death toll from the mosquito-borne disease rose to 274 this year.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>During this period, 89 more patients, including 59 in Dhaka city, were hospitalised, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).</div><div><br></div><div>A total of 501 dengue patients, including 297 in the capital, are now receiving treatment at hospitals across the country.</div><div><br></div><div>The DGHS has recorded 61,972 dengue cases and 61,195 recoveries so far this year. Source: UNB</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 14:38:10', '2022-12-24 14:38:10'),
(3986, 3986, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Crystal Palace manager Patrick Vieira believes Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez\'s \"stupid\" celebrations have tarnished Argentina\'s World Cup final win.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Martinez was a key figure in Argentina\'s victory over France.</div><div><br></div><div>He made a fine save to deny Randal Kolo Muani in extra-time and then denied Kingsley Coman in the shoot-out in Qatar as Argentina won a thrilling final.</div><div><br></div><div>But the keeper was then seen making a crude gesture after winning the golden glove trophy for the best goalkeeper at the tournament.</div><div><br></div><div>Then, during Argentina\'s victory parade in Buenos Aires, he was seen holding a baby doll with its face covered by a photograph of France star striker Kylian Mbappe, who scored a hat-trick in the final but still finished on the losing side.</div><div><br></div><div>Vieira, a World Cup winner with France in 1998, was unimpressed by Martinez\'s antics.</div><div><br></div><div>\"Some of the pictures I saw from the Argentinian goalkeeper, I think, take away a little bit what Argentina achieved at the World Cup,\" said Vieira a pre-match press conference ahead of Palace\'s Premier League match against London rivals Fulham.</div><div><br></div><div>\"I don\'t think they really needed that.</div><div><br></div><div>\"You can\'t control sometimes people\'s emotional decisions. But that was a stupid decision, I think, from Martinez to do that,\" he added.</div><div><br></div><div>Martinez will return to Birmingham next week, with Villa manager Unai Emery intending to talk to the 30-year-old about his controversial behaviour.</div><div><br></div><div>\"When you have big emotion, sometimes it is difficult to control it,\" Emery said.</div><div><br></div><div>\"I will speak to him next week about some celebrations but I respect that he is now under the national team and when he will be with us, he is our responsibility then we can speak about it.\"</div><div><br></div><div>French sports minister Amelie Oudea-Casteran was scathing about Martinez\'s conduct, saying: \"I find it pitiful.</div><div><br></div><div>\"It\'s just vulgar, inappropriate, really not up to the occasion. This Emiliano Martinez is not distinguishing himself. It is rather pathetic.\"&nbsp; Source: AFP&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'sports Desk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 14:58:24', '2022-12-24 14:58:24');
INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(3987, 3987, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Pooja Sengupta, artistic director of Turongomi Repertory Dance Theatre, has been honored with the “Friendship Medal” from the President of Socialist Republic of Vietnam.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>“I’m delighted to inform you that the President of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam has awarded you the Friendship Medal for your contribution to promoting the traditional friendship relations between Vietnam and Bangladesh,” said Vietnamese Ambassador in Bangladesh Phan Viet Chien in a letter to Pooja Sengupta.</div><div><br></div><div>The President of Viet Nam has authorized the Ambassador to hand over the friendship medal to Pooja and expressed high appreciation for her art work “Ho Chi Minh- A journey to explore the light within.\"</div><div><br></div><div>The Embassy of Vietnam in Bangladesh is going to host an award giving ceremony on Wednesday at the Embassy Chancery.</div><div><br></div><div>Young dance artist and cultural entrepreneur Pooja Sengupta is the only Bangladeshi to receive this prestigious award from the government of Vietnam this year, said a media release.</div><div><br></div><div>Turongomi received the official letter from the Vietnam Embassy in Bangladesh to produce and stage a dance theatre on the life of President Ho Chi Minh in 2019.</div><div><br></div><div>In September 5-6, 2019 the production premiered in Dhaka at the National Theatre of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy.</div><div><br></div><div>The production received huge appreciation from the audience, critics, media, bureaucrats, diplomats and eminent artists of all genres.</div><div><br></div><div>It is the first Bangladeshi production to be cited at the panorama of International Dance Council UNESCO, being mentioned as the first ever Biography Dance Theatre in the world.</div><div><br></div><div>The 40 minutes Dance Theatre is a creative work conceptualized, scripted, designed, choreographed and directed by Pooja sengupta.</div><div><br></div><div>In 2017, Turongomi was nominated and awarded at the very prestigious “International Dance Festival 2017” hosted by the government of Vietnam.</div><div><br></div><div>Turongomi was selected for their popular production Anamika Sagorkonna.</div><div><br></div><div>A team of 10 members attended the festival under the leadership of Pooja Sengupta.</div><div><br></div><div>Since its inception in 2014, Turongomi has been working with the motto of establishing the signature style of Bangladeshi dance in the international arena and for achieving professionalism in the dance scenario of Bangladesh. - UNB</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'Entertainment Desk', '[\"13\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 15:30:30', '2022-12-24 15:30:30'),
(3988, 3988, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Afghanistan\'s Taliban-run administration on Saturday ordered all local and foreign non-governmental organisations (NGO) to stop female employees from coming to work, according to an economy ministry letter, in the latest crackdown on women\'s freedoms.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The letter, confirmed by economy ministry spokesperson Abdulrahman Habib, said the female employees were not allowed to work until further notice because some had not adhered to the administration\'s interpretation of Islamic dresscode for women.</div><div><br></div><div>It comes days after the Taliban-run administration ordered universities to close to women, prompting strong global condemnation and sparking some protests and heavy criticism inside Afghanistan.</div><div><br></div><div>It was not immediately clear how the order would affect United Nations agencies, which have a large presence in Afghanistan delivering services amid the country\'s humanitarian crisis.</div><div><br></div><div>When asked whether the rules included UN agencies, Habib said the letter applied to organisations under Afghanistan\'s coordinating body for humanitarian organisations, known as ACBAR. That body does not include the United Nations, but includes over 180 local and international NGOs.</div><div><br></div><div>However, the United Nations often contracts with NGOs registered in Afghanistan to carry out its humanitarian work.</div><div><br></div><div>Aid workers say female workers are critical to ensuring women can access aid. According to Reuters reports</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-24 16:07:56', '2022-12-24 16:07:56'),
(3989, 3989, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has urged his people to persevere in the face of Russian attacks as the country celebrates Christmas.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In a defiant speech on Saturday, he said: \"Freedom comes at a high price. But slavery has an even higher price.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Russia\'s missile and drone attacks have left millions of Ukrainians without power, heating and running water.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Earlier on Saturday, Russian air strikes killed 10 people in Ukraine\'s southern Kherson city, officials said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The regional authorities said another 68 people were injured and called on local residents to urgently donate blood.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Describing Russia as a \"terrorist country\", Mr Zelensky accused Russian troops of \"killing for the sake of intimidation and pleasure\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In a post on social media, he showed pictures of streets strewn with bodies and burning cars, saying \"the world must see and understand what absolute evil we are fighting against\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Kherson, the only regional capital captured by Russia since it launched its full-scale invasion on 24 February, was liberated by Ukraine last month.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Since then it has been frequently targeted by Russian forces positioned on the left (eastern) bank of the Dnipro river.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Moscow has repeatedly denied targeting civilians in its attacks. However, President Vladimir Putin has recently admitted that Russian troops have been hitting Ukraine\'s critical energy facilities.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Most Ukrainians are Orthodox Christians, and mark Christmas Eve - the main day of the festive season in the country - on 6 January.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">However, a growing number of worshippers have been celebrating the day on 24 December, in line with the majority of Christians around the world.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In a video address to the nation late on Saturday, Mr Zelensky said: \"We endured at the beginning of the war. We endured attacks, threats, nuclear blackmail, terror, missile strikes. Let\'s endure this winter because we know what we are fighting for.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"We will celebrate our holidays! As always. We will smile and be happy. As always. The difference is one. We will not wait for a miracle. After all, we create it ourselves.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">For many Ukrainians, Christmas will be in the dark and in the cold, says the BBC\'s Hugo Bachega in Kyiv.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But Ukrainians say the hardships have only made them stronger, as the war enters its 11th month, our correspondent adds.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Saturday, fierce fighting continued in Ukraine\'s eastern Donbas region where Russian troops attacked the strategic town of Bakhmut. BBC</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 02:28:06', '2022-12-25 02:28:06'),
(3990, 3990, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">It was the $10bn gift to the world. A machine that would show us our place in the Universe.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The James Webb Space Telescope was launched exactly a year ago, on Christmas Day. It had taken three decades to plan, design and build.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Many wondered whether this successor to the famed Hubble Space Telescope could actually live up to expectations.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">We had to wait a few months while its epic 6.5m primary mirror was unpacked and focused, and its other systems tested and calibrated.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But, yes, it was everything they said it would be. The American, European and Canadian space agencies held a party in July to release the first colour images. What you see on this page are some of the pictures subsequently published that you may have missed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The first thing you have to remember about James Webb is that it is an infrared telescope. It sees the sky at wavelengths of light that are beyond what our eyes are able to discern.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Astronomers use its different cameras to explore regions of the cosmos, such as these great towers of gas and dust. The Pillars were a favourite target of Hubble. It would take you several years travelling at the speed of light to traverse this entire scene.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">They call this scene the Cosmic Cliffs. It\'s the edge of a gigantic, gaseous cavity within another dusty, star-forming nebula, known as Carina.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The cavity has been sculpted by the intense ultraviolet radiation and winds from hot, young stars just out of shot.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">From one side of this image to the other is a distance of roughly 15 light years. One light year is equal to about 9.46 trillion km (5.88 trillion miles). BBC</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"5\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 02:36:03', '2022-12-25 02:36:03'),
(3991, 3991, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">An order by the Taliban banning women from working for non-governmental organisations (NGOs) has been condemned by the United Nations, which said the move violated fundamental rights.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Islamist rulers justified the move by saying female NGO staff had broken dress codes by not wearing hijabs.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The decree comes just days after female students were banned from universities.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The US Secretary of State also criticised the move saying it would be \"devastating for the Afghan people\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Female Afghan NGO workers acting as the main earners in their household told the BBC of their fear and helplessness.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">One asked: \"If I cannot go to my job, who can support my family?\" Another breadwinner called the news \"shocking\" and insisted she had complied with the Taliban\'s strict dress code.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A third woman questioned the Taliban\'s \"Islamic morals\", saying she would now struggle to pay her bills and feed her children.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The world is watching us and doing nothing,\" said another female interviewee. The BBC is not publishing the women\'s names in order to protect them.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Saturday\'s order came in a letter from the Ministry of Economy to both national and international NGOs. It threatened to cancel the licence of any organisation that did not swiftly comply.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">By way of explanation, it said women were breaking Sharia law by failing to wear the hijab.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The move has sparked international outrage, with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken saying he was deeply concerned, adding that it \"will disrupt vital and life-saving assistance to millions\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Women are central to humanitarian operations around the world. This decision could be devastating for the Afghan people,\" Mr Blinken said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It was also described as a \"clear breach of humanitarian principles\" by a senior United Nations official.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">UN agencies have a significant presence in the country, carrying out relief and development work. An urgent meeting of the Humanitarian Country Team was planned for Sunday to respond to the news.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">An employee of Save the Children told BBC News the organisation was planning to meet Taliban authorities, saying that if women were not allowed to work then some NGOs would have to close.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It is also feared that Afghan women could be left unable to receive aid directly, if organisations are only allowed to employ men. Taliban rules prevent men from working with women.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Female employees were \"essential\" for reaching other women and girls, explained Melissa Cornet from Care International.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She added: \"Without them, the humanitarian situation might deteriorate rapidly, in a situation where most of the country is already facing life-threatening levels of hunger.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The South Asian branch of Amnesty International described the ban as \"yet another deplorable attempt to erase women from the political, social and economic spaces\" of Afghanistan.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">One doctor working in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif and nearby remote villages said she was \"sad and devastated\" at the development.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She predicted \"great difficulty\" for women trying to access medical treatment, as they \"can\'t fully tell their problems to men\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Meanwhile, one imam - whose identity is again being protected by the BBC - said the Taliban was \"not committed to any Islamic value\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He explained: \"Islam has not said that men can educate and women cannot. Or men can work and women cannot. We are confused about this decision.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A ban on women attending Afghan universities earlier this week met similar criticism. It triggered protests - including in Herat on Saturday - which were rapidly suppressed by the Taliban.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Since seizing back control of the country last year, the group has steadily restricted women\'s rights - despite promising its rule would be softer than the regime seen in the 1990s.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As well as the ban on female university students - now being enforced by armed guards - secondary schools for girls remain closed in most provinces.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Women have also been prevented from entering parks and gyms, among other public places. BBC</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 02:40:55', '2022-12-25 02:40:55'),
