Are these Spanish islands the next adventure hotspot?

Tenerife, Spain (CNN) — Pristine beaches frame the Canary Islands in multicolored sand as the Spanish archipelago sweeps seaward from Africa's Atlantic coast.

Those sunny beaches draw a year-round crowd seeking warm escapes at all-inclusive hotels, which have earned the Canaries a reputation for mass-market tourism.

Look past ranks of seaside resorts, though, and you'll find a wild, otherworldly landscape that's tailor made for travel adventures.

"It's got a lot more to offer than lying on the beach," says Tavienne Kelly of Britain's KE Adventure Travel, whose hiking and cycling trips to the Canary Islands include waterside strolls and high-altitude treks. 

Men ride their horses at the Enramada beach during a celebration on Tenerife.

Desiree Martin/AFP/Getty Images

"The islands are really diverse," Kelly tells CNN Travel. "They've got amazing sunrises, laurel forests, fantastic coastal trails and volcanoes. The adventure side of things is definitely growing."

Those adventurous possibilities are spread across an arc of eight main islands whose landscapes range from forest-clad mountains to bare volcanic rock.

Dominating the island of Tenerife, the active Teide volcano juts from a skirt of clouds and mist, with a profile that dives more than 12,000 feet from the summit to the nearby coastline.

On the desert isles of Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, trade winds keep paragliders and kite boarders aloft, while a maze of trails winds through prehistoric forest on La Gomera.

For travelers ready to venture beyond resorts, the Canary Islands offer a lifetime of active adventures -- here's where to start.

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Hike an explosive landscape

Geothermal energy powers barbecues at the Timanfaya National Park at Lanzarote.

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These islands were forged in fiery geologic activity millions of years ago, and traces of that volcanic past are seared into the scenery.

On otherworldly Lanzarote, black rocks in Timanfaya National Park emit shimmering waves of geothermal heat that power unique, open-air barbecues.

Visitors can drive into the park's Montañas del Fuego, or Mountains of Fire, a lava landscape created by a series of eruptions in the 18th century.

Free, guided hikes within the park showcase a culture adapted to life amid the lava, where islanders once used camels to harvest grapes planted directly into jet-black, volcanic soil.

But the alpine highlight of the Canary Islands is Tenerife's majestic Teide volcano, which at 12,198 feet is Spain's highest mountain.

Teide last erupted in 1909, and despite increased seismic activity in recent years, scientists from the Canarian Institute of Volcanology believe the volcano is safe to visit.

With limited numbers of hikers allowed to approach the summit each day, would-be trekkers make reservations months in advance.

If you don't score one of the coveted spots, you can still experience the wind-whipped landscape of arid rocks and lava flows by climbing nearby Pico Viejo, a caldera that tops out at 10,285 feet.

The views from Pico Viejo are just as impressive, and the smaller mountain is often less crowded than Teide, where a cable car shuttles visitors to a viewing station just over 500 feet below the volcano's summit.

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Harness the wind and waves

These paragliders are taking in the views in Playa de la Canteria.

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Some of the earliest trans-Atlantic voyagers, including Christopher Columbus, made the Canary Islands a stopover on their way across the sea.

That's because the archipelago is a strategic place to catch a ride on the northeasterly trade winds, dependable breezes that buffet the islands' north coasts.

The windiest islands are Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, which have become pilgrimage places for adventure sports driven by ocean swells and incoming breezes.

On Lanzarote, paragliders and hang gliders launch from the towering Famara cliff, winding towards the coast with views of turquoise bays and powdery beaches.

Tracing slender wakes just off Famara beach are dozens of kite-surfers from the nearby Caleta de Famara surf camp, where everyone from beginning to expert kite-surfers can brush up their skills.

And on neighboring Fuerteventura, waves along the northern coast draw a laid-back crowd of surfers from around the world.

Fuerteventura's most famed ride is La Derecha de Lobos, a right-breaking wave that's the longest in the Canary Islands.

But this island's complex coast is pocked by coves and headlands, allowing experienced surfers to pick the perfect spot for each day's swell.

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Explore a prehistoric forest

Spot these laurel trees covered in moss in Garajonay National Park, Gomera, Canary Islands, Spain.

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Glossy leaves and moss-furred trunks form green tunnels through the Canary Islands' laurel forest, a subtropical ecosystem of evergreen broadleaf trees that thrive in the moist sea air.

Found only in the Macaronesian Islands of the Atlantic -- comprising the Canaries, the Azores, Cape Verde and Madeira -- this laurel forest is more than an enchanted-looking woodland. It's also the last-remaining example of an ecosystem that was widespread in Europe between 15 and 40 million years ago before disappearing because of glaciation.

While the forest, called laurisilva, stretches from Tenerife's Anaga Rural Park to Los Tilos in La Palma, the Canary Islands finest example is in the UNESCO-listed Garajonay National Park on the island of La Gomera.

Earn views of the lush forest on a hike to the summit of Alto de Garajonay, at 4,879 feet the highest peak on La Gomera. From there, continue to hundreds of miles of trails that go from ridgelines to the sea.

Peer into another galaxy 

Stargazers regularly have nighttime viewing parties in Teide National Park