NEW DELHI // A petrol bomb exploded outside the hotel where India's president was staying in Bangladesh yesterday as more protesters died in a wave of violence sparked by the government's prosecution of local Islamist leaders.
There were no reports of injuries in the explosion in Dhaka, which was the latest incident to mar Pranab Mukerjee's state visit that began Sunday. Day one of his trip coincided with the start of a two-day general strike called by political supporters of Delwar Hossain Sayedee, the vice president of Jamaat-e-Islami, the country's largest Islamic party, who was convicted of war crimes on January 21. At least 61 people have been killed in protests that have intensified since Sayedee was sentenced to death last week.
Sayedee supporters yesterday attacked government offices and police responded with bullets and tear gas. At least three people died and dozens more were injured.
Some commentators have raised concerns about the timing for Mr Mukherjee's three-day visit. An editorial in the Indian newspaper Asian Age said yesterday that "the wisdom of being welcomed during a major domestic upheaval in a host country appears questionable".
Mr Mukherjee's visit was planned months in advance and comes in the heels of the visit of India's foreign minister, Salman Khurshid, who was in Dhaka on February 16 and 17.
Ms Zia's aides said she was unable to attend the meeting because of the two-day strike in the country.
The Bangladesh government has prosecuted 10 leaders of Jamaat-e-Islami for their alleged role in the massacres and rapes, abetted by the Pakistan army, in Bangladesh's 1971 war of independence. Jamaat-e-Islami is an ally of the opposition Bangladesh National Party, headed by Khaleda Zia, who called for the strike.
Ms Zia was scheduled to meet Mr Mukherjee yesterday, but she called off her appointment in a move that was regarded as a diplomatic snub.
But India's foreign secretary, Ranjan Mathai, said security concerns about the strike changed Ms Zia's schedule. "We had the meeting with Begum Khaleda Zia fixed well in advance," Mr Mathai said in a statement. "The president was, in fact, looking forward to it. Our external affairs minister had met [Ms Zia] on February 17. She had also met the president in India during her visit in November."
Mr Mukherjee's visit was planned months in advance and comes in the heels of the visit of India's foreign minister, Salman Khurshid, who was in Dhaka on February 16 and 17.
The Indian president has steered clear of commenting on the protests, the worst violence in the Bangladesh since independence.
In a speech at Dhaka University yesterday, having accepted an honorary doctorate, Mr Mukherjee only remarked: "I am confident that democratic traditions in Bangladesh will grow stronger with time and that you will preserve democracy with your constant vigil."
Smriti Patnaik, a research fellow and Bangladesh specialist at the New Delhi-based Institute for Defence Studies and Analysis (IDSA), said that India had to tread a fine line.
If India were to explicitly support Bangladesh's government and the secular forces, she said, it would "delegitimise" what the youth are fighting for.
"They need to figure out themselves about where they will head with this. India has learnt its lesson about keeping out of its neighbours' political affairs."
Mr Mukherjee has stuck to safe notes of optimism on bilateral ties between India and Bangladesh.
He referred to the agreement between the two countries to ratify their common border.
"We are committed to working closely with Bangladesh to avoid any untoward incidents on our border," Mr Mukherjee said. We can together make it a gateway of peace and mutually beneficial cooperation."
The border agreement includes a proposed land swap, in which the two countries would exchange tiny enclaves that have existed as anomalies since official borders merged between India and Bangladesh, then East Pakistan, in 1947. The Indian cabinet has already cleared the land swap, but it still requires a constitutional amendment that must be passed by two-thirds of parliament.
The 51,000 residents of these enclaves have remained effectively stateless, unable to vote in India or Bangladesh, and their welfare neglected by both governments.
India charges that Bangladeshi citizens cross illegally into its territory and has erected barbed-wire fences along the border, which Bangladesh protests.
Farooq Sobhan, a former Bangladeshi ambassador to India, said his country was "strongly in favour" of the pact being ratified as soon as possible.
"The ball really is in India's court," Mr Sobhan said in December. "You have your legislative and constitutional requirements. But over here, there's no protest. No one has raised any issues or objections."
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Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Guide to intelligent investing
Investing success often hinges on discipline and perspective. As markets fluctuate, remember these guiding principles:
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Cryopreservation: A timeline
- Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
- Ovarian tissue surgically removed
- Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
- Tissue re-implanted at a time of the patient’s choosing
- Full hormone production regained within 4-6 months
Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
COMPANY PROFILE
● Company: Bidzi
● Started: 2024
● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid
● Based: Dubai, UAE
● Industry: M&A
● Funding size: Bootstrapped
● No of employees: Nine
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
Tips to avoid getting scammed
1) Beware of cheques presented late on Thursday
2) Visit an RTA centre to change registration only after receiving payment
3) Be aware of people asking to test drive the car alone
4) Try not to close the sale at night
5) Don't be rushed into a sale
6) Call 901 if you see any suspicious behaviour
Company%20profile
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
The specs
Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: From Dh139,000
On sale: Now
The 10 Questions
- Is there a God?
- How did it all begin?
- What is inside a black hole?
- Can we predict the future?
- Is time travel possible?
- Will we survive on Earth?
- Is there other intelligent life in the universe?
- Should we colonise space?
- Will artificial intelligence outsmart us?
- How do we shape the future?
German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
More on animal trafficking
Company profile
Name: Infinite8
Based: Dubai
Launch year: 2017
Number of employees: 90
Sector: Online gaming industry
Funding: $1.2m from a UAE angel investor
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
It's up to you to go green
Nils El Accad, chief executive and owner of Organic Foods and Café, says going green is about “lifestyle and attitude” rather than a “money change”; people need to plan ahead to fill water bottles in advance and take their own bags to the supermarket, he says.
“People always want someone else to do the work; it doesn’t work like that,” he adds. “The first step: you have to consciously make that decision and change.”
When he gets a takeaway, says Mr El Accad, he takes his own glass jars instead of accepting disposable aluminium containers, paper napkins and plastic tubs, cutlery and bags from restaurants.
He also plants his own crops and herbs at home and at the Sheikh Zayed store, from basil and rosemary to beans, squashes and papayas. “If you’re going to water anything, better it be tomatoes and cucumbers, something edible, than grass,” he says.
“All this throwaway plastic - cups, bottles, forks - has to go first,” says Mr El Accad, who has banned all disposable straws, whether plastic or even paper, from the café chain.
One of the latest changes he has implemented at his stores is to offer refills of liquid laundry detergent, to save plastic. The two brands Organic Foods stocks, Organic Larder and Sonnett, are both “triple-certified - you could eat the product”.
The Organic Larder detergent will soon be delivered in 200-litre metal oil drums before being decanted into 20-litre containers in-store.
Customers can refill their bottles at least 30 times before they start to degrade, he says. Organic Larder costs Dh35.75 for one litre and Dh62 for 2.75 litres and refills will cost 15 to 20 per cent less, Mr El Accad says.
But while there are savings to be had, going green tends to come with upfront costs and extra work and planning. Are we ready to refill bottles rather than throw them away? “You have to change,” says Mr El Accad. “I can only make it available.”
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
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- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5