(3992, 3992, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The music world has been paying tribute to the lead singer of British dance act Faithless with one iconic band hailing him as \"an incredible talent\".</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Maxi Jazz, whose real name was Maxwell Fraser, died \"peacefully in his sleep\" on Friday night.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The musician and DJ was a core member of Faithless - a band best known for its club classic Insomnia.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Dutch trance legend Armin van Buuren hopes Jazz\'s music keeps on \"inspiring others\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Various aspects of the music industry have continued to pay tribute to Jazz since his death was announced.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Independent label Rough Trade Records said the 65-year-old played a \"pivotal role in the world of British electronica\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">UB40\'s Judge Jules described Jazz as an \"incredible talent and a complete gent\", while DJ and radio presenter Mistajam remarked that Jazz\'s \"words and performances touched so many of us\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Jazz was a huge fan of Crystal Palace Football Club and became an associate director in 2012.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Crystal Palace\'s first team will walk out to Faithless as they take on Fulham at Selhurst Park in the Premier League on Boxing Day, the club\'s chairman wrote on Twitter.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Steve Parish added: \"Desperately sad to hear the news that we lost Maxi this morning. He was such a huge talent, a massive supporter of the club in every way and just a wonderful kind-hearted man.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"He made the world dance, sing and laugh and someone I was privileged to call a friend. RIP Maxi.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Born in Brixton, south London, Jazz also fronted a band called Maxi Jazz &amp; The E-Type Boys and released music with the group Soul Food Cafe.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">DJ David Pearce said Faithless became an \"iconic force in UK dance music from the mid-90s and touched so many lives\". He said Jazz was \"dance music\'s poet\" and a \"warm, cool, friendly soul\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Faithless formed in 1995 and were pioneers of stadium dance music. They headlined some of the world\'s biggest festivals including Glastonbury, taking to the Pyramid stage in 2002. They were nominated for Best UK Dance Act at the Brit Awards in 1999 and 2002.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The band split in 2011 but returned to release a new studio album almost a decade later, during the Covid pandemic. However, they weren\'t joined by Jazz, who had formed another band, Maxi Jazz &amp; The E-Type Boys.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The guitar band marked a new sound for Jazz, who began writing the material in 2013, during Faithless\'s hiatus.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On their website, the band described their sound as incorporating \"melodic funk and blues mixed with reggae beats, dub baselines [and] Jamaican melodies\". BBC</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"13\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 02:48:57', '2022-12-25 02:48:57'),
(3993, 3993, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">A frigid winter storm killed at least 18 people as it swept across the country, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses and leaving millions of people on edge about the possibility of Christmas Eve blackouts.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The storm unleashed its full fury on Buffalo, New York, with hurricane-force winds causing whiteout conditions. Emergency response efforts were paralyzed, and the city’s international airport was shut down.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Across the U.S., officials have attributed deaths to exposure, car crashes, a falling tree limb and other effects of the storm. At least three people died in the Buffalo area, including two who suffered medical emergencies in their homes and couldn’t be saved because emergency crews were unable to reach them amid historic blizzard conditions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Deep snow, single-digit temperatures and day-old power outages sent Buffalo residents scrambling Saturday to get out of their houses to anywhere that had heat. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said the Buffalo Niagara International Airport would be closed through Monday morning and almost every fire truck in the city was stranded in the snow.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“No matter how many emergency vehicles we have, they cannot get through the conditions as we speak,” Hochul said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Blinding blizzards, freezing rain and frigid cold also knocked out power in places from Maine to Seattle, while a major electricity grid operator warned the 65 million people it serves across the eastern U.S. that rolling blackouts might be required.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Pennsylvania-based PJM Interconnection said power plants are having difficulty operating in the frigid weather and has asked residents in 13 states to conserve electricity through at least Christmas morning. The Tennessee Valley Authority, which provides electricity to 10 million people in the state and parts of six surrounding ones, directed local power companies to implement planned interruptions but ended the measure by Saturday afternoon. The start of the NFL’s Tennessee Titans’ game in Nashville was delayed an hour by a planned power outage.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Across the six New England states, more than 273,000 customers remained without power on Saturday, with Maine the hardest hit and some utilities saying it could be days before electricity is restored.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In North Carolina, 169,000 customers were without power as of the afternoon, down from a peak of more than 485,000, but utility officials said rolling blackouts would continue for “the next few days.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Those without power included James Reynolds of Greensboro, who said his housemate, a 70-year-old with diabetes and severe arthritis, spent the morning bundled beside a kerosene heater with indoor temperatures “hovering in the 50s.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In the Buffalo suburb of Cheektowaga, two people died in their homes Friday when emergency crews could not reach them in time to treat their medical conditions, according to Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz. He said another person died in Buffalo and said the blizzard may be “the worst storm in our community’s history.”&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It was taking ambulances over three hours to do one trip to a hospital, Poloncarz said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Forecasters said 28 inches (71 centimeters) of snow accumulated as of Saturday in Buffalo. Last month, areas just south of the city saw a record 6 feet of snow (about 1.8 meters) from a single storm.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The latest storm knocked out the furnace in the Buffalo home of Brian LaPrade, who woke up Saturday morning to indoor temperatures dipping below 50 degrees Fahrenheit (10 degrees Celsius).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I had to go out and dig out the vents,” LaPrade said. “As it was, the snow was taller than my snow blower.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Plows were on the roads, but large snow drifts, abandoned cars and downed power lines were slowing progress.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On the Ohio Turnpike, four died in a pileup involving some 50 vehicles. A Kansas City, Missouri, driver was killed Thursday after skidding into a creek, and three others died Wednesday in separate crashes on icy northern Kansas roads.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A utility worker in Ohio was also killed Friday while trying to restore power, according to the Buckeye Rural Electric Cooperative. It said the 22-year-old died in “an electrical contact incident” near Pedro in Lawrence County.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A woman in Vermont died in a hospital Friday after a tree broke in the high winds and fell on her. Police in Colorado Springs said they found the body of a person who appeared to be homeless as subzero temperatures and snow descended on the region. Near Janesville, Wisconsin, a 57-year-old woman died Friday after falling through the ice on a river, the Rock County Sheriff’s Office announced.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Along Interstate 71 in Kentucky, Terry Henderson and her husband, Rick, were stuck for 34 hours in a massive traffic jam caused by several accidents. The truck drivers weathered the wait in a rig outfitted with a diesel heater, a toilet and a refrigerator but nonetheless regretted trying to drive from Alabama to their home near Akron, Ohio, for Christmas.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We should have stayed,” Terry Henderson said after they got moving again Saturday.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The storm was nearly unprecedented in its scope, stretching from the Great Lakes near Canada to the Rio Grande along the border with Mexico. About 60% of the U.S. population faced some sort of winter weather advisory or warning, and temperatures plummeted drastically below normal from east of the Rocky Mountains to the Appalachians, the National Weather Service said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As millions of Americans were traveling ahead of Christmas, more than 2,360 flights within, into or out of the U.S. were canceled Saturday, according to the tracking site FlightAware.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Mexico, migrants camped near the U.S. border were facing unusually cold temperatures as they awaited a U.S. Supreme Court decision on pandemic-era restrictions that prevent many from seeking asylum.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Forecasters said a bomb cyclone — when atmospheric pressure drops very quickly in a strong storm — had developed near the Great Lakes, stirring up blizzard conditions, including heavy winds and snow.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Western New York often sees dramatic lake-effect snow, which is caused by cool air picking up moisture from the warm water, then dumping it on the land. But even area residents found conditions Christmas Eve to be dire.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Latricia Stroud and her two daughters, 1 and 12, were stranded without heat or power in their Buffalo house since Friday afternoon, with the snow too deep to leave.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I have to go over a snowbank to get out,” Stroud told the AP. “There’s a warming center, I just need a ride to get there.” AP/UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 02:53:59', '2022-12-25 02:53:59'),
(3994, 3994, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Recalling Jesus’ birth in a stable, Pope Francis rebuked those “ravenous” for wealth and power at the expense of the vulnerable, including children, in a Christmas Eve homily decrying war, poverty and greedy consumerism.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In the splendor of St. Peter’s Basilica, Francis presided over the evening Mass attended by about 7,000 faithful, including tourists and pilgrims, who flocked to the church on a warm evening and took their place behind rows of white-robed pontiffs.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Francis drew lessons from the humility of Jesus’ first hours of life in a manger.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“While animals feed in their stalls, men and women in our world, in their hunger for wealth and power, consume even their neighbors, their brothers and sisters,” the pontiff lamented. “How many wars have we seen! And in how many places, even today, are human dignity and freedom treated with contempt!”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“As always, the principal victims of this human greed are the weak and the vulnerable,” said Francis, who didn’t cite any specific conflict or situation.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“This Christmas, too, as in the case of Jesus, a world ravenous for money, power and pleasure does not make room for the little ones, for the so many unborn, poor and forgotten children,” the pope said, reading his homily with a voice that sounded tired and almost hoarse. “I think above all of the children devoured by war, poverty and injustice.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Still, the pontiff exhorted people to take heart.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Do not allow yourself to be overcome by fear, resignation or discouragement.” Jesus’ lying in a manger shows where “the true riches in life are to be found: not in money and power, but in relationships and persons.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Remarking on the “so much consumerism that has packaged the mystery” of Christmas, Francis said there was a danger the day’s meaning could be forgotten.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But, he said, Christmas focuses attention on “the problem of our humanity — the indifference produced by the greedy rush to possess and consume.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Jesus was born poor, lived poor and died poor,” Francis said. “He did not so much talk about poverty as live it, to the very end, for our sake.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Francis urged people to “not let this Christmas pass without doing something good.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">When the Mass ended, the pope, pushed in a wheelchair by an aide, moved down the basilica with a life-sized statue of Baby Jesus on his lap and flanked by several children carrying bouquets. The statue then was placed in a manger in a creche scene in the basilica.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Francis, 86, has been using a wheelchair to navigate long distances due to a painful knee ligament and a cane for shorter distances.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Traditionally, Catholics mark Christmas Eve by attending Mass at midnight. But over the years, the starting time at the Vatican has crept earlier, reflecting the health or stamina of popes and then the pandemic.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Two years ago, the start of Christmas Eve Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica was moved up to 7:30 p.m. to allow faithful to get home before for a nighttime curfew imposed by the Italian government as a measure to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Although virtually all pandemic-triggered restrictions have long been lifted in Italy, the Vatican kept to the early start time.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">During Saturday evening’s service, a choir sang hymns. Clusters of potted red poinsettia plants near the altar contrasted with the cream-colored vestments of the pontiff.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Sunday, tens of thousands of Romans, tourists and pilgrims were expected to crowd into St. Peter’s Square to hear Pope Francis deliver an address on world issues and give his blessing. The speech, known in Latin as “Urbi et Orbi” (to the city and to the world), generally is an occasion to review crises including war, persecution and hunger, in many parts of the globe. AP/UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 03:11:31', '2022-12-25 03:11:31'),
(3995, 3995, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>A local BNP leader who was beaten up by police died from his injuries and at least 50 others from both sides were injured during a clash between cops and opposition activists in Panchagarh on Saturday.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The deceased was identified as Abdur Rashid Arefin, 50, from Boda upazila. He was serving as the joint convener of Moyna Dighi Union BNP.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Resident Medical Officer at Panchagarh Modern Sadar Hospital, Towfiq Ahmed, said an injured man named Arefin was brought to the hospital, but doctors declared him dead on arrival. The precise cause of death can be confirmed after an autopsy, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As part of BNP’s movement for pressing home the 10-point demand it unveiled at its Dhaka divisional rally on December 10, the party\'s Panchagarh-based leaders and activists gathered at the local party office on Saturday around noon, said witnesses.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Before they could bring out any procession though, the law enforcers released tear shells and fired rubber bullets to disperse the gathering, according to witnesses. Those who protested the police\'s actions were baton-charged.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The BNP activists eventually dispersed, and then a series of chase-counterchase ensued, that continued for nearly 90 minutes. The BNP activists at this stage resorted to throwing brick chips at police.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Another BNP activist killed during clash with police&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It was only after additional backup forces arrived in the evening, that the police were able to finally take control of the situation well after 6pm.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">District BNP convener Zahirul Islam Kachchu claimed they were planning to hold a peaceful rally when police arrived and ratcheted up the tension</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“They dispersed us by firing tear gas, lathi charge and rubber bullets leaving BNP leader Arefin dead and around two hundred activists injured,” he alleged.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Kachchu demanded a judicial inquiry into the police action against what was planned to be a peaceful rally.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Arefin would become the 8th BNP leader/activist killed at the hands of police since the party started holding a series of rallies and demonstrations starting in August, including the 10 large divisional rallies and smaller ones in district towns such as the one in Panchagarh today. Police however have not owned up to the killings.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Panchagarh Superintendent of Police SM Sirajul Huda held a press briefing in the evening, where he denied the allegation and claimed Arefin was a cardiac patient and died of a heart attack. He also claimed there were no signs of injury on Arefin’s dead body, and his postmortem will be done on Sunday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Police were forced to fire the tearshells and rubber bullets for their safety, as BNP activists vandalised public property and attacked police,\" SP Huda said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Among the injured, some 25 are opposition activists, while 12 are from police, SP Huda disclosed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said a case will be filed against the BNP activists for attacking police, obstructing government activity and damaging public property. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"4\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 03:19:42', '2022-12-25 03:19:42');
INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(3996, 3996, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Yao Ruyan paced frantically outside the fever clinic of a county hospital in China’s industrial Hebei province, 70 kilometers (43 miles) southwest of Beijing. Her mother-in-law had COVID-19 and needed urgent medical care, but all hospitals nearby were full.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“They say there’s no beds here,” she barked into her phone.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As China grapples with its first-ever national COVID-19 wave, emergency wards in small cities and towns southwest of Beijing are overwhelmed. Intensive care units are turning away ambulances, relatives of sick people are searching for open beds, and patients are slumped on benches in hospital corridors and lying on floors for a lack of beds.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Yao’s elderly mother-in-law had fallen ill a week ago with the coronavirus. They went first to a local hospital, where lung scans showed signs of pneumonia. But the hospital couldn’t handle serious COVID-19 cases, Yao was told. She was told to go to larger hospitals in adjacent counties.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As Yao and her husband drove from hospital to hospital, they found all the wards were full. Zhuozhou Hospital, an hour’s drive from Yao’s hometown, was the latest disappointment.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Yao charged toward the check-in counter, past wheelchairs frantically moving elderly patients. Yet again, she was told the hospital was full, and that she would have to wait.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I’m furious,” Yao said, tearing up, as she clutched the lung scans from the local hospital. “I don’t have much hope. We’ve been out for a long time and I’m terrified because she’s having difficulty breathing.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Over two days, Associated Press journalists visited five hospitals and two crematoriums in towns and small cities in Baoding and Langfang prefectures, in central Hebei province. The area was the epicenter of one of China’s first outbreaks after the state loosened COVID-19 controls in November and December. For weeks, the region went quiet, as people fell ill and stayed home.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Many have now recovered. Today, markets are bustling, diners pack restaurants and cars are honking in snarling traffic, even as the virus is spreading in other parts of China. In recent days, headlines in state media said the area is “ starting to resume normal life.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But life in central Hebei’s emergency wards and crematoriums is anything but normal. Even as the young go back to work and lines at fever clinics shrink, many of Hebei’s elderly are falling into critical condition. As they overrun ICUs and funeral homes, it could be a harbinger of what’s to come for the rest of China.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Chinese government has reported only seven COVID-19 deaths since restrictions were loosened dramatically on Dec. 7, bringing the country’s total toll to 5,241. On Tuesday, a Chinese health official said that China only counts deaths from pneumonia or respiratory failure in its official COVID-19 death toll, a narrow definition that excludes many deaths that would be attributed to COVID-19 in other places.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Experts have forecast between a million and 2 million deaths in China through the end of next year, and a top World Health Organization official warned that Beijing’s way of counting would “underestimate the true death toll.”&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At Baoding No. 2 Hospital in Zhuozhou on Wednesday, patients thronged the hallway of the emergency ward. The sick were breathing with the help of respirators. One woman wailed after doctors told her that a loved one had died.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The ICU was so crowded, ambulances were turned away. A medical worker shouted at relatives wheeling in a patient from an arriving ambulance.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“There’s no oxygen or electricity in this corridor!” the worker exclaimed. “If you can’t even give him oxygen, how can you save him?”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“If you don’t want any delays, turn around and get out quickly!” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The relatives left, hoisting the patient back into the ambulance. It took off, lights flashing.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In two days of driving in the region, AP journalists passed around thirty ambulances. On one highway toward Beijing, two ambulances followed each other, lights flashing, as a third passed by heading in the opposite direction. Dispatchers are overwhelmed, with Beijing city officials reporting a sixfold surge in emergency calls earlier this month.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Some ambulances are heading to funeral homes. At the Zhuozhou crematorium, furnaces are burning overtime as workers struggle to cope with a spike in deaths in the past week, according to one employee. A funeral shop worker estimated it is burning 20 to 30 bodies a day, up from three to four before COVID-19 measures were loosened.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“There’s been so many people dying,” said Zhao Yongsheng, a worker at a funeral goods shop near a local hospital. “They work day and night, but they can’t burn them all.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At a crematorium in Gaobeidian, about 20 kilometers (12 miles) south of Zhuozhou, the body of one 82-year-old woman was brought from Beijing, a two-hour drive, because funeral homes in China’s capital were packed, according to the woman’s grandson, Liang.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“They said we’d have to wait for 10 days,” Liang said, giving only his surname because of the sensitivity of the situation.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Liang’s grandmother had been unvaccinated, Liang added, when she came down with coronavirus symptoms, and had spent her final days hooked to a respirator in a Beijing ICU.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Over two hours at the Gaobeidian crematorium on Thursday, AP journalists observed three ambulances and two vans unload bodies. A hundred or so people huddled in groups, some in traditional white Chinese mourning attire. They burned funeral paper and set off fireworks.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“There’s been a lot!” a worker said when asked about the number of COVID-19 deaths, before funeral director Ma Xiaowei stepped in and brought the journalists to meet a local government official.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As the official listened in, Ma confirmed there were more cremations, but said he didn’t know if COVID-19 was involved. He blamed the extra deaths on the arrival of winter.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Every year during this season, there’s more,” Ma said. “The pandemic hasn’t really shown up” in the death toll, he said, as the official listened and nodded.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Even as anecdotal evidence and modeling suggests large numbers of people are getting infected and dying, some Hebei officials deny the virus has had much impact.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“There’s no so-called explosion in cases, it’s all under control,” said Wang Ping, the administrative manager of Gaobeidian Hospital, speaking by the hospital’s main gate. “There’s been a slight decline in patients.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Wang said only a sixth of the hospital’s 600 beds were occupied, but refused to allow AP journalists to enter. Two ambulances came to the hospital during the half hour AP journalists were present, and a patient’s relative told the AP they were turned away from Gaobeidian’s emergency ward because it was full.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Thirty kilometers (19 miles) south in the town of Baigou, emergency ward doctor Sun Yana was candid, even as local officials listened in.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“There are more people with fevers, the number of patients has indeed increased,” Sun said. She hesitated, then added, “I can’t say whether I’ve become even busier or not. Our emergency department has always been busy.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Baigou New Area Aerospace Hospital was quiet and orderly, with empty beds and short lines as nurses sprayed disinfectant. COVID-19 patients are separated from others, staff said, to prevent cross-infection. But they added that serious cases are being directed to hospitals in bigger cities, because of limited medical equipment.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The lack of ICU capacity in Baigou, which has about 60,000 residents, reflects a nationwide problem. Experts say medical resources in China’s villages and towns, home to about 500 million of China’s 1.4 billion people, lag far behind those of big cities such as Beijing and Shanghai. Some counties lack a single ICU bed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As a result, patients in critical condition are forced to go to bigger cities for treatment. In Bazhou, a city 40 kilometers (25 miles) east of Baigou, a hundred or more people packed the emergency ward of Langfang No. 4 People’s Hospital on Thursday night.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Guards worked to corral the crowds as people jostled for positions. With no space in the ward, patients spilled into corridors and hallways. Sick people sprawled on blankets on the floor as staff frantically wheeled gurneys and ventilators. In a hallway, half a dozen patients wheezed on metal benches as oxygen tanks pumped air into their noses.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Outside a CT scan room, a woman sitting on a bench wheezed as snot dribbled out of her nostrils into crumpled tissues. A man sprawled out on a stretcher outside the emergency ward as medical workers stuck electrodes to his chest. By a check-in counter, a woman sitting on a stool gasped for air as a young man held her hand.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Everyone in my family has got COVID,” one man asked at the counter, as four others clamored for attention behind him. “What medicine can we get?”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In a corridor, a man paced as he shouted into his cellphone.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The number of people has exploded!” he said. “There’s no way you can get care here, there’s far too many people.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It wasn’t clear how many patients had COVID-19. Some had only mild symptoms, illustrating another issue, experts say: People in China rely more heavily on hospitals than in other countries, meaning it’s easier for emergency medical resources to be overloaded.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Over two hours, AP journalists witnessed half a dozen or more ambulances pull up to the hospital’s ICU and load critical patients to sprint to other hospitals, even as cars pulled up with dozens of new patients.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A beige van pulled up to the ICU and honked frantically at a waiting ambulance. “Move!” the driver shouted.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Let’s go, let’s go!” a panicked voice cried. Five people hoisted a man bundled in blankets out of the back of the van and rushed him into the hospital. Security guards shouted in the packed ward: “Make way, make way!”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The guard asked a patient to move, but backed off when a relative snarled at him. The bundled man was laid on the floor instead, amid doctors running back and forth. “Grandpa!” a woman cried, crouching over the patient.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Medical workers rushed over a ventilator. “Can you open his mouth?” someone shouted.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As white plastic tubes were fitted onto his face, the man began to breathe more easily.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Others were not so lucky. Relatives surrounding another bed began tearing up as an elderly woman’s vitals flatlined. A man tugged a cloth over the woman’s face, and they stood, silently, before her body was wheeled away.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Within minutes, another patient had taken her place. AP/UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"6\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 03:32:34', '2022-12-25 03:32:34'),
(3997, 3997, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Family members of Brazilian soccer great Pelé are gathering at the Albert Einstein hospital in Sao Paulo where the 82-year-old global icon has been since the end of November.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Doctors said earlier this week that Pelé’s cancer had advanced, adding the three-time World Cup winner is under “elevated care” related to “kidney and cardiac dysfunctions.” No other hospital statements have been published since.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Edson Cholbi Nascimento, one of Pelé’s sons and known as Edinho, arrived Saturday, one day after he gave a news conference to deny he would visit his father in hospital. Edinho, who works for a soccer club in southern Brazil, had said then that only doctors could help his father.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“He (Edson) is here,” Kely Nascimento, one of Pelé’s daughters, said in a posting on Instagram with a picture showing her sitting next to Edinho and two of his children at the hospital. “I am not leaving, no one will take me out of here.”&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Hours later, Edinho, a former Santos goalkeeper, posted a picture showing his hand holding his father’s.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Dad... my strength is yours,” Pelé’s son said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Edson Arantes do Nascimento, who is globally known as Pelé, had a colon tumor removed in September 2021. Neither his family nor the hospital have said whether it had spread to other organs.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Kely Nascimento and her sister Flavia Arantes do Nascimento used their social media channels Friday night to post an undated picture of Pelé apparently holding Kely with one hand as he lay on his hospital bed and Flavia slept on a couch.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We continue to be here, in this fight and with faith. Another night together,” Kely Nascimento wrote.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The hospital has not mentioned any signs of Pelé’s recent respiratory infection, which was aggravated by COVID-19.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Newspaper Folha de S.Paulo reported last weekend that Pelé’s chemotherapy was not working and that doctors had decided to put him on palliative care. Pelé’s family denied that report.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Pelé led Brazil to victory in the 1958, 1962 and 1970 World Cups and remains one of the team’s all-time leading scorers with 77 goals. Neymar tied Pelé’s record during the latest World Cup. AP/UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 04:07:00', '2022-12-25 04:07:00'),
(3998, 3998, '<p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Australian seamer Scott Boland was Sunday confirmed to start the Boxing Day second Test in Melbourne ahead of an \"underdone\" Josh Hazlewood, while South Africa suggested they could shake up their batting line up.</b></span></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Boland replaced injured fast bowler Hazlewood in the opening Test at Brisbane and was a key performer with his red-hot form making him virtually undroppable.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">He is now assured of another game on his home ground -- where he took an incredible 6-7 on debut against England a year ago, cementing himself into Ashes folklore.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Skipper Pat Cummins told reporters the team was unchanged from the side that won by six wickets inside two days on a hostile bowler-friendly Gabba pitch in Brisbane last week, the first of a three-match series.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">\"We gave Joshy every chance, (but) it just got to a stage where (he) more than anyone else felt like he was a little bit underdone,\" he said.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">\"It\'s a mark of the man really, he himself said \'don\'t feel quite right\', so he kind of pulled himself out of selection.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">\"We talk a lot about how (as) a team we need a squad mentality, and I think it\'s another great example.\"</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Hazlewood missed Australia\'s last two Tests in Adelaide and Brisbane due to a side strain but had been training hard in the build-up to Melbourne, where hot and humid conditions are expected.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Boland has taken 25 wickets at 10.33 since his debut at the MCG a year ago and said Friday he was hoping his local knowledge would give him the edge over Hazlewood.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The Boxing Day Test will be David Warner\'s 100th, with the opener striving to end a lean run that has seen some question his position in the side.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">He is just 78 runs shy of 8,000 Test runs and has vowed to get back to his best.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">\"This might be a wicket where I can go out and play like the old me,\" he said.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">- Change -</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">After his batsmen largely failed to fire in Brisbane -- where they were bowled out for 152 and 99 -- South African captain Dean Elgar said a change could be afoot.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">He was not willing to go into details, although middle-order batsman Theunis de Bruyn has been tipped to come in.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">\"The little bit I can give away is our bowlers retain their spots,\" he said.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">\"There\'s probably a change amongst the batters.\"</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">South Africa\'s batting struggles in Brisbane followed some poor displays earlier in the year, with only Sarel Erwee and wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne making centuries since the start of the 2021/22 season.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Despite this, batting coach Justin Sammons backed them to come good as the series progresses.&nbsp;</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">\"We\'ve got to keep the belief and the players do have the belief,\" he said.</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">\"We haven\'t played to our potential in the last couple of Tests and we are also determined to get it right. The guys are out there doing their best behind the scenes and I\'m confident that they are going to get it right.\"</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Australia team: David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins (capt), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Scott Boland</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">South Africa squad: Dean Elgar (capt), Temba Bavuma, Gerald Coetzee, Theunis de Bruyn, Sarel Erwee, Simon Harmer, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Kagiso Rabada, Rassie van der Dussen, Kyle Verreynne, Lizaad Williams, Khaya Zondo. AFP</span><br></p><p style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">bnbd24/kh</span><br></p>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 04:21:02', '2022-12-25 04:21:02'),
(3999, 3999, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The Christian community is celebrating Christmas in the country, as elsewhere across the world, this morning amid festivities and enthusiasm.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Christmas, the biggest religious festival of the Christians, is annually celebrated all over the world on the 25th of December — commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">It is a time when family, friends and relatives get together to celebrate the day with colourful lights and Christmas trees decorated at homes.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Christmas celebrations underway in Bangladesh  </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Christmas carols and hymns are being sung before and after the prayer sessions at the churches.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As part of the overall security arrangements, a sufficient number of Rab personnel, along with law enforcers from other agencies, have already been deployed across the country to respond to emergencies and unforeseen situations during Christmas celebrations, sources at the Rab headquarters said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina issued separate messages on the occasion.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">President Abdul Hamid wished: “May Christmas bring endless joy and welfare to everyone including the Christian community. May everyone\'s life be filled with happiness and prosperity.” </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Prime Minister wished peace, welfare and prosperity to all citizens including the Christian community on the eve and urged for collective effort from all for making a prosperous, non-communal and peaceful nation.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The President will host a reception at Bangabhaban on the occasion this evening.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Archbishop of Bangladesh, ambassadors and representatives from foreign missions, distinguished members of the Christian community, religious leaders and professionals will join the reception.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Later, President Abdul Hamid along with the guests will join a tea party. </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bangladesh Television, Bangladesh Betar, private TV channels and radio stations will air special programmes highlighting the significance of the day. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"7\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 04:27:31', '2022-12-25 04:52:03'),
