United News of Bangladesh

Iran said Sunday that it had struck an unmanned U.S. vessel attempting to enter the Strait of Hormuz, marking the latest escalation in renewed fighting between the two countries. The United States did not immediately confirm the reported attack. It came a day after the U.S. military said it had struck three Iranian oil tankers in response to a missile attack targeting U.S. Navy warships. The conflict began with U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran on Feb. 28. Although a ceasefire was announced in June, sporadic clashes have continued as negotiations between the two sides collapsed. Fighting resumed last week after about a month of relative calm, with attacks again focusing on the Strait of Hormuz and Iranian communities along the strategic waterway. At least five people were killed earlier in the week during U.S. strikes in southern Iran. The Trump administration appears to be pursuing both military and economic pressure, responding to attacks in the strait while targeting foreign financial institutions accused of helping Iran move money. Despite years of sanctions and the current U.S. blockade, Iran has continued finding ways to export oil, relying partly on a so-called shadow fleet to transport crude to buyers and ease growing economic pressure. Meanwhile, efforts to resolve disputes over Iran's nuclear programme have stalled after negotiations broke down shortly after the two sides signed a memorandum of understanding in mid-June. Diplomats say the United States, Britain, France and Germany are seeking to refer Iran to the U.N. Security Council over Tehran's alleged failure to meet its nuclear nonproliferation obligations. Iran, however, is increasingly using its position around the Strait of Hormuz as leverage. The waterway is a vital route for global oil and natural gas shipments and had been regarded as an international passage before the war began.

Indonesia cancelled hundreds of flights and temporarily closed airspace around Jakarta and several other airports on Sunday after Anak Krakatau volcano erupted, sending massive ash clouds across parts of western Indonesia. The volcano, located in the Sunda Strait between Java and Sumatra, had shown increased activity since Friday before erupting for about 30 seconds at 3:53 a.m. Sunday. Camera footage showed lava flaring from the crater. No casualties were reported, and authorities did not order evacuations. However, residents and visitors were advised to stay at least 3 kilometers from the active crater. The nearest settlement is more than 16 kilometers away. Volcanic ash spread over parts of Jakarta and Lampung province, prompting AirNav Indonesia to close airspace around Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta and Halim Perdanakusuma airports, along with four other airports. By mid-afternoon, the disruption had affected 516 flight movements, including 202 at Soekarno-Hatta airport, impacting around 22,800 passengers. The airport was ordered to remain closed until at least 5:30 p.m. Flights at Bali's I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport and in Medan were also affected. Satellite images detected two major ash clouds, with one rising to about 6,100 meters and another reaching around 15,200 meters. The ash spread across several provinces and nearby waters. Indonesia's Geological Agency said volcanic activity at Anak Krakatau has intensified since July, with Sunday's eruption the strongest during the current period of unrest. Officials said they could not predict whether a larger eruption might occur. Anak Krakatau, meaning “Child of Krakatau,” emerged from the site of the historic Krakatau volcano, whose devastating 1883 eruption had global consequences. In 2018, an eruption and subsequent underwater landslide triggered a tsunami that killed at least 430 people in Java and Sumatra.

  A fuel tanker exploded in western Iran, killing 11 people and injuring seven others, state media said. IRNA reported late Saturday that the tanker hit other cars before bursting into flames near a traffic police station close to the Kurdish city of Sanandaj, some 400 kilometers (248 miles) west of the capital, Tehran. The report cited a faulty brake system. The injured were transferred to hospitals. In 2018, a similar road accident between a fuel tanker and an intercity passenger bus near Sanandaj killed 15 people and injured four. Road and traffic accidents annually leave more than 17,000 dead in Iran. Experts blame the high fatality rate on unsafe vehicles, disregard for traffic rules, and inadequate emergency services.

