Former general secretary of Dhaka north unit of the BNP’s volunteer wing Azizur Rahman Muchabbir has been gunned down in the capital. Another man, identified as Anwar Hossain, was injured in the attack. The incident occurred shortly after 8pm on Wednesday when unidentified gunmen opened fire near Tejgaon’s Tejturi Bazar area, behind Bashundhara City Shopping Complex. Tejgaon Division Additional Deputy Commissioner Fazlur Rahman said, “Two people were shot in the alley beside Star Kabab. They were taken to BRB Hospital.”

File PhotoDHAKA, Jan 07, 2026 (BSS) - In a move to regulate service charges for travelers, Bangladesh Bank (BB) has fixed the maximum fee for passport endorsement by money changers at Taka 300. Each sale must be meticulously recorded in the traveler's passport and air ticket, verified with the seal and signature of the money changer's authorized personnel. The fee is set at a maximum of Taka 300, which applies irrespective of the amount of foreign currency being purchased. Money changers are now required to clearly display the endorsement fee in a prominent location within their business premises. The circular, signed by Monoar Uddin Ahmed, Director of FEPD-2, clarified that all other relevant instructions regarding foreign exchange transactions remain unchanged.

DHAKA, Jan 7, 2026 (BSS) - Munshi Jalal Uddin, the Additional Chief Information Officer of the Press Information Department (PID), today passed away while undergoing treatment at a hospital in the city. Talking to BSS, BCS Information Association Office Secretary Mahbubur Rahman Tuhin confirmed it and said that Munshi Jalal Uddin left behind wife, a son, a daughter, and a host of relatives and well-wishers to mourn his death. He informed that the namaz-e-janaza of Munshi Jalal Uddin will be held on 10pm in front of Information Bhaban in the city. He mentioned that a distinguished member of the BCS (Information-General) cadre, Munshi Jalal Uddin was widely respected across the civil service for his integrity and strong personality. In a joint statement, BCS Information Association President Abul Kalam Mohammad Shamsuddin and Secretary General Md Mamun Or Rashid expressed deep shock and sorrow at his demise.

Each important polling station will have three armed police personnel and three Ansar members, including one armed section commander. Each important polling station in these areas will have three armed police personnel and three Ansar members, including one armed section commander. The enforcement plan will be implemented in line with decisions taken at coordination meetings between the Election Commission (EC) and law enforcing agencies. The government has decided to deploy law enforcement forces in two phases ahead of the 13th National Parliament Election and referendum on February 12. According to the circular, law enforcement forces will be deployed in two phases.

File PhotoBy Najiur Rahman SohelDHAKA, Jan 7, 2026 (BSS) - Significant progress has been achieved in the printing and distribution of free textbooks for the 2026 academic year, with more than 90 percent of secondary and Ebtedayi-level books already been printed and nationwide supply surpassing 80 percent. Shahtab Uddin told BSS that if electricity supply and transportation remain uninterrupted, the remaining printing work can be completed by January 15. At the Ebtedayi level, 96.16 percent of books have been supplied, while printing and binding have crossed 98 percent. Printing work at these two levels is being prioritized, with completion rates of 86.98 percent and 76.29 percent respectively. For the 2026 academic year, a total of 408 crore 24 lakh four thousand 460 printing forms were allocated for secondary-level textbooks.

Principal Information Officer (PIO) Md. File PhotoDHAKA, Jan 7, 2026 (BSS) - Principal Information Officer (PIO) Md. Nizamul Kabir has expressed deep shock and sorrow at the passing of Munsi Jalal Uddin, the Additional Chief Information Officer of the Press Information Department (PID). Munsi Jalal Uddin, a distinguished member of the BCS (Information-General) cadre, breathed his last this evening while undergoing treatment at a hospital in the capital. He further noted that Munsi Jalal Uddin was well-known throughout the civil service for his strong personality, and his untimely death marks an irreparable loss to the information service.

Collected photoGAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories, Jan 7, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Hamas officials told AFP that search operations for the remains of the last Israeli hostage held in Gaza resumed on Wednesday after a two-week pause due to bad weather. Israel has previously said it is awaiting the return of Ran Gvili's body before beginning talks on the second phase of the fragile ceasefire agreement with Hamas which came into effect in October. A Hamas official told AFP that the Palestinian Islamist movement's armed wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, "accompanied by Red Cross teams, are resuming today search operations for the body of the last Israeli captive in the Zeitun neighbourhood in southeastern Gaza City." Another official said that search operations had been suspended over the past two weeks due to stormy weather and heavy rain, which had prevented excavators and other machinery from reaching Zeitun. The Israeli group representing the families of hostages held in Gaza said in a statement that it welcomed "the pressure that led to the operational decision to resume search efforts" for Gvili's body.