(4000, 4000, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Dhaka has once again topped the list of world cities with the worst air quality on Christmas morning.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">With an air quality index (AQI) score of 374 at 9am today, Dhaka ranked first in the list of cities with worst air.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">An AQI between 201 and 300 is said to be ‘very unhealthy’, while a reading of 301 to 400 is considered \'hazardous\', posing serious health risks to residents.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">India’s Delhi and Kyrgyzstan’s Bishkek occupied the second and third spots in the list, with AQI scores of 238 and 225, respectively.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Bangladesh, the AQI is based on five criteria pollutants -- Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2 and Ozone.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Dhaka has long been grappling with air pollution issues. Its air quality usually turns unhealthy in winter and improves during the monsoon.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Air pollution consistently ranks among the top risk factors for death and disability worldwide. Breathing polluted air has long been recognised as increasing a person’s chances of developing a heart disease, chronic respiratory diseases, lung infections and cancer, according to several studies.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As per the World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution kills an estimated seven million people worldwide every year, largely as a result of increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer and acute respiratory infections. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 05:02:17', '2022-12-25 05:02:17'),
(4001, 4001, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>President M Abdul Hamid will host a reception for the Christian community leaders at Bangabhaban in the capital today, on the occasion of Christmas Day, the Christians’ festival celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The reception programme for the leaders of the Christian community will begin at 7 pm today at the Gallery Hall of the Bangabhaban,” President’s press secretary Md Joynal Abedin said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The head of the state is scheduled to exchange greetings with the representatives of Christian community leaders on the occasion.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">&nbsp;As many as 30 guests were invited to the Presidential palace, the Bangabhaban spokesman added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">&nbsp;The State Minister for Religious Affairs Md Faridul Haq Khan, lawmakers, secretaries concerned, some envoys and representatives from different foreign missions, distinguished persons of the Christian community, and religious leaders are expected to attend the reception. BSS</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 05:38:19', '2022-12-25 05:38:19'),
(4002, 4002, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>The newly-elected Awami League Central Working Committee and Advisory Council led by party President and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today paid tributes to Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Awami League President Sheikh Hasina first laid a wreath at the portrait of Father of the Nation in front of the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi-32 here this morning.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Prime Minister stood there in solemn silence for some time as a mark of profound respect to the memories of the architect of independence of Bangladesh.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Later, Sheikh Hasina along with members of the Central Working Committee and Advisory Council placed another wreath at the portrait of Bangabandhu.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina was elected President of Bangladesh Awami League - the country\'s oldest political party - for the 10th consecutive term, while Obaidul Qader was re-elected as general secretary for the third time in the 22nd National Council held yesterday (December 24). BSS</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 06:02:40', '2022-12-25 06:02:40'),
(4003, 4003, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Russia has said the December 14 incident is an “expected result” of the activity of the American ambassador, who — under the pretext of caring about the rights of the citizens of Bangladesh — was “persistently trying to influence” the domestic processes in the country.&nbsp;</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“As of late, his colleagues from the British and German diplomatic missions have been engaged in the same cause and have allowed themselves to openly give recommendations to the local authorities regarding transparency and inclusiveness in the parliamentary elections scheduled for next year,” Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova said in Moscow.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Russia said they believe that such actions that “violate” the basic principles of non-interference in the domestic affairs of sovereign states are “unacceptable”.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Russian foreign ministry spokesperson said they have noted the widely publicized incident involving the US Ambassador to Bangladesh, Peter Haas, whose security was “allegedly threatened” by activists from a local public organization when he went to meet with the family of a supporter of an opposition political party on December 14, 2022 in Dhaka.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In 2013, the opposition party supporter went missing, the Russian spokesperson said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“If anybody wants to ask: How about the terms ‘diplomat, immunity, embassy, security’? We always urge these things in accordance with international law and the Vienna Conventions on Diplomatic and Consular Relations,” she said.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We urge the US, the United Kingdom and other countries to care about and comment not only on cases of their own security, but also to support their colleagues when the countries and their representatives, including at international organizations, raise questions about the security of their embassies and consular facilities,” Zakharova added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“They do not care about this. At best, they remain silent and at worst, they justify those who do this. When international terrorists committed a series of attacks against our embassy in Syria, we urged the Americans to respond to this through the UN Security Council,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She said, “Everything was obvious. There can be no political justification for an unwillingness to publicly take a stand and use the common voice of the Security Council.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The spokesperson said Washington did not support Russia’s proposal on the council taking a clear stance on the protection of diplomats and condemning terrorist attacks at embassies and against diplomats.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“There cannot be any double standards, only a joint consolidated position,” said the Russian foreign ministry official. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 06:24:50', '2022-12-25 06:24:50'),
(4004, 4004, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">India defeated Bangladesh by three wickets Sunday in the second Test in Dhaka to take the two-Test series 2-0.</span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shreyas Iyer (29 not out) and Ravichandran Ashwin (42 not out) put on 71 runs in an unbroken eighth-wicket stand as India reached 145-7 on a tense fourth day after resuming precariously at 45-4. AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 06:33:53', '2022-12-25 06:33:53'),
(4005, 4005, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Trumpets and snares will play Brazil’s national anthem at Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s swearing-in on Jan. 1. Then, one will hear a different song on the streets, its lyrics taking a shot at outgoing President Jair Bolsonaro.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“It is time for Jair, it is time for Jair ... to go away!” the lyrics say. “Pack your bags, hit the road and go away!”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">When Lula clinched his election win over Bolsonaro on Oct. 30, tens of thousands of people sang the familiar tune throughout the night, pushing the song to the top of Spotify’s list in Brazil and showing one way that many Brazilians aren’t ready to extend olive branches.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Healing Brazil’s divided society will be easier said than done. Lula’s Cabinet appointments thus far favoring leftists and stalwarts of his Workers’ Party are turning off those who trusted the divisive 77-year-old to govern alongside moderates, and who joined forces after Bolsonaro repeatedly tested the guardrails of the world’s fourth-biggest democracy.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Governing Brazil means deals with agribusiness, evangelicals, former Bolsonaro allies. It can be frustrating for half-hearted Lula voters, but that’s what they have before them,” said Carlos Melo, a political science professor at Insper University in Sao Paulo.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Of course, Bolsonaro’s far-right backers are hardly the picture of post-election bonhomie. Many reject results of the vote and remain camped outside military buildings nationwide, demanding that Lula’s inauguration be impeded.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Brazil’s October election was its closest in more than three decades, pitting two arch-rivals against one another. In Lula’s victory speech on Oct. 30, he declared that “there are not two Brazils,” as tens of thousands gathered outside his hotel in Sao Paulo to celebrate his victory and Bolsonaro’s defeat.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A hopeful sign for Lula’s bridge-building ambitions came days later, with leftists and moderates once again donning the nation’s yellow soccer jersey to cheer on their team at the World Cup. The shirt for almost a decade has been an anti-left symbol and often featured in protests against Lula and in favor of Bolsonaro.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Lula and his allies wore the yellow shirt, too, in an effort to reclaim it; he posted photos of himself to social media, and said green and yellow “are the colors of 213 million people who love this country.” Salesman Elias Gaspar said yellow jerseys started flying off his rack as the team’s flamboyant performances trickled in.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Before the World Cup I would sell on average six blue shirts and four yellow out of every ten,” Gaspar, 43, said on Dec. 4. “Now it is almost all yellow.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Soccer was a short-lived unifying force. Brazil exited the tournament earlier than expected after a surprise penalty shootout loss to Croatia in the quarterfinals, and most Brazilians stuffed their jerseys back in their drawers. Bolsonaro’s backers are the only ones still sporting the national colors.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Lula has avoided inflaming tensions, mostly refraining from public attacks against Bolsonaro or his supporters, and instead focusing speeches on helping the most disadvantaged Brazilians once he returns to the office he held from 2003 to 2010. At times, though, us-versus-them comments have slipped past his lips. On Dec. 22, while announcing new ministers, he said Bolsonarismo remains alive and angry among those who refuse to recognize the electoral loss, so it must be defeated on Brazil’s streets.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">For defense minister, Lula picked conservative José Múcio Monteiro after four years of Bolsonaro striving to secure the armed forces’ allegiance.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Other Lula appointments seem crafted to please his base and party, such as Anielle Franco, sister of slain Rio de Janeiro city councilwoman Marielle Franco, for minister of racial equality. He also tapped long-time ally Aloizio Mercadante to head the country’s development bank -- precisely the sort of position business leaders expected to remain clear of Workers’ Party hands.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Gleisi Hoffmann, the chairwoman of Lula’s Workers’ Party, said building a Cabinet would be a challenge even if Lula were only selecting progressives. Complicating decisions further is the fact that some would-be ministers are likely 2026 presidential candidates, as Lula has indicated he won’t run for reelection.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We have our differences within the Workers’ Party, now go figure what happens when we bring a dozen other parties,” Hoffmann said on her social media channels Dec. 16. “It is a puzzle, it takes time.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">That may help explain why the number of ministries will nearly double, to 37.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Centrist endorsements from former environment minister Marina Silva and Simone Tebet, who finished third in the presidential race’s first round, brought in votes from Brazil’s moderates -- a demographic that grew leery of Lula since the sprawling Car Wash corruption probe landed him in jail in 2018. With their support, he beat Bolsonaro by less than two percentage points. Many expected them to be quickly announced as ministers, but negotiations have dragged on.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Thomas Traumann, a political consultant, said delays reflect the fact the president-elect has had a central role in negotiations for positions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“People who helped him like Marina and Simone will have less stature than they would have had they been appointed shortly after he won,” Traumann said. “Lula’s luck is that moderates will view his administration like many leftist Democrats see (U.S. President Joe) Biden: they might not like what they see, but it is better than the alternative.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Biden’s attempt to bridge the political chasm could offer an instructional, albeit dispiriting, model, said Brian Ott, a professor of communication at Missouri State University who has researched the stratifying impact of social media on American political discourse.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Early in his presidency, Biden did not shy away from the fact that he was governing in a polarized country and played up his bonafides as a throwback to a different era when Democrats and Republicans could battle on the Senate floor before repairing to the dining room to hammer out compromises.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The problem that Biden faces and the problem that politicians face in 51% countries like Brazil is there may no longer be smart strategies to deliver big tent messages without alienating your base,” said Ott. “We are now in a period where politics is so intensely, deeply divided culturally, where people don’t have to be exposed to different points.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Dec. 22, Lula named 16 ministers, bringing his total thus far to 21. Neither Tebet nor Silva are among them.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“It is harder to assemble a government than to win elections,” he said while counseling his appointees to hire staffers from diverse backgrounds. “We’re trying to make a government that, as much as we can, represents the political forces that participated in our campaign.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He added that people who helped and haven’t yet been named will be taken into account, and are owed a debt for “daring to stick their necks out to confront fascism.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Still, many new Lula voters already feel inclined to jump ship. One is Thereza Bittencourt, 65, who spoke at a military club in Rio and said initial signs worry her.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I took a lot of criticism from my friends at the club because I voted for Lula. All of them chose Bolsonaro. I told them the management of the economy would be better,” Bittencourt said as she sipped her caipirinha. “If I only see members of the Workers’ Party in the government, goodbye.” AP/UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 07:25:02', '2022-12-25 07:25:02'),
(4006, 4006, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Members of the Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) have launched a special drive to free the world’s largest mangrove forest, Sundarbans, from robbers – to ensure security of fishermen.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A special team named “Elite Tigers” of the battalion launched the drive on Saturday noon through a long range patrolling in Sharankhola, Joymoni, Baroitala, Andarmanik, Mrigamari and others spots. The drive will continue while another team, “Bengal Tigers”, with trawlers is kept standby to response to emergency calls.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Robbers abducted 11 fishermen from different areas of the Sundarbans between December 13 and 18.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Last Wednesday, police claimed that the robbers left the fishermen in the face of their drives. Some of the rescued fisherman, however, claimed that they were released after paying ransom to the abductors. Police denied this claim.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Commandant Md Badruzzoha, of Rab-6, said they launched the special drive to bring the robbers, who recently kidnapped fishermen, under the law through identification.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We are determined to free the Sundarbans from the criminals at any cost,” Lt Col Mostak Ahmed, commandant of the Rab-6, said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Rab officer further said that law enforcers will always stand by the fishermen to provide security. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 07:56:59', '2022-12-25 07:56:59');
INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(4007, 4007, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Prime Minister and Awami League President Sheikh Hasina on Sunday said that she accept leadership of the party this time considering the volatile global economic situation.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">“One must not take (leadership) responsibility so many times. But I accepted the responsibility considering the current global situation. You have to consider that I am getting older,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina said this while exchanging greetings with party leaders and activists at Ganabhaban after being elected president of AL for the 10th time.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She said that the confidence and trust of the masses are AL’s biggest strength.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We only believe in the power of the people,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“You must strengthen the party giving highest priority to this. This is my request to you,” she told party leaders and activists.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She put importance on establishing Awami League offices in every district and upazila.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“The central AL will help the local units if they are unable to set up their offices,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She put emphasis on utilizing every inch of arable land in the country to increase production for averting any unwanted situation.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She mentioned that due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Russia-Ukraine war, and sanctions, economic recession has gripped the whole world. “Many rich countries have already declared to be in recession. Bangladesh must not get trapped in that situation. If we can produce extra food, we can export those in many countries mitigating our own demands.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina put emphasis on strengthening the party through recruiting new members.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We will form eight new teams for the eight divisions, their responsibilities will be to look after the recruitment of the new members,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She said that AL is the only organization that developed from the land and people of this country while BNP and Jatiya Party came from the pockets of military rulers who grabbed state powers illegally, violating the constitution of the country.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“They do not have any responsibility towards the people whereas we have the duties to improve the fate of the masses. Each and every leader and activist of AL have responsibilities in this regard,” she said. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 08:50:39', '2022-12-25 08:50:39'),
