The Daily Star: Internet Edition Sat. January 06, 2007

Vol. 5 Num 926

Sat. January 06, 2007


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Front Page

Boycotting parties to blame if polls lose acceptability: Khaleda
Blasting the Awami League-led combine for staying away from the January 22 election, BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia yesterday said the boycotting parties, not the participating ones, would be responsible

Hundreds held ahead of two-day blockade
Police have started mass arrest in the capital and elsewhere in the country ahead of the Awami League (AL)-led grand alliance's countrywide blockade slated for tomorrow and the day after.

Non-stop siege for 10 days if demands not met: Hasina
Awami League President Sheikh Hasina yesterday said if the grand alliance's demand for fair election is not fulfilled by January 8, a non-stop siege for 10 days will be enforced to resist "vote thieves.

Cold spell kills 35 more as dense fog paralyses life
Ferry services disrupted; mercury may start rising today
The cold wave sweeping most areas of the country claimed 35 lives in 24 hours till 6:00pm yesterday with the death toll rising to 76 in the last four days, most of them children and elderly people inthe

Act swiftly, impartially to create conditions for all-party polls
US urges CG, EC
The United States has urged the caretaker government and the Election Commission of Bangladesh to act "swiftly and impartially" to create conditions under which all parties can participate in the parliamentary

PDB Rental Plan for 15 Years
6 out of 7 power deals set to go to pro-BNP men
The Power Development Board (PDB) plans to sign by the middle of this month seven small power rental deals for 15 years which were pushed by the immediate past BNP-led alliance government risking a 15-year

Grand alliance demonstrates, vows to resist Jan 22 polls
The Awami League (AL)-led grand electoral alliance during their countrywide demonstrations yesterday vowed to build all out resistance against holding the January 22 polls and asked President Iajuddin

Scrap communal deals, minority leaders urge political parties
Minority leaders yesterday demanded that the political parties cancel all communal pacts including the five-point deal between the Awami League (AL) and Khelafat Majlish to safeguard the spirit of the

EC prints ballot papers but can't say their exact numbers
The Election Commission (EC) yesterday started printing ballot papers for the ninth parliamentary election without assessing the exact number of voters and the number of ballot papers.

LDP announces 10-day blockade from Jan 12
Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) yesterday announced consecutive blockade across the country from January 12 to 22, demanding resignation of Chief Adviser Iajuddin Ahmed and cancellation of the generalelection

Predators turn protectors of Lauachhara forest
Even a couple of years ago most men of Dolubari Muslimpara, a village adjacent to Lauachhara forest, used to live by illegal tree felling.

New outlaw group kills 4 in Kushtia
Two alleged underground operatives and two 'sources' of Rab (Rapid Action Battalion) were killed by a new faction of outlawed Purbo Banglar Communist Party (PBCP-ML) in Mirpur and Gangni upazilas under

Farmers block highway for fertiliser
Several thousand farmers of Birganj took to the streets to protest fertiliser crisis and blocked the Rangpur-Dinajpur highway for two hours yesterday.

50 injured in BNP-grand alliance clash in Rangpur
At least 50 activists of BNP and the Awami League-led grand alliance were injured in a series of clashes at Keranihat in Rangpur-3 constituency yesterday afternoon.

Five dead in Lanka bus blast
Suspected Tamil Tiger rebels set off a powerful explosion on a bus, killing at least five people and wounding 50 others near Sri Lankan capital Colombo, defence ministry said Friday.

Two held for preaching 'armed revolution'
Police yesterday arrested two persons from a mosque in Nilphamari while they were preaching sermon "for an armed revolution to establish an Islamic state.

Bush names new spy chief with Iraq speech looming
US President George W. Bush yesterday named a new spy chief and filled a critical diplomatic vacancy as he put the last touches on a retooled Iraq strategy that critics charge may escalate the war.

US sanctions on arms suppliers to Iran, Syria
The US government has imposed sanctions on Chinese, Russian and North Korean companies for selling missiles and other weapons to Iran and Syria, the Washington Times reported yesterday, citing US administration

Activity spotted at North Korea nuclear test site
South Korean officials said yesterday activity had been spotted near a suspected nuclear test site in North Korea but there was no evidence to suggest Pyongyang was about to test another atomic device.

Oil prices at lowest level since 2005
Oil prices traded at their lowest levels since mid-2005 in Asian hours Friday as the market reacted to high US stockpiles and unusually warm winter weather, dealers said.

Basque airport evacuated after bomb alert
Basque police received a telephone warning in the name of armed Basque separatist group ETA of a bomb at Bilbao airport yesterday, prompting the facility's evacuation as a precaution, the regional interior

Democrats take control of US Congress
Democrats took control of the US Congress on Thursday, promising ambitious reform and tough new oversight of Republican President George W. Bush's policy in Iraq.