DHAKA, Jan 7, 2026 (BSS) - Bangladesh's foreign exchange reserves have stood at US$ 33.79 billion. But, as per the International Monetary Fund (IMF) methodology under the Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Manual (BPM6), Bangladesh's foreign exchange reserves stood at $29.19 billion, according to the latest data of the Bangladesh Bank (BB) released today.

LONDON, Jan 7, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Thomas Frank is adamant key figures at Tottenham are "completely aligned" about his future at the troubled Premier League club. Tottenham are languishing in 13th place ahead of Wednesday's trip to Bournemouth, with pressure mounting on former Brentford boss Frank. "I think the biggest thing, which we are, is that we are completely aligned, so the biggest thing is that let's say Johan, Fabio, Vinai and I are aligned. That's the biggest thing and then we also aligned with the ownership," Frank told reporters on Tuesday. The Gunners are reaping the rewards as they sit six points clear at the top of the Premier League and Frank hopes for the same treatment at Tottenham.

Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus today presided over a meeting on the Power and Energy Sector Master Plan 2026–2050 at the State Guest House Jamuna. At the outset of the meeting, the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources presented the Master Plan to the Chief Adviser. Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Adviser Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan, Finance Adviser Dr Salehuddin Ahmed, Commerce Adviser Sk. Discussions were held on implementing the new master plan in three phases- Phase-I (2026–2030), Phase-II (2030–2040), and Phase-III (2040–2050). According to the master plan, an investment of US$70-85 billion will be required in the energy sector and US$107.25 billion in the power sector over the period 2026-2050.

WASHINGTON, United States, Jan 7, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - The US military on Wednesday announced the seizure of a sanctioned tanker ship in the Caribbean Sea, the second vessel taken by American forces that day. US personnel "apprehended a stateless, sanctioned dark fleet motor tanker without incident. The interdicted vessel, M/T Sophia, was operating in international waters and conducting illicit activities in the Caribbean Sea," US Southern Command, which is responsible for the area, said in a post on X.

CÚCUTA, Colombia, Jan 7, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Colombian guerrilla commanders who allegedly operated in Venezuela are fleeing following the US military operation in Caracas that ousted leader Nicolas Maduro, a source in the Colombian forces told AFP on Tuesday. Security experts say the ELN has rear bases within Venezuela that were tolerated by Maduro, who denied it. A Colombian armed forces officer told AFP on condition of anonymity Tuesday he had received reports of guerrilla leaders trying to cross the border back home after Washington's weekend raid. Trump had warned Colombian President Gustavo Petro, who he has accused without providing evidence of being a drug lord, to "watch his ass." In response, Petro -- a former urban guerrilla -- said he was willing to "take up arms" for "the homeland."

DHAKA, Jan 7, 2026 (BSS) - A total of 131 appeals have been filed with the Election Commission (EC) on the third day against the order of the Returning Officer to accept and cancel nomination papers in the upcoming 13th National Parliament election. The appeals were filed at 10 regional booths at the appeal filing center at the Agargaon Election Commission building in the capital, EC officials said. On the first day, 41 appeals were filed against the order of cancellation of nomination papers and one appeal against the acceptance of nomination papers. On the last day of selection on January 4, the returning officers or assistant returning officers declared the nomination papers of 1,842 candidates valid and nomination papers of 723 candidates cancelled out of 2,568 nomination papers in 300 constituencies. The hearing of the appeals filed with the Election Commission is likely to be held between January 10 and 18 at the auditorium (basement-2) of the Election Building.

Youth and Sports Advisor Asif Nazrul today spoke to reporters at the secretariat on Wednesday. "We will not compromise on the security of our cricketers, the security ofBangladesh, or the dignity of Bangladesh. We want to play cricket, we want toplay the World Cup, but we want to do so in another host country, like SriLanka," Asif Nazrul said. Asif Nazrul pointed out that this action was a tacit acknowledgement of theinsecurity surrounding Bangladesh players in India. When queried about Bangladesh's stance provided the ICC does not agree totheir request, Asif Nazrul informed, "Our first stand is to convince the ICC.

UK MPs would vote on any troop deployment in Ukraine: PMBritish Prime Minister Keir Starmer in middle on the collected photoLONDON, Jan 7, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Wednesday plans to deploy UK troops to Ukraine if there is a ceasefire would be put to parliament for approval. "Were troops to be deployed under the declaration signed, I would put that matter to the house for a vote," Starmer told the House of Commons during his weekly question session. The number of troops would be "determined in accordance with our military plans" and would also be put before parliament after a ceasefire, Starmer told lawmakers. London has previously said there are a "small number" of UK troops in the country supporting Ukrainian forces. However, the Labour prime minister came under fire from Conservative opposition leader Kemi Badenoch for failing to make a full statement on the plans to deploy troops in Ukraine as well as US designs on Venezuela and Greenland.