(4008, 4008, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">A light to thick blanket of fog is likely to envelop large parts of Bangladesh in the next 24 hours, starting this morning, reports UNB.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Moderate to thick fog may occur at places over the river basins and light to moderate fog may occur elsewhere over the country during late night to morning, Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) said today.</div><div><br></div><div>The weather may remain dry with temporary partly cloudy sky over the country, it added.</div><div><br></div><div>Night temperature may rise by (1-2 °C) and day temperature may rise slightly over the country.</div><div><br></div><div>The lowest temperature in the country was recorded at 9.8 degree Celsius in Dinajpur in the last 24 hours till 6am Sunday.</div><div><br></div><div>The highest temperature was recorded at 30.1 degree Celsius in Teknaf.</div><div><br></div><div>Meanwhile, the depression over southwest Bay and adjoining area moved southwestwards at 6am today, as per the latest warning of the met office.</div><div><br></div><div>All fishing boats and trawlers over north Bay and deep sea have been advised not to venture into the depression area, it added.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 09:22:58', '2022-12-25 09:22:58'),
(4009, 4009, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Minister for Road, Transport and Bridges Obaidul Quader said on Sunday that Awami League is united under the leadership of party President Sheikh Hasina.&nbsp;</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>He said this while talking to journalists after paying tribute at the portrait of the Father of the Nation in front of the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi-32 in the capital.</div><div><br></div><div>Earlier, the newly-elected Awami League Central Working Committee and Advisory Council led by Premier Sheikh Hasina paid tributes to Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman this morning.</div><div><br></div><div>“We elected the leadership in a democratic way at the conference; most of the senior leaders were reelected,” he said, adding that PM Sheikh Hasina understands the minds of party activists and leaders.</div><div><br></div><div>He observed that there are manifold challenges before the party centering the next national election, crisis being faced by the country due to global circumstances, militancy, and anti-government movement by the BNP.</div><div><br></div><div>The party president decided to keep the experienced leadership to face the upcoming challenges, reports UNB</div><div><br></div><div>Quader said that he became general secretary of the party three times and his duties have increased.</div><div><br></div><div>“It is my fortune that I obtained responsibility of Awami League and it is the decision of the Premier Sheikh Hasina,” he added.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 11:14:14', '2022-12-25 11:14:14'),
(4010, 4010, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">More than 50 people have been injured in an intercity coach crash in the province of British Columbia, Canada.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>It happened near the town of Merritt, where temperatures dropped to -3.9C on Saturday.</div><div><br></div><div>British Columbia\'s Interior Health authority has issued a Code Orange, meaning services are responding to a disaster or mass casualties.</div><div><br></div><div>It is not known what caused the crash, which happened about 160 miles (260km) from the provincial capital, Victoria.</div><div><br></div><div>Fifty-three people were taken to hospital following the incident. Their conditions have not been disclosed by the local health authorities, reports BBC</div><div><br></div><div>Premier David Eby said that he was \"shocked and saddened\" to hear of the \"serious\" incident.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 12:00:59', '2022-12-25 12:00:59'),
(4011, 4011, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">A lighter vessel with 11 lakh litre of fuel sank after being hit by another vessel in Meghna river due to dense fog in sadar upazila of Bhola district early Sunday.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>KM Shafiul Kinjal, media officer of Coast Guard South Zone, said the vessel named ‘Sagar Nandini-2’ carrying 11 lakh litre of fuel from Chattogram port sank in the Meghna as another vessel hit it at Tulatuli Majher Char while heading towards Chandpur Padma Depot around 4 am.</div><div><br></div><div>The accident took place due to poor visibility caused by the dense fog.</div><div>All the fuel spilled into the river. Local people later collected the fuel in containers.</div><div><br></div><div>Fortunately, all 13 crew members of the vessel have been rescued by another vessel passing through the area.</div><div><br></div><div>On information, a team of coast guard rushed to the spot and took necessary measures to protect the river from pollution. - UNB</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 12:10:35', '2022-12-25 12:10:35'),
(4012, 4012, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Russian President Vladimir Putin blasted the West for trying to “tear apart” Russia, in extracts from an interview to be aired on national television later Sunday.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>“At the core of it all is the policy of our geopolitical opponents aiming to tear apart Russia, the historical Russia,” Putin said.</div><div><br></div><div>“They have always tried to ‘divide and conquer’... Our goal is something else — to unite the Russian people,” he said.</div><div><br></div><div>Putin has used the concept of “historical Russia” to argue that Ukrainians and Russians are one people — undermining Kyiv’s sovereignty and justifying his 10-month offensive in Ukraine.</div><div><br></div><div>“We are acting in the right direction, we are protecting our national interests, the interests of our citizen, of our people,” Putin said.</div><div><br></div><div>The president repeated claims that Moscow was “ready to negotiate with all participants in this process (to find) an acceptable solution” to the conflict.</div><div><br></div><div>In his first trip outside Ukraine since the offensive began in February, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky earned firm pledges of support from US President Joe Biden, including the Pentagon’s most advanced air defense system.</div><div><br></div><div>“Of course we will destroy it, 100 percent!” Putin said, referring to the Patriot missile battery promised to Zelensky. - AFP&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 13:31:22', '2022-12-25 13:31:22'),
(4013, 4013, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Police filed five cases against 81 named and around 2,000 unnamed people over a clash with BNP activists in Panchagarh on Saturday that left one BNP activist dead and at least 50 including policemen injured.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The cases were filed by five sub-inspectors of Panchagarh sadar police station on Sunday, said SM Sirajul Huda, superintendent of Panchagarh police.</div><div><br></div><div>Police detained eight BNP and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami activists on Saturday night during a drive over the incident, he said.</div><div><br></div><div>The cases were filed on allegation of obstructing government activities, beating government officials, creating anarchy and under the Explosive Substances Act, said Abdul Latif Mia, officer-in-charge of Panchagarh sadar police station.</div><div><br></div><div>Meanwhile the body of deceased Moyna Dighi Union BNP convener Abdur Rashid Arefin, 50, has been handed over to his family after an autopsy on Sunday, he said.</div><div><br></div><div>District BNP member secretary Farhad Hossain Azad said, “Our brother has died. We will decide our next step after discussing with family and the party following Arefin’s burial.”</div><div><br></div><div>On Saturday noon, as part of BNP’s movement for pressing home the 10-point demand it unveiled at its Dhaka divisional rally on December 10, the party\'s Panchagarh-based leaders and activists gathered at the local party office.</div><div><br></div><div>Before they could bring out any procession though, the law enforcers released tear shells and fired rubber bullets to disperse the gathering, according to witnesses. Those who protested the police\'s actions were baton-charged.</div><div><br></div><div>The BNP activists eventually dispersed, and then a series of chase-counter chase ensued, that continued for nearly 90 minutes. The BNP activists at this stage resorted to throwing brick chips at police.</div><div><br></div><div>It was only after additional backup forces arrived in the evening, that the police were able to finally take control of the situation well after 6pm.</div><div><br></div><div>Panchagarh SP SM Sirajul Huda, however, denied the allegation and claimed Arefin died of a heart attack, reports UNB</div><div><br></div><div>He also claimed there were no signs of injury on Arefin’s dead body.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 13:46:57', '2022-12-25 13:46:57'),
(4014, 4014, '<div><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Zia, Ershad and Khaleda Zia turned Bangladesh into a “nation of beggars” after 1975, PM Sheikh Hasina said Sunday.</span><br></b></div><div><br></div><div>Sheikh Hasina said this during her closing remarks while exchanging greetings with party leaders and activists at Ganabhaban after she was reelected AL President for the 10th consecutive term.</div><div><br></div><div>When AL came to power, Bangladesh was free of “monga”&nbsp; (famine-like situation), she said. “Today we have achieved self-sufficiency in food production.”</div><div><br></div><div>Sheikh Hasina said Awami League is an organization formed by the hands of the Father of the Nation and the party was born through movements for establishing rights of the people. AL must continue that tradition, she told party leaders and activists.</div><div><br></div><div>The AL chief asked her party\'s affluent members to come forward in helping the dedicated but insolvent workers in their respective areas.</div><div><br></div><div>She said there are many insolvent activists in AL who are dedicated to politics, even if it means selling off their ancestral land, but never desired anything.</div><div><br></div><div>Sheikh Hasina said many, including Ayub Khan, Zia, Ershad and Khaleda Zia, wanted to destroy AL but could not as the party has so many dedicated activists.</div><div><br></div><div>Talking about the global economic downturn, she said her government is trying its best to continue keeping the economy vibrant and is exercising austerity in undertaking and implementing development projects.</div><div><br></div><div>\"We\'re putting importance on the projects which are very essential. And we are completing the implementation of the projects quickly which would ensure benefits for the people,\"&nbsp; she said.</div><div><br></div><div>The premier said now her government\'s goal is to make Bangladesh a developed and prosperous country — turning it into \'Smart Bangladesh\' by 2041.</div><div><br></div><div>She said every community up to the grassroots level of the country would turn into a smart community by using digital devices and online platforms.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>\"Everyone will be adept at using computers and technology,\" said the PM, adding that smart and digital devices will be used in every sector including economic activities, healthcare services, education and agriculture. Source: UNB</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 15:10:51', '2022-12-25 15:10:51'),
(4015, 4015, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The health authorities said that the expiry dates of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine doses used to administer the second booster shot have been extended by 70 days.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The decision was made with the approval of manufacturers Pfizer-BioNTech and the World Health Organisation. The Bangladesh National Immunisation Technical Advisory Group has also approved their use.</div><div><br></div><div>There are no issues administering this fourth dose of the vaccine, the Directorate General of Health Services said at a virtual press conference on Sunday.</div><div><br></div><div>The DGHS rolled out the second booster dose across the country on Dec 20. The Pfizer vaccine has been used for the fourth dose. The immunisation programme sent instructions about the extension of the expiry date across the country on Dec 20.</div><div><br></div><div>The expiry dates for the Pfizer shots were extended from Nov 30 to Feb 28 with permission from its manufacturers and the UN’s health agency, according to a letter from Dr Md Shamsul Haque, member secretary of the COVID-19 Vaccine Management Task Force.</div><div><br></div><div>Any vials or boxes of the vaccine must be used within 70 days of being mixed, or within 70 days of their date of expiry or whichever comes first, according to the letter.</div><div><br></div><div>Dr ABM Khurshid Alam, director general of health services, says that some media outlets had reported that the DGHS were using expired vaccines. “The issue is sensitive, so we called a press conference to explain,” he said.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 16:18:11', '2022-12-25 16:18:11'),
(4016, 4016, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">&nbsp;Farmers have begun transplantation of Boro rice seedlings in Rangpur agriculture region this season aiming to enchaining rice output for ensuring food security amid global crises caused by the Russia-Ukraine War.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Officials of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) said farmers have so far prepared Boro rice seedbeds on 22,500 hectares of land against the fixed target of preparing the same on 23,176 hectares of land.</div><div><br></div><div>“Transplantation of Boro rice seedlings continues in low-lying and riverine char areas as the process will get full momentum from mid-January next on the mainland,” said Additional Director of the DAE’s Rangpur region Agriculturist Mohammad Shah Alam.</div><div><br></div><div>The DAE has fixed a target of producing 22,30,219 tonnes of clean Boro rice (33,45,329 tonnes of paddy) from 5,07,075 hectares of land for all five districts in the region during the current Rabi season.</div><div><br></div><div>Farmers will produce 10,73,085 tonnes of hybrid variety Boro rice from 2,19,900 hectares of land, 11,54,663 tonnes of high yielding variety rice from 2,85,800 hectares and 2,471 tonnes of local variety Boro rice from 1,350 hectares of land.</div><div><br></div><div>“Farmers have so far transplanted Boro rice seedlings on 500 hectares of land in the region till Saturday,” he said.</div><div><br></div><div>The DAE and other agriculture-related departments and different organizations have taken adequate preparations to ensure smooth delivery of seed, fertilizer, electricity and technologies to farmers to make the intensive Boro rice farming program a success.</div><div><br></div><div>“We have also taken steps to popularize large-scale adoption of conservation agriculture technologies like Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD) irrigation method in farming Boro rice to save water and increase rice output at reduced costs,” Alam said.</div><div><br></div><div>He suggested farmers to irrigate Boro rice seedbeds at nights and discharge the water in the mornings and keep their seedbeds under cover of polythene sheets to save the tender seedlings from damage if the sweeping cold wave situation deteriorates.</div><div><br></div><div>“As the process of preparing seedbeds is nearing completion, most farmers are preparing their crop lands to transplant Boro rice seedlings soon” Alam added.</div><div><br></div><div>Talking to BSS, farmer Ariful Haque of village Najirdigar in Rangpur said he has completed preparing Boro rice seedbeds to begin transplantation of the seedlings on his five acres of land after three weeks to complete the process by early February next.</div><div><br></div><div>“As per suggestion of field level agriculture officers, I am currently taking special care of growing tender plants of Boro rice seedlings so that those were not affected by the mild cold wave currently sweeping over the Rangpur region,” he said.</div><div><br></div><div>Deputy Director (Leave Reserved) of the DAE at Khamarbari in Dhaka Abu Sayem suggested farmers complete transplantation of Boro rice seedlings within February 15 next to get the maximum yield rate, reports BSS</div><div><br></div><div>\"Farmers will face no hurdles as authorities concerned have taken ample steps to ensure a smooth supply of fuel, power and fertiliser as part of the government’s comprehensive steps to make the Boro rice farming program a success,\" Sayem added.</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 16:22:15', '2022-12-25 16:22:15'),