The death toll from a mudslide in eastern China rose to three on Sunday after days of torrential rain triggered by Typhoon Saudel, while nine people remained missing. The mudslide struck part of a village in Suichuan County of Jiangxi province early Saturday, damaging around a dozen houses. Rescue workers recovered the bodies of two more victims on Sunday, according to state broadcaster CCTV. More than 5,300 people were moved to safer locations as heavy rain continued to affect parts of the region. Meanwhile, two people were killed in Hunan province in south-central China following heavy downpours linked to the typhoon, CCTV said. The report did not specify how they died but said the intense rainfall had triggered landslides and other disasters. Typhoon Saudel first made landfall twice in Zhejiang province on Aug. 28 before making a third landfall as a tropical storm in neighboring Fujian province on Sept. 3, according to China's official Xinhua news agency. Both Zhejiang and Fujian border Jiangxi province.

Nearly 2,000 people, mostly students, fell ill in suspected food poisoning incidents linked to President Prabowo Subianto’s Free Nutritious Meals program this week, raising fresh concerns over food safety as the multibillion-dollar initiative expands nationwide. Between Tuesday and Thursday, about 1,950 students, teachers and Islamic boarding school pupils in East Java, Central Java, West Sumatra, Aceh and South Sulawesi became sick after eating meals distributed under the program, known locally as MBG. The largest outbreak occurred in Rembang, Central Java, where 752 students and 25 teachers at State Senior High School 1 Lasem suffered diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and stomach pain. In Sidoarjo, East Java, 730 people, mostly students at Manbaul Hikam Islamic boarding school, were affected. Authorities said 706 had been discharged and were recovering at home. Other suspected cases were reported in Agam, Bener Meriah and Tana Toraja. No deaths have been reported, and investigations are underway. Since the program began in January 2025, MBG-linked food poisoning incidents have affected 50,059 people in 560 cases across 245 districts and cities in 36 provinces, according to Health Ministry data. Officials said most previous cases were linked to violations of food safety procedures. Authorities are now reviewing about 27,000 meal distribution centers, while at least 833 kitchens have been closed over hygiene and sanitation failures.

Twelve terrorists were killed by Pakistani security forces during an intelligence-based operation in the southwestern province of Balochistan, the military announced Friday. The counter-terrorism operation was carried out Wednesday in the Kalat district following reports detailing the presence of active militants. During the raid, security forces located and dismantled a militant hideout, neutralizing all 12 individuals inside, according to a statement from the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the media wing of the Pakistani military. A stockpile of ammunition alongside multiple improvised explosive devices was also destroyed at the location. Military forces are currently conducting sanitization sweeps in the district to ensure no other militants remain in the area, the statement added.

Myanmar’s military-backed government leader Min Aung Hlaing is visiting Vietnam for talks with its leaders as he seeks to improve relations with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and attract foreign investment. Min Aung Hlaing has intensified his diplomatic engagements since being sworn in as president in April following an election that critics say was aimed at consolidating the military’s grip on power. Since taking office, he has visited India, China, Laos and Thailand, and most recently traveled to Kazakhstan, Belarus and Russia, where he held talks with leaders and sought to attract foreign investment through business forums. Vietnam has maintained longstanding military ties with Myanmar, including defense cooperation and the involvement of Viettel, Vietnam’s military-run telecommunications group, in Mytel, one of Myanmar’s major telecom operators with military-linked ownership. Economic relations, however, have weakened in recent years. Bilateral trade fell from $853 million in 2020 to $590 million in 2025 and reached $335 million in the first half of 2026, according to figures Min Aung Hlaing shared with Vietnamese Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung during their meeting in Myanmar in late August, Vietnam’s Foreign Ministry said. State-run MRTV television reported that Min Aung Hlaing left the capital, Naypyitaw, on a flight Friday morning. During his visit to Hanoi, Min Aung Hlaing is expected to meet Vietnamese President To Lam and other senior officials. He is also scheduled to attend a business forum alongside members of his Cabinet. The visit is the latest in a series of diplomatic efforts to reengage with countries in the region and the international community after Myanmar’s relations with many countries deteriorated following Min Aung Hlaing’s ouster of Aung San Suu Kyi’s government in February 2021, when he was serving as army chief. Friday’s visit is Min Aung Hlaing’s third trip to an ASEAN member state as he seeks to restore Myanmar’s position within the 11-member regional bloc, which includes both Myanmar and Vietnam. Myanmar faced years of diplomatic isolation following the 2021 military takeover. Min Aung Hlaing was excluded from top-level ASEAN meetings for failing to implement a five-point peace plan agreed upon by the bloc in April 2021. Western governments have shunned and sanctioned Min Aung Hlaing and his associates over the overthrow of Suu Kyi’s government. The takeover was followed by serious rights violations and a deadly military crackdown on protests, which later fueled a nationwide armed resistance movement and a bloody civil war.

