DHAKA, Jan 27, 2026 (BSS) - The Election Commission (EC) has allowed 55,454 local observers to monitor the 13th National Parliamentary Election and the Referendum scheduled for February 12. Of them, 7,997 observers from 81 observation organizations centrally registered with the EC, and constituency-based 47,457 observers have been given permission to observe the elections. The EC launched a web portal (https://pr.ecs.gov.bd/) to issue identity cards and car stickers for the local observers. Observers must follow these instructions:Central and local observers should display their identification cards at all times during observation, ensuring they are clearly visible. Observers must not interfere with the work of election officials, and no election materials may be touched or removed.

MOSCOW, Jan 27, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - The Russian army's chief of staff, Valery Gerasimov, has visited troops fighting in eastern Ukraine, Russia's defence ministry said on Tuesday. Gerasimov "inspected the progress of combat missions conducted by formations and unites of the Zapad (West) force group," the ministry wrote on Telegram, without providing details on when or where the visit took place.

Human rights, security must go hand in hand in prison management: Home AdviserHome Adviser Lieutenant General (Retd) Md. Jahangir Alam Chowdhury today said that security and human rights are complementary in modern prison administration. "The state has a responsibility to return prisoners to society as reformed citizens while protecting their basic human rights in jails," he said. “Human rights must be ensured alongside prison security, and the role of trained, humane prison guards in this process is undeniable,” he added. He emphasized that prison guards are central to building a non-discriminatory, fair, transparent and accountable prison administration.

MELBOURNE, Jan 27, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Last year's runner-up Alexander Zverev served his way into the Australian Open semi-finals on Tuesday as he crushed young American Learner Tien under a barrage of aces. Zverev won 6-3, 6-7 (5/7), 6-1, 7-6 (7/3) and faces world number one Carlos Alcaraz or home hope Alex de Minaur for a place in the final in Melbourne.

NEW DELHI, Jan 27, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Tuesday that a huge trade pact with the European Union, totalling about 25 percent of global GDP, would bring sweeping benefits. "People in the world are discussing this as a mother of all deals," Modi said in the capital New Delhi ahead of a meeting with EU chiefs, adding that for India it would boost sectors including textiles, gems and jewellery, and leather goods. "This deal will bring many opportunities for India's 1.4 billion and many millions of people of the EU," he said.

VIENNA, Jan 27, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - The fight against antisemitism in the European Union is being set back by major gaps in the recording of incidents, the bloc's rights watchdog said in a report Tuesday. Member states classify and count reported acts differently, which skews the statistics and "prevents any meaningful comparisons", the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA)said. "The lack of reliable and comparable data continues to undermine efforts to counter antisemitism," it added. Countering this requires concerted efforts underpinned by robust data that captures the full scale of antisemitism in Europe," FRA director Sirpa Rautio said in a statement. Tuesday's FRA report covers the 27 member states, as well as EU hopefuls Albania, North Macedonia and Serbia.

PARIS, France, Jan 27, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - The threat posed by plastic production, usage and disposal to human health will skyrocket in the coming years unless the world does something to address this global crisis, researchers warned Tuesday. Planet-heating greenhouse gas emissions from plastic production had the biggest health impact, followed by air pollution and toxic chemicals. - 'Public health crisis' -Deeney gave the example of a plastic water bottle. The researchers also modelled a scenario where the world tried harder to fight the health effects of plastic. However Deeney emphasised that countries can still act at a national level to address this "global public health crisis".

Hybrid cars top choice for consumers in Europe in 2025: dataPARIS, France, Jan 27, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Hybrid-electric vehicles dethroned purely petrol-powered cars as the top power option among consumers in Europe last year, data showed Tuesday. Despite the only modest overall sales growth, consumers continued to shift towards hybrid and battery-electric vehicles. Volkswagen Group saw sales rise by 5.5 percent last year to increase its lead as the top-selling carmaker in Europe. France's Renault saw similar growth, but Stellantis -- which owns several European brands such as Peugeot and Fiat -- saw sales slide by 4.7 percent. China's SAIC Motor, which owns the MG brand, saw sales rise by a third.

MELBOURNE, Jan 27, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - The Australian Open suffered more disruption Tuesday when it hit its maximum "heat stress" rating with forecasts of 45C, meaning the day's remaining quarter-finals will take place under a closed roof until the weather relents. The Melbourne major reached the highest level of five for the second time in four days on its scale designed to protect players, fans and officials. That means centre court, Rod Laver Arena, which hosts the day's four quarter-finals, closed its roof. The opening quarter-final of the day, between Aryna Sabalenka and Iva Jovic, took place in blazing sunshine. Temperatures reached 40C on Saturday, with matches on outside courts paused for about five hours.