(4017, 4017, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The much awaited first ever elevated metro rail is ready for commercial operation as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is set to inaugurate the metro rail on December 28.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>\"Dhaka is the second largest city in South Asia and the seventh largest in the world in terms of population. And the capital city is getting the most modern transportation system with metro rail for commuters,\" Managing Director of Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) MAN Siddique told BSS here today.</div><div><br></div><div>He said the metro rail will reduce public sufferings, which will be able to transport more passengers in a less time with comfortable means.</div><div>&nbsp;</div><div>Currently, the authorities of the metro rail are busy for giving finishing touch to stations, stairs, escalators, vending machines, ticketing system, fresh rooms, platforms, elevators, CCTV cameras, waiting rooms and others for providing facilities as per the international standard.</div><div><br></div><div>Meanwhile, trial run is going on from Uttara to Agargaon. Common people believe that along with the reduction of traffic congestion in the capital, revenue collection will increase through the launch of metro rail after Padma Bridge.</div><div><br></div><div>According to the project details, initially some 10-set of train having six coaches will run from Uttara to Agargaon. If one of the 10-set of train goes out of service, the remaining two will run as support. For the time being, the train will run on this route slowly.</div><div><br></div><div>&nbsp;However, if the train starts at full speed, one train will run every three and a half minutes. How long the train will stay at a station has not been decided yet.</div><div><br></div><div>At each station, the train will wait till the boarding and alighting of passengers is completed. Each train can run at a speed of 100 to 110 km with 2,300 passengers. However, the speed will be lower in areas with bends.</div><div><br></div><div>Common people said around 23,000 people are living in every square kilometer of the capital city, which has 306 square kilometers. As a result, traffic congestion is a common phenomenon in the city.</div><div><br></div><div>They said three political parties have ruled the country for several periods after independence. None of the parties made much progress at the district or divisional level.</div><div><br></div><div>&nbsp;As a result, the country\'s major industries have developed in the capital. Every year, thousands of common people rush to Dhaka from villages for livelihood.</div><div><br></div><div>After assuming power in 2009, the Awami League government took various initiatives to reduce the pressure on the capital. Initiatives were taken to build metro rail across the capital to ease traffic congestion, according to the project details.</div><div><br></div><div>It said that according to the government announcement, one of the three parts of the metro rail is going to be inaugurated this month of victory (December). Now it is only a matter of time to wait for the train to run from Diabari, Uttara to Agargaon.</div><div><br></div><div>The metro rail will be able to carry 60 thousand passengers per hour and half a million passengers per day and one train will arrive at each station every four minutes.</div><div><br></div><div>Earlier, Planning Minister MA Mannan said that the elevated metro rail will reduce pressure on roads.</div><div><br></div><div>Stakeholders said that the 11.73 km section of metro rail project from Uttara Diabari to Agargaon will be inaugurated on December 28.</div><div><br></div><div>&nbsp;Later, the second section from Agargaon to Motijheel and the third section i.e. from Motijheel to Kamalapur railway station will be launched in phases.</div><div><br></div><div>They said that metro rail will be launched from Agargaon to Motijheel in December next year.</div><div><br></div><div>Bangladesh is set to embark on a new era of commuting with a new mode of transport hitherto unseen on the land-the elevated metro rail of Dhaka.</div><div><br></div><div>Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has been constructing the metro rail and providing soft loan to the project. The JICA gave Taka 19,500 crore for the project. - BSS</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'News Desk', '[\"30\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 16:38:02', '2022-12-25 16:38:02'),
(4018, 4018, '<div><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Three major international aid groups on Sunday suspended their operations in Afghanistan following a decision by the country’s Taliban rulers to ban women from working at non-governmental organizations.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Save the Children, the Norwegian Refugee Council and CARE said they cannot effectively reach children, women and men in desperate need in Afghanistan without the women in their workforces. The NGO ban was introduced a day earlier, allegedly because women weren’t wearing the Islamic headscarf correctly.</div><div><br></div><div>The three NGOs provide healthcare, education, child protection and nutrition services and support amid plummeting humanitarian conditions.</div><div><br></div><div>“We have complied with all cultural norms and we simply can’t work without our dedicated female staff, who are essential for us to access women who are in desperate need of assistance,” Neil Turner, the Norwegian Refugee Council’s chief for Afghanistan, told The Associated Press on Sunday. He said the group has 468 female staff in the country.</div><div><br></div><div>The Taliban takeover in August 2021 sent Afghanistan’s economy into a tailspin and transformed the country, driving millions into poverty and hunger. Foreign aid stopped almost overnight. Sanctions on Taliban rulers, a halt on bank transfers and frozen billions in Afghanistan’s currency reserves have already restricted access to global institutions and the outside money that supported the country’s aid-dependent economy before the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces.</div><div><br></div><div>Last month, in an interview with the AP, a top official from the International Committee of the Red Cross, Martin Schuepp, said more Afghans will struggle for survival as living conditions deteriorate in the year ahead and the country braces for its second winter under Taliban rule.</div><div><br></div><div>The U.S. warned the NGO ban will disrupt vital and life-saving assistance to millions.</div><div><br></div><div>“Women are central to humanitarian operations around the world,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Saturday. “This decision could be devastating for the Afghan people.”</div><div><br></div><div>The U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was deeply disturbed by reports of the NGO ban.</div><div><br></div><div>“The United Nations and its partners, including national and international non-governmental organizations, are helping more than 28 million Afghans who depend on humanitarian aid to survive,” he said in a statement.</div><div><br></div><div>The International Rescue Committee said it was dismayed by the Taliban decision, adding that more than 3,000 of its staff in Afghanistan are women. It was not immediately clear if it is also suspending operations.</div><div><br></div><div>The NGO order came in a letter on Saturday from Economy Minister Qari Din Mohammed Hanif. It said any organization found not complying with the order will have their license revoked in Afghanistan. Ministry spokesman, Abdul Rahman Habib, declined to comment Sunday on the NGOs’ decision to suspend their operations or give details about the ban.</div><div><br></div><div>The flurry of rulings from the all-male and religiously-driven Taliban government are reminiscent of their rule in the late 1990s, when they banned women from education and public spaces and outlawed music, television and many sports.</div><div><br></div><div>The Economy Ministry’s order comes days after the Taliban banned female students from attending universities across the country, triggering backlash overseas and demonstrations in major Afghan cities.</div><div><br></div><div>At around midnight Saturday in the western city of Herat, where earlier protesters were dispersed with water cannons, people opened their windows and chanted “Allahu Akbar (God is great)” in solidarity with female students.</div><div><br></div><div>In the southern city of Kandahar, also on Saturday, hundreds of male students boycotted their final semester exams at Mirwais Neeka University. One of them told The Associated Press that Taliban forces tried to break up the crowd as they left the exam hall.</div><div><br></div><div>“They tried to disperse us so we chanted slogans, then others joined in with the slogans,” said Akhbari, who only gave his last name. “We refused to move and the Taliban thought we were protesting. The Taliban started shooting their rifles into the air. I saw two guys being beaten, one of them to the head.”</div><div><br></div><div>A spokesman for the Kandahar provincial governor, Ataullah Zaid, denied there was a protest. There were some people who were pretending to be students and teachers, he said, but they were stopped by students and security forces. - AP&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>', NULL, 'International Desk', '[\"29\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-25 16:41:47', '2022-12-25 16:41:47'),
(4019, 4019, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">At least one arrest has been made in Lebanon after an Irish soldier died while on a UN peacekeeping mission.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Pte Seán Rooney was in an armoured UN vehicle which came under fire while travelling to Beirut on 14 December.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Several arrests were made, the influential pan-Arab newspaper Asharq al-Awsat reports.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to AFP news agency, quoting an unnamed security source, the prime suspect was handed over by the powerful Hezbollah militant group.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The main shooter has been arrested by security forces after Hezbollah handed him over hours ago,\" the source said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Hezbollah has denied any involvement in the shooting. It is not clear whether the suspect is a member of the militant group.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The village where Pte Rooney was killed is a stronghold of the Iran-backed Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Three separate investigations are being conducted into the incident by the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, Lebanese authorities led by a military prosecutor and the Irish Defence Forces.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">It is understood the vehicle was surrounded by a mob and fired on while travelling to Beirut at about 21:00 on 14 December.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Pte Rooney was repatriated to Ireland last Monday following a UN ceremony to honour him in Beirut the previous day.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Irish President Michael D Higgins and Taoiseach (Irish prime minister) Leo Varadkar were among mourners present at Pte Rooney\'s funeral service in County Louth on Thursday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Another soldier who was seriously injured in the same attack was returned home to the Republic of Ireland on Wednesday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Trooper Shane Kearney, who suffered a head injury, was flown by a medical aircraft from Beirut Airport to Casement Aerodrome, Baldonnel, then taken to Beaumont Hospital in Dublin. BBC</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-26 02:03:03', '2022-12-26 02:03:03'),
(4020, 4020, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">At least 38 deaths have now been linked to a severe Arctic freeze that continues to pummel the US and Canada.</span><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Officials say 34 people died across the US, with the worst-hit area being the city of Buffalo, in New York state.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Four fatalities occurred in Canada when a bus rolled over on an icy road near the town of Merritt, in the western province of British Columbia.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The storm has wreaked havoc for days but power has been steadily restored after earlier blackouts.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Fewer than 200,000 customers were without power as of Sunday afternoon EDT, down from a peak of 1.7 million, the Associated Press reports.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Thousands of flights have been cancelled, preventing many people from reaching their families at Christmas.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">More than 55 million Americans remained under wind chill alerts on Sunday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The reach of the blizzard conditions has been unprecedented, stretching from Canada as far south as Texas.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The \"bomb cyclone\" winter storm - which occurs when atmospheric pressure plummets, causing heavy snow and winds - has disrupted travel across the country.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">New York State Governor Kathy Hochul - a native of Buffalo - said : \"This will go down in history as Buffalo\'s most devastating storm.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Some of the seven dead in the area were found in cars and snow banks, Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz told Reuters news agency.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Storm-related deaths were also reported in Vermont, Ohio, Missouri, Wisconsin, Kansas, and Colorado.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The western US state of Montana is the worst hit by the cold, with temperatures dropping to -50F (-45C).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Canada, the provinces of Ontario and Quebec are bearing the brunt of the storm.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Quebec almost 120,000 customers were without electricity on Sunday. Officials say it some could take days for some households to be reconnected. BBC</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-26 02:29:25', '2022-12-26 02:29:25'),
(4021, 4021, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Five top non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have suspended work in Afghanistan after women were banned from working for them by the Taliban.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Care International, the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) and Save the Children said they could not continue their work \"without our female staff\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The International Rescue Committee also suspended services while Islamic Relief said it was stopping most of its work.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Afghanistan\'s ruling Taliban have been steadily repressing women\'s rights.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The latest edict on NGOs came just days after the Taliban banned women from attending university.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Abdel Rahman Habib, spokesman for the Taliban\'s ministry of economy, accused female workers at the foreign aid groups of breaking dress codes by not wearing hijabs.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Taliban threatened to cancel the licence of any organisation that did not swiftly comply with the ban.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A number of aid groups have since spoken out, demanding that women should be allowed to continue working for them.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The leaders of Care, the NRC and Save the Children said in a joint statement the organisations \"would not have jointly reached millions of Afghans in need since August 2021\" were it not for their female staff.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Whilst we gain clarity on this announcement, we are suspending our programmes, demanding that men and women can equally continue our lifesaving assistance in Afghanistan,\" their statement added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Separately, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) - which employs 3,000 women across Afghanistan - said its ability to deliver services relied on \"female staff at all levels of our organisation\" and if women could not be employed, they could not deliver to \"those in need\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Islamic Relief said it had taken the \"difficult decision to temporarily suspend non-lifesaving activities in Afghanistan\" including \"projects that support impoverished families to earn a living as well as education and some healthcare projects\". Life-saving healthcare, it added, would continue.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Islamic Relief is calling on the Afghan authorities to immediately lift the ban on female NGO workers,\" the organisation said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The ban will have a devastating humanitarian impact on millions of vulnerable men, women and children across the country. We are dismayed that this ruling comes just a few days after increased restrictions on Afghan girls\' access to education.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Ramiz Alakbarov, the United Nations\' top humanitarian coordinator, said the UN was trying to get the ban reversed and that it was a \"red line for the entire humanitarian community\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The United Nations could stop humanitarian aid delivery in Afghanistan if the Taliban authorities do not reverse their edict banning women aid workers, the official told the BBC.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">But Mr Alakbarov said it was still unclear what the Taliban meant by its edict.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said the Taliban\'s minister of health had told the UN the agency should continue its health-related work and women could \"report to work and discharge their services\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Other ministries had also contacted the UN directly to say work in the areas of disaster management and emergencies should continue, he added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Jan Egeland of the NRC said nearly 500 of the aid group\'s 1,400 workers were women, and that female staff had been operating \"according to all traditional values, dress code, movement, [and] separation of offices\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said he hoped the decision would be \"reversed in the next few days\" and warned that millions would suffer if NGOs\' work was obstructed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">NGOs also expressed concern about the effect the ban would have on jobs \"in the midst of an enormous economic crisis\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Female Afghan NGO workers acting as the main earners in their household previously told the BBC of their fear and helplessness following the ban.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">One asked: \"If I cannot go to my job, who can support my family?\" Another breadwinner called the news \"shocking\" and insisted she had complied with the Taliban\'s strict dress code.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The ban triggered international outcry, with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken warning it would \"disrupt vital and life-saving assistance to millions\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Since seizing back control of the country last year, the Taliban have steadily restricted women\'s rights - despite promising its rule would be softer than the regime seen in the 1990s.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As well as the bans on NGO workers and female university students - in the case of students, now being enforced by armed guards - secondary schools for girls remain closed in most provinces.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Women have also been prevented from entering parks and gyms, among other public places. BBC</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-26 02:35:31', '2022-12-26 02:35:31');
INSERT INTO `news_details` (`id`, `news_id`, `details`, `ticker`, `representative`, `keyword`, `video_link`, `google_drive_link`, `audio_link`, `shoulder`, `created_at`, `updated_at`) VALUES