Rescuers in Nepal pulled two workers alive from a hydropower tunnel Friday, nine days after devastating floods trapped them inside, officials said. Emergency teams are continuing efforts to reach others believed to be trapped in the tunnel of the Trishuli 3A hydropower project. The two workers were rescued from the tunnel, which was hit by floods on August 26 that were likely triggered by a glacier collapse. The disaster devastated nearby towns and swept away several villages. Army spokesperson Brig Gen Raja Ram Basnet confirmed the rescue of the first worker, while Nepalese lawmaker Shri Ram Neupane later announced the rescue of the second on Facebook. Officials identified the two men as a mechanical foreman and a mechanical supervisor. Television footage showed one of the rescued workers covered in mud and being carried away from the site on a rescuer’s shoulder. Both men are now under medical observation. According to the Independent Power Producers Association of Nepal, at least 557 workers from the Trishuli 3A project remain missing, with around 115 believed to be trapped inside the main tunnel. Rescue officials said they remain hopeful that more people could still be alive inside. Communication Minister Bikram Timilsina also expressed hope that additional workers would be rescued. The floods have killed at least 1,259 people in Nepal, while more than 5,000 others remain missing, according to the country’s disaster management agency. Across Nepal, around 900 workers from 12 hydropower projects are reported missing, with roughly 500 believed to be trapped inside tunnels, local authorities said.

Hundreds of opposition lawmakers, lawyers, activists and trade union members protested in Sri Lanka’s capital Thursday, demanding that the government withdraw proposed legislation they say could undermine judicial independence. The protest came nearly two weeks after President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s government submitted a constitutional amendment on judicial reform to Parliament. The proposed changes would increase the retirement age of the country’s top judges by two years and expand the number of judges on the higher courts. The government says the reforms are aimed at reducing delays in the courts and would not affect judicial independence. Opposition lawmakers and rights activists, however, accuse the government of seeking greater political control over the judiciary. Protesters gathered at Colombo’s main railway station, holding banners and placards reading “Don’t touch the judiciary” and “Stop reforms that tarnish judicial independence.” Opposition lawmaker Ajith Perera called the proposed amendment “draconian,” alleging that it was drafted without consultation with judges, lawyers or other stakeholders and was intended to manipulate the judiciary for political purposes. No parliamentary debate has yet been scheduled. The amendment requires a two-thirds majority to pass, a threshold the ruling National People’s Power party can meet as it controls more than two-thirds of Parliament. Dissanayake won the presidency in September 2024, followed by his party’s victory in parliamentary elections later that year, amid public anger over Sri Lanka’s severe 2022 economic crisis, which was blamed on years of mismanagement and corruption. His government has since launched investigations into alleged corruption and misconduct under previous administrations, with dozens of former government and political officials facing scrutiny.

The death toll from the devastating mudslide in Nepal has climbed to 1,204, with 4,216 people still missing as of 6 p.m. local time Wednesday, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority. The disaster has also left a total of 301 people injured. In response to the catastrophe, 21,314 security personnel have been mobilized across the affected regions to conduct search, rescue and relief operations, the authority said. Some missing tourists make contact as Nepal flood death toll exceeds 1,100