WASHINGTON, United States, Jan 27, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - The USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group has arrived in the Middle East, the US military said on Monday, dramatically boosting American firepower in the region. The carrier and its accompanying ships were ordered to the region as Iran cracked down on mass protests. Trump had repeatedly warned Iran that if it killed protesters, the United States would intervene militarily, and also encouraged Iranians to take over state institutions, saying "help is on the way." But he pulled back from ordering strikes earlier this month, saying Tehran had halted more than 800 executions under pressure from Washington. Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei has warned against intervention and said the country was "confident in its own capabilities."

LONDON, Jan 27, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Frank Lampard's Coventry crashed to a 2-1 defeat at struggling Norwich on Monday as the Championship leaders suffered another away-day disappointment. Romain Esse, on loan from Crystal Palace, fired Coventry in front seven minutes before the break with a well-taken finish after Ruairi McConville blocked Victor Torp's shot. Coventry almost made it 2-0 three minutes later, with Vladan Kovacevic needing to be at his best to palm away a rising drive from Hadji Wright. But Anis Ben Slimane equalised for Norwich, slotting home from Ali Ahmed's pass just 35 seconds after the interval. Ahmed's first goal in English football came from Papa Diallo's pass and Coventry were unable to respond as their winless away run extended to six league matches.

Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Adviser Professor Dr Asif Nazrul on Tuesday said Bangladesh is firmly committed to developing a skilled workforce to meet future challenges and to respond to the growing global demand for skilled manpower. He made the remarks while addressing the Global Labor Market Conference held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where he highlighted the qualitative transformation of Bangladesh's labour market. In line with this commitment, he said, the Bangladesh Labour (Amendment) Ordinance 2025 has been promulgated to facilitate trade union formation, eliminate gender-based wage discrimination and prohibit blacklisting of workers, thereby ensuring their legitimate rights. He also expressed hope that the recently signed labour recruitment agreement between Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia would play a significant role in promoting safe migration. The third edition of the Global Labor Market Conference (GLMC), held in Riyadh this year, was attended by labour ministers from 35 countries, including the ILO top leaders.

MELBOURNE, Jan 27, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Aryna Sabalenka overcame heat set to hit 45C and one of the most exciting talents in tennis to power into the semi-finals of the Australian Open, where Carlos Alcaraz bids to join her later Tuesday. World number one Sabalenka tamed 18-year-old American Iva Jovic 6-3, 6-0 and faces either third seed Coco Gauff or 12th seed Elina Svitolina for a place in the final. Sabalenka, the top seed from Belarus, is aiming to win a third Melbourne crown in four years and looks in ominous form, yet to drop a set. "These teenagers have been testing me in the last couple of rounds," said Sabalenka, 27, who is on a 10-match win streak after victory in Brisbane this month. The 22-year-old Spaniard Alcaraz has won six Grand Slams, but is yet to go past the last eight in Melbourne.

HONG KONG, Jan 27, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Asian markets rose Tuesday following gains on Wall Street, with tech firms leading Seoul to another record as investors brushed off Donald Trump's threat to hike tariffs on South Korean goods. While carmakers slipped, tech firms ploughed higher with chipmaking giant SK hynix up more than five percent and Samsung Electronics up two percent. There were also big gains in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, Singapore, Taipei, Manila and Jakarta. Tech firms are enjoying a fresh boost ahead of earnings releases as traders continue to pile into all things AI. At the same time, major tech firms have leaned more heavily into debt issuance to fund the infrastructure race".

PARIS, France, Jan 27, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - French lawmakers have passed a bill that would ban social media use by under-15s, a move championed by President Emmanuel Macron as a way to protect children from excessive screen time. As social media has grown, so has concern that too much screen time is harming child development and contributing to mental health problems. He added that "social media platforms will then have until December 31 to deactivate existing accounts" that do not comply with the age limit. - 'Destiny of our country' -In addition to combatting the impact of screens and social media on the mental health of young adolescents, Attal stressed that the measure would counter "a number of powers that, through social media platforms, want to colonise minds". On Monday, nine child protection associations urged lawmakers to "hold platforms accountable", not "ban" children from social media.