(4022, 4022, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Millions of people hunkered down against a deep freeze Sunday to ride out the winter storm that has killed at least 34 people across the United States and is expected to claim more lives after trapping some residents inside houses with heaping snow drifts and knocking out power to tens of thousands of homes and businesses.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The scope of the storm has been nearly unprecedented, stretching from the Great Lakes near Canada to the Rio Grande along the border with Mexico. About 60% of the U.S. population faced some sort of winter weather advisory or warning, and temperatures plummeted drastically below normal from east of the Rocky Mountains to the Appalachians, the National Weather Service said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Travelers’ weather woes are likely to continue, with hundreds of flight cancellations already and more expected after a bomb cyclone — when atmospheric pressure drops very quickly in a strong storm — developed near the Great Lakes, stirring up blizzard conditions, including heavy winds and snow. Some 1,707 domestic and international flights were canceled on Sunday as of about 2 p.m. EDT, according to the tracking site FlightAware.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The storm unleashed its full fury on Buffalo, with hurricane-force winds and snow causing whiteout conditions, paralyzing emergency response efforts. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said almost every fire truck in the city was stranded Saturday and implored people Sunday to respect an ongoing driving ban in the region. Officials said the airport would be shut through Tuesday morning. The National Weather Service said the snow total at the Buffalo Niagara International Airport stood at 43 inches (109 centimeters) at 7 a.m. Sunday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Daylight revealed cars nearly covered by 6-foot snowdrifts and thousands of houses, some adorned in unlit holiday displays, dark from a lack of power. With snow swirling down untouched and impassable streets, forecasters warned that an additional 1 to 2 feet of snow was possible in some areas through early Monday morning amid wind gusts of 40 mph. Police said Sunday evening that there were two “isolated” instances of looting during the storm.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Two people died in their suburban Cheektowaga, New York, homes Friday when emergency crews could not reach them in time to treat their medical conditions. County Executive Mark Poloncarz 10 more people died in Erie County during the storm, including six in Buffalo, and warned there may be more dead.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Some were found in cars, some were found on the street in snowbanks,\" said Poloncarz. “We know there are people who have been stuck in cars for more than 2 days.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Freezing conditions and day-old power outages had Buffalonians scrambling to get to anywhere that had heat amid what Hochul called the longest sustained blizzard conditions ever in the city. But with streets under a thick blanket of white, that wasn\'t an option for people like Jeremy Manahan, who charged his phone in his parked car after almost 29 hours without electricity.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“There’s one warming shelter, but that would be too far for me to get to. I can’t drive, obviously, because I’m stuck,” Manahan said. “And you can’t be outside for more than 10 minutes without getting frostbit.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Ditjak Ilunga of Gaithersburg, Maryland, was on his way to visit relatives in Hamilton, Ontario, for Christmas with his daughters Friday when their SUV was trapped in Buffalo. Unable to get help, they spent hours with the engine running, buffeted by wind and nearly buried in snow.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">By 4 a.m. Saturday, their fuel nearly gone, Ilunga made a desperate choice to risk the howling storm to reach a nearby shelter. He carried 6-year-old Destiny on his back while 16-year-old Cindy clutched their Pomeranian puppy, following his footprints through drifts.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“If I stay in this car I’m going to die here with my kids,” Ilunga recalled thinking. He cried when the family walked through the shelter doors. “It’s something I will never forget in my life.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The storm knocked out power in communities from Maine to Seattle. But heat and lights were steadily being restored across the U.S. According to poweroutage.us, less than 200,000 customers were without power Sunday at 3 p.m. EDT — down from a peak of 1.7 million.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Concerns about rolling blackouts across eastern states subsided Sunday after PJM Interconnection said its utilities could meet the day’s peak electricity demand. The mid-Atlantic grid operator had called for its 65 million consumers to conserve energy amid the freeze Saturday.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In North Carolina, less than 6,500 customers had no power — down from a peak of 485,000. Across New England, power has been restored to tens of thousands with just under 83,000 people, mostly in Maine, still without it. In New York, about 34,000 households were still without power Sunday, including 26,000 in Erie County, where utility crews and hundreds of National Guard troops battled high winds and struggled with getting stuck in the snow.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Storm-related deaths were reported in recent days all over the country: 12 in Erie County, New York, ranging in age from 26 to 93 years old, and another in Niagara County where a 27-year-old man was overcome by carbon monoxide after snow blocked his furnace; 10 in Ohio, including an electrocuted utility worker and those killed in multiple car crashes; six motorists killed in crashes in Missouri, Kansas and Kentucky; a Vermont woman struck by a falling branch; an apparently homeless man found amid Colorado\'s subzero temperatures; and a woman who fell through Wisconsin river ice.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Jackson, Mississippi, city officials on Christmas Day announced that residents must now boil their drinking water due to water lines bursting in the frigid temperatures</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Buffalo, William Kless was up at 3 a.m. Sunday. He called his three children at their mother’s house to wish them Merry Christmas and then headed off on his snowmobile for a second day spent shuttling people from stuck cars and frigid homes to a church operating as a warming shelter.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Through heavy, wind-driven snow, he brought about 15 people to the church in Buffalo on Saturday, he said, including a family of five transported one-by-one. He also got a man in need of dialysis, who had spent 17 hours stranded in his car, back home, where he could receive treatment.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“I just felt like I had to,” Kless said. AP/UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-26 03:07:01', '2022-12-26 03:07:01'),
(4023, 4023, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">China’s military sent 71 planes and seven ships toward Taiwan in a 24-hour display of force directed at the island, Taiwan’s defense ministry said Monday, after China expressed anger at Taiwan-related provisions i n a U.S. annual defense spending bill passed on Saturday.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">China’s military harassment of self-ruled Taiwan, which it claims is its own territory, has intensified in recent years, and the Communist Party’s People’s Liberation Army has sent planes or ships toward the island on a near-daily basis.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Between 6 a.m. Sunday and 6 a.m. Monday, 47 of the Chinese planes crossed the median of the Taiwan Strait, an unofficial boundary once tacitly accepted by both sides, according to Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Among the planes China sent towards Taiwan were 18 J-16 fighter jets, 11 J-1 fighters, 6 Su-30 fighters and drones.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Taiwan said it monitored the Chinese moves through its land-based missile systems, as well as on its own navy vessels.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“This is a firm response to the current US-Taiwan escalation and provocation,” said Shi Yi, the spokesman for the PLA’s Eastern Theater Command, in a statement on Sunday night. It announced that the PLA was holding joint combat patrols and joint strike drills in the waters around Taiwan.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Shi was referring to the U.S. defense spending bill, which calls China a strategic challenge. With regard to the Indo-Pacific region, the legislation authorizes increased security cooperation with Taiwan and requires expanded cooperation with India on emerging defense technologies, readiness and logistics.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">China’s military has often used large military exercises as a demonstration of force in response to U.S. government actions in support of Taiwan. It conducted large live-fire military exercises in August in response to U.S. House speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan. Beijing views visits from foreign governments to the island as de facto recognition of the island as independent and a challenge to China’s claim of sovereignty. AP/UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-26 03:10:59', '2022-12-26 03:10:59'),
(4024, 4024, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Dozens of hungry and weak Rohingya Muslims were found on a beach in Indonesia’s northernmost province of Aceh on Sunday after weeks at sea, officials said.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">The group of 58 men arrived on Indrapatra beach at Ladong, a fishing village in Aceh Besar district, early Sunday, said local police chief Rolly Yuiza Away. Villagers who saw the group of ethnic Rohingya on a rickety wooden boat helped them to land and then reported their arrival to authorities, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“They look very weak from hunger and dehydration. Some of them are sick after a long and severe voyage at sea,” said Away, adding that the men received food and water from villagers and others as they waited for further instructions from immigration and local officials in Aceh.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At least three of the men were rushed to a health clinic for medical care, and others are also receiving various medical treatments, Away said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The United Nations and other groups on Friday urged countries in South Asia to rescue as many as 190 people believed to be Rohingya refugees aboard a small boat that has been adrift for several weeks in the Andaman Sea.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Reports indicate those onboard have now remained at sea for a month in dire conditions with insufficient food or water, without any efforts by States in the region to help save human lives,” the U.N. refugee agency, UNHCR, said in a statement. “Many are women and children, with reports of up to 20 people dying on the unseaworthy vessel during the journey.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Away said it wasn’t clear where the group was traveling from or if they were part of the group of 190 Rohingya refugees that has been adrift in the Andaman Sea. But one of the men who spoke some Malay said they had been at sea for more than a month and had aimed to land in Malaysia to seek a better life and work there.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">More than 700,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled from Buddhist-majority Myanmar to refugee camps in Bangladesh since August 2017, when the Myanmar military launched a clearance operation in response to attacks by a rebel group. Myanmar security forces have been accused of mass rapes, killings and the burning of thousands of homes.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Groups of Rohingya have attempted to leave the crowded camps in Bangladesh and travel by sea in hazardous voyages to other Muslim-majority countries in the region.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Muslim-dominated Malaysia has been a common destination for the boats, and traffickers have promised the refugees a better life there. But many Rohingya refugees who land in Malaysia face detention.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Although Indonesia is not a signatory to the United Nations’ 1951 Refugee Convention, the UNHCR said that a 2016 presidential regulation provides a national legal framework governing the treatment of refugees on boats in distress near Indonesia and to help them disembark.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">These provisions have been implemented for years, most recently last month when about 219 Rohingya refugees, including 63 women and 40 children, were rescued off the coast of North Aceh district aboard two rickety boats.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We urge the government of Indonesia to rescue the boats and allow them to safely disembark,\" Amnesty International Indonesia\'s executive director Usman Hamid said. “We also urge the Indonesian government to lead a regional initiative to resolve the refugee crisis.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Thursday, the U.N. special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, Tom Andrews, urged governments in South and Southeast Asia “to immediately and urgently coordinate search and rescue for this boat and ensure safe disembarkation of those aboard before any further loss of life occurs.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“While many in the world are preparing to enjoy a holiday season and ring in a new year, boats bearing desperate Rohingya men, women and young children, are setting off on perilous journeys in unseaworthy vessels,” Andrews said in a statement. AP/UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-26 03:36:16', '2022-12-26 03:36:16'),
(4025, 4025, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">The U.S. Embassy in Islamabad on Sunday warned its staff of a possible attack on Americans at a top hotel in Pakistan\'s capital as the city was already on high alert following a suicide bombing earlier in the week.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">The U.S. government is aware of information that “unknown individuals are possibly plotting to attack Americans at the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad sometime during the holidays,\" the embassy said in a security alert. The advisory banned its American personnel from visiting the popular hotel over the holidays.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The U.S. mission also urged all personnel to refrain from non-essential travel in Islamabad during the holiday season.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The embassy directive came two days after a suicide bombing in a residential area of the capital killed a police officer and wounded ten others. The explosion happened when police stopped a taxi for inspection during a patrol. According to the police, a rear seat passenger detonated explosives he was carrying, blowing up the vehicle.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Militants with the Pakistani Taliban, who are separate from but allied with Afghanistan\'s rulers, later claimed the attack.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Islamabad\'s administration has since put the city on high alert, banning public gatherings and processions, even as campaigns are ongoing for upcoming local elections. Police have stepped up patrols and established snap checkpoints to inspect vehicles across the city.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A suicide bombing targeted the capital\'s Marriott Hotel in September 2008, in one of the deadliest such incidents in the capital. Attackers drove a dump truck up to the hotel\'s gates before detonating it, killing 63 people and wounding over 250 others. AP/UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-26 03:41:47', '2022-12-26 03:41:47'),
(4026, 4026, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>President Vladimir Putin has blasted the West for trying to \"tear apart\" Russia and said in an interview aired on national television that his offensive in Ukraine aimed to \"unite the Russian people\".</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Meanwhile in Kyiv, a day after deadly shelling in southern Ukraine, r+esidents held Christmas services on Sunday, defying Russian spiritual leaders who celebrate it on January 7.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Putin has used the concept of \"historical Russia\" to argue that Ukrainians and Russians are one people -- undermining Kyiv\'s sovereignty and justifying his 10-month offensive in Ukraine.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He said Russia\'s \"geopolitical opponents (were) aiming to tear apart Russia, the historical Russia\".</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Divide and conquer, that\'s what they have always sought to accomplish and are still seeking to do,\" Putin added.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"But our goal is different: it\'s to unite the Russian people,\" he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Putin declared his government was acting \"in the right direction... protecting our national interests, the interests of our citizens, of our people.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He repeated that Moscow was ready to negotiate and appeared unfazed when asked about the new air defence system the United States will deliver to Ukraine.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">\"Of course we will destroy it, 100 percent!\" Putin said, referring to the Patriot missile battery promised to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b>- Kherson \'terror\' -</b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Earlier this week, in his first trip outside Ukraine since the offensive began, Zelensky earned firm pledges of support from US President Joe Biden, including the Pentagon\'s most advanced air defence system.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Western military and financial aid has been crucial for Ukraine\'s pushback of Russian troops -- including from Kherson, the only regional capital that was held by Russia.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Despite Russia\'s retreat from the city, it remains within reach of Moscow\'s weaponry and under constant threat.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Ukrainian army counted 71 strikes on the partly recaptured Kherson region on Saturday, including 41 on the city.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">This included deadly shelling on a busy market in the city centre that left 10 people dead and 55 injured.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Russian-installed head of the Kherson region, Vladimir Saldo, said on Telegram the shelling was \"a disgusting provocation\" by Ukraine used to blame Russia.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In his daily address on Sunday, Zelensky condemned Russian \"terrorists\" and thanked all his compatriots -- including soldiers, doctors, volunteers -- involved in defending Ukraine.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Thank you... to everyone who came to Kherson to help. To save the wounded from the terrorists\' strike on Christmas. Artillery and mortar against ordinary Kherson streets... monsters!\" Zelensky said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b><br></b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b>- Defiant Christmas -</b></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On Sunday, church bells pealed throughout Kyiv as Orthodox Christians attended Christmas services, in break with the Russian spiritual leaders who will mark the holiday in two weeks.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At a service in central Kyiv, worshipper Olga Stanko told AFP she supported any move that would distance Ukraine from Russia.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"The war has brought us so much grief,\" she said. \"We cannot do this with Russia, remain under its influence.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Also attending the service, Olena Zakharova-Gorianska said she was happy to be celebrating Christmas on December 25 for the first time -- describing it as an obvious choice after surviving Russian occupation in the town of Gostomel, north of Kyiv.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"I do not want to have anything to do with the occupiers, with the enemy,\" she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The decision by some Ukrainian churches to observe Christmas on December 25 highlights the deepening rift between religious leaders in Kyiv and Moscow.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">An Interfax-Ukraine poll showed an increasing number in favour of moving the Christian holy day to December 25, jumping from 26 percent in 2021 to 44 percent in 2022, though 31 percent were still against it.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Ukraine had been under Moscow\'s spiritual leadership since at least the 17th century, but part of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church broke with Moscow in 2019 over Russia\'s annexation of Crimea and support for separatists in the east.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In May, the Russia-backed branch of Ukraine\'s Orthodox Church also severed ties with Moscow.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">From the St Peter\'s Basilica at the Vatican, Pope Francis called for an end to the conflict.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"May the Lord... enlighten the minds of those who have the power to silence the thunder of weapons and put an immediate end to this senseless war!\" the Argentine pontiff said. AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-26 04:00:10', '2022-12-26 04:00:10'),
