Tarique Rahman promises era of clean politics as Bangladesh holds first election since fall of Hasina

Jailed then exiled in London, Rahman returns home as the main contender to be next prime minister of Bangladesh

Tarique Rahman, who after 17 years in exile is the main contender to be the next prime minister of Bangladesh, has pledged to end entrenched corruption and put the country on a “new path” as voting began in the first free and fair elections in almost two decades.

Speaking to the Guardian before polls opened on Thursday morning, Rahman promised a new era of clean politics, including a “top down, no tolerance” approach to graft, if his Bangladesh Nationalist party (BNP) was brought to power.

Continue reading...

‘Women’s freedoms are at stake’: concern at rise of Islamist party before Bangladesh election

Jamaat e-Islami, oppressed under Sheikh Hasina’s rule, could take unprecedented share of the vote on Thursday

As the clock hit midnight, the women held their flame torches aloft and marched into the Dhaka night. “The people have given their blood, now we want equality,” they shouted above the roar of the traffic.

For many in Bangladesh, the past few weeks have been a cause for jubilation. The first free and fair elections in 17 years have been promised for Thursday, after the toppling of the regime of Sheikh Hasina in a bloody student-led uprising in August 2024 in which more than 1,000 people died.

Continue reading...

53 people dead or missing after migrant boat capsizes in Mediterranean

Only two survivors rescued after boat overturned off Libyan coast, UN migration agency says

Fifty-three people are dead or missing after a boat capsized in the Mediterranean Sea off the Libyan coast, the UN migration agency said on Monday. Only two survivors were rescued.

The International Organization for Migration said the boat overturned north of Zuwara on Friday, in the latest disaster involving people attempting the perilous Mediterranean crossing in the hope of reaching Europe.

Continue reading...

Ebo Taylor, Ghanaian highlife pioneer and guitarist, dies age 90

Taylor, who did for Ghanaian music what his friend Fela Kuti did for Nigeria, has been called the greatest rhythm guitarist in history

Ghanaian musician Ebo Taylor, a definitive force behind the highlife genre, has died age 90.

His son Kweku Taylor announced the news on Sunday: “The world has lost a giant. A colossus of African music. Ebo Taylor passed away yesterday; a day after the launch of Ebo Taylor music festival and exactly a month after his 90th birthday, leaving behind an unmatched artistry legacy. Dad, your light will never fade.”

Continue reading...

120,000 Home Cameras Were Hacked for Sexual Videos, South Korean Police Say – The New York Times

  1. 120,000 Home Cameras Were Hacked for Sexual Videos, South Korean Police Say  The New York Times
  2. Over 120,000 home cameras hacked in South Korea for 'sexploitation' footage  BBC
  3. Hacking scheme targeted 120,000 home cameras for sexual footage  MSN
  4. Sickos hack 120K home security cameras in South Korea, sell off sexually explicit footage: authorities  New York Post
  5. A propos - South Korea's digital sex crime crisis - the 'Molka' epidemic  France 24
Posted in Uncategorized