(4027, 4027, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Four major international aid groups on Sunday suspended their operations in Afghanistan following a decision by the country’s Taliban rulers to ban women from working at non-governmental organizations.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Save the Children, the International Rescue Committee, the Norwegian Refugee Council and CARE said they cannot effectively reach children, women and men in desperate need in Afghanistan without the women in their workforces. The NGO ban was introduced a day earlier, allegedly because women weren’t wearing the Islamic headscarf correctly.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The four NGOs are providing healthcare, education, child protection and nutrition services and support amid plummeting humanitarian conditions.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“We have complied with all cultural norms and we simply can’t work without our dedicated female staff, who are essential for us to access women who are in desperate need of assistance,\" Neil Turner, the Norwegian Refugee Council\'s chief for Afghanistan, told The Associated Press on Sunday. He said the group has 468 female staff in the country.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Taliban takeover in August 2021 sent Afghanistan’s economy into a tailspin and transformed the country, driving millions into poverty and hunger. Foreign aid stopped almost overnight. Sanctions on Taliban rulers, a halt on bank transfers and frozen billions in Afghanistan’s currency reserves have already restricted access to global institutions and the outside money that supported the country’s aid-dependent economy before the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In a statement, the International Committee of the Red Cross warned that excluding women from schools and NGO work in Afghanistan “can and will lead to catastrophic humanitarian consequences in the short to long term.” The Taliban also banned female students from attending universities across the country this week.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Last month, in an interview with the AP, a top official from the the Red Cross, Martin Schuepp, said more Afghans will struggle for survival as living conditions deteriorate in the year ahead. Half of Afghanistan\'s population, or 24 million people, are in need of humanitarian aid, according to the group.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Top U.S. officials, including the Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the charge d\'affaires to Afghanistan Karen Decker, condemned the move.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Decker, tweeting in Dari on Sunday, said: “As a representative of the largest donor of humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, I feel I have the right to an explanation of how the Taliban intends to prevent women & children from starving, when women are no longer permitted to distribute assistance to other women & children.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Her remarks triggered a response from the Taliban-led government\'s chief spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, who said all institutions wanting to operate in the country are obliged to comply with its rules and regulations.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"We do not allow anyone to talk rubbish or make threats regarding the decisions of our leaders under the title of humanitarian aid,” he said in a tweet.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The International Rescue Committee said it was dismayed by the Taliban decision, adding that more than 3,000 of its staff in Afghanistan are women. “If we are not allowed to employ women, we are not able to deliver to those in need,” the group said in a statement announcing it was suspending work in the country.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The NGO order came in a letter on Saturday from Economy Minister Qari Din Mohammed Hanif. It said any organization found not complying with the order will have their license revoked in Afghanistan.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The flurry of rulings from the all-male and religiously-driven Taliban government are reminiscent of their rule in the late 1990s, when they banned women from education and public spaces and outlawed music, television and many sports.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Economy Ministry\'s order comes days after the Taliban banned female students from attending universities across the country, triggering backlash overseas and demonstrations in major Afghan cities.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">At around midnight Saturday in the western city of Herat, where earlier protesters were dispersed with water cannons, people opened their windows and chanted “Allahu Akbar (God is great)” in solidarity with female students.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In the southern city of Kandahar, also on Saturday, hundreds of male students boycotted their final semester exams at Mirwais Neeka University. One of them told The Associated Press that Taliban forces tried to break up the crowd as they left the exam hall.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“They tried to disperse us so we chanted slogans, then others joined in with the slogans,” said Akhbari, who only gave his last name. “We refused to move and the Taliban thought we were protesting. The Taliban started shooting their rifles into the air. I saw two guys being beaten, one of them to the head.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A spokesman for the Kandahar provincial governor, Ataullah Zaid, denied there was a protest. There were some people who were pretending to be students and teachers, he said, but they were stopped by students and security forces. AP/UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"1\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-26 04:34:37', '2022-12-26 04:35:16'),
(4028, 4028, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Poor visibility caused by thick fog has disrupted the ferry services on Daulatdia-Paturia and Aricha-Kazirhat route on Monday morning.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">Besides, the movement of all types of water transports has been suspended.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Khorshed Alam, office assistant manager of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC) at Daulatdia point, said the ferry services remained suspended from 6 am due to poor visibility.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Heavy fog started to cover the river basins of Daulatdia-Paturia and Aricha-Kazirhat points from midnight. The authorities halted all ferry services on these two routes to avoid the risk of accidents.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Two ferries remained stranded in the middle of the Padma and operation of nine more ferries was cancelled on the route, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Read more: Dense fog disrupts Daulatdia-Paturia ferry services</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">About 30 vehicles and at least 200 passengers on two ferries got stranded in the middle of the river and suffering amid heavy cold.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The service will resume once the fog disappears. However, there is no pressure of vehicles on the both points, said Shah Md. Khaled Nawaz, deputy general manager (Commercial) of BIWTC at Aricha point. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-26 04:39:03', '2022-12-26 04:39:03'),
(4029, 4029, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Australia\'s men\'s Test Player of the Year award will be renamed in Shane Warne\'s honour, officials said Monday, as tributes were paid to the late spin-king at the Boxing Day Test against South Africa.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Warne, considered by many as second in stature only to Donald Bradman in sports-mad Australia, died unexpectedly aged just 52 in March.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Shane Warne Men\'s Test Player of the Year award will be presented annually, second only to the prestigious Allan Border Medal for the most outstanding player across all formats.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"As one of Australia\'s all-time greats, it is fitting we acknowledge Shane\'s extraordinary contribution to Test cricket by naming this award in his honour in perpetuity,\" said Cricket Australia chief Nick Hockley.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The announcement came on the opening day of the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Warne\'s home venue where he achieved many memorable feats, including an Ashes hat-trick and his 700th Test wicket.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Warne\'s Test cap number 350 has been painted square of the wicket for the duration of the match, while both the Australian and South African teams wore floppy white hats in his memory during the national anthem ceremony.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"His place as a legend of Australian and world sport is assured,\" added Hockley.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\"Whilst we continue to mourn his passing, it is fitting that we honour Shane at his beloved Boxing Day Test at the MCG.\"</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A stand at the venue has already been named in his honour.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Credited with reviving the art of leg-spin, Warne took 708 Test wickets as part of a dominant Australian team in the 1990s and 2000s before becoming a respected commentator. AFP</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"20\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-26 04:59:08', '2022-12-26 04:59:08'),
(4030, 4030, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><b style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Once Tania Parvin, and her four-member family, had to struggle to make ends meet. One day she saw a video on YouTube on how to make vermicompost at home, and her journey to economic emancipation started.</b><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">With the help of the local Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE), she began her production with a three-ring slab in 2017 after receiving training. Gradually her production expanded.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Twelve to 15 tons of fertilizer is produced from my 36 units every month. I had only 12 units in the beginning. The retail price per kg is Tk 15 and the wholesale price is TK12,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">She now earns Tk 100,000 per month by producing the organic fertilizer.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Tania is now selling this fertilizer in various parts of the country. She said, the demand for this fertilizer is increasing by the day.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“My fertilizer has grown in popularity. I\'m also selling it in various parts of the country. My husband is very supportive,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Inspired by her, many women from Faridpur district started producing the fertilizer at home and are making a good living.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Many women are now coming to me to learn how to make organic fertilizer”, she added.&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">This organic fertilizer refreshes the soil, has no side effects, and is cheap. It\'s quite popular among the local farmers now.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Farmers from different areas buy the fertilizer from Tania. She also educates them on how to cultivate with this natural fertilizer.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Nazrul Islam, a farmer from Ambikapur village, said that the price of organic fertilizer is lower than that of chemical fertilizers in the market.&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“As it doesn’t damage the soil, we have started using organic fertilizer. I am seeing good results. It also improves soil fertility,” the farmer observed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Zafar Khan, counselor of ward no.1 of the municipality, said “Tania had struggled a lot. We welcome her initiative. Five-six people are now working with her. She is contributing to alleviating poverty as well.”&nbsp;</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Faridpur Sadar Upazila Agriculture Officer Anwar Hossain said, “We have supported her in a number of ways. I occasionally visit her farm and offer advice. Following in her footsteps, many people have begun producing this organic fertilizer.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In nine upazilas of the district, at least 1,300 people — mostly women — are currently involved in the production of vermicompost, according to the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) in Faridpur. Each year, they produce 151 tonnes of vermicompost. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-26 05:31:06', '2022-12-26 05:31:06'),
(4031, 4031, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">A Chattogram-bound train derailed in Kewatkhali of Mymensingh on Monday morning.</span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">A wagon of Nasirabad Express train veered off the tracks around 8am, said Mymensingh GRP Police Station officer-in-charge (OC) Mohiuddin Ahmed.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">The rail communication on Mymensingh-Bhairab route&nbsp; was suspended due to the derailment, he said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">On information, a salvage train from Kewatkhali loco shadow was sent to the spot, he added. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-26 05:35:58', '2022-12-26 05:35:58'),
(4032, 4032, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">Dhaka has continued to top the list of world cities with the worst air quality on Monday morning.</span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">With an air quality index (AQI) score of 389 at 9am today, Dhaka ranked first in the list of cities with worst air.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">An AQI between 201 and 300 is said to be ‘very unhealthy’, while a reading of 301 to 400 is considered \'hazardous\', posing serious health risks to residents.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Pakistan’s Karachi and Ghana’s Accra occupied the second and third spots in the list, with AQI scores of 258 and 191, respectively.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Bangladesh, the AQI is based on five criteria pollutants -- Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2 and Ozone.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Dhaka has long been grappling with air pollution issues. Its air quality usually turns unhealthy in winter and improves during the monsoon.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Air pollution consistently ranks among the top risk factors for death and disability worldwide. Breathing polluted air has long been recognised as increasing a person’s chances of developing a heart disease, chronic respiratory diseases, lung infections and cancer, according to several studies.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">As per the World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution kills an estimated seven million people worldwide every year, largely as a result of increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer and acute respiratory infections. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-26 05:47:22', '2022-12-26 05:47:22'),
(4033, 4033, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today said the government wants to ensure justice for all with prompt disposal of cases, and ensure transparency and accountability in the country.</b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">“We want every citizen of the country to get justice. We want prompt disposal of cases. We want to ensure transparency and accountability… we want to establish that environment,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The prime minister said this while addressing the inaugural session of the 59th Annual Council of Bangladesh Judicial Service Association at Bangabandhu International Conference Center (BICC).</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sheikh Hasina said the government is working tirelessly to ensure the wellbeing of people — for a bright and secured future for them.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">“Let us ensure rule of law for the people of Bangladesh, so they can have a better life. We will establish Bangladesh that was dreamt by the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman,” she said.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Law Minister Anisul Huq, Law Secretary Md. Golam Sarwar and Bangladesh Judicial Service Association President AHM Habibur Rahman Bhuiyan also spoke at the programme. A documentary on judicial service was screened at the programme. UNB</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"19\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-26 06:44:19', '2022-12-26 06:44:19'),
(4034, 4034, '<div style=\"text-align: justify; \"><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"><b>Actor Rashmika Mandanna was seen at Mumbai airport on Monday morning. Taking to Instagram, a paparazzo account posted a video of Rashmika arriving at the airport as she flew to an undisclosed destination. She asked paps whether they sleep or not as they took her pictures. The paps called her beautiful, while she was getting inside the airport. Many fans reacted to the video. </b></span><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">In the video, Rashmika can be seen arriving at the airport. She was seen in comfortable clothes for the travel. She opted for an off white shirt with a black tee, and wore a mask. She also carried a black sling back on her shoulder. As the paparazzi asked her to pose., Rashmika removed her mask and smiled for the camera. Moments later, she asked paps, “Don\'t you sleep?\" One of the photographers replied, “We sleep and come here.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"> Another said, “Hum morning waale hai (we have morning shifts).” Rashmika said, “I just woke up and came.” One pap said to her, “You look beautiful, you look really beautiful.” The actor blushed and waved back at the paps before going inside the airport. She also said, “I just woke up and came, and I already see you.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Reacting to the video, one person commented, “Bichari ki neend bhi puri nhi hui (she did not get sleep).” Another person wrote, “So sweet and simple girl (heart emoji).” Another person commented, “Ye kitni cute hai, mere to crush hai ye (she is so cute, she is my crush already).” Many people called her cute and dropped heart emojis.</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rashmika was last seen in Vikas Bahl’s Goodbye, with Amitabh Bachchan and Neena Gupta. It also so starred Pavail Gulati, Elli Avram, Sunil Grover, Sahil Mehta alongside Abhishek Khan. Goodbye marked Rashmika\'s acting debut in Bollywood. </div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The film’s Hindustan Times review read, “Vikas Bahl throws at us in this emotional rollercoaster of a funeral drama called Goodbye. It really is a confused tale wanting to say so much but is so stuck in its flaws that it never rises beyond a funeral.”</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Rashmika\'s upcoming projects include Mission Majnu opposite Sidharth Malhotra, Animal with Ranbir Kapoor, and Varisu opposite Vijay. HT</div><div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><br></div><div style=\"text-align: justify; \">bnbd24/kh</div>', NULL, 'Newsdesk', '[\"13\"]', NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, '2022-12-26 07:41:29', '2022-12-26 07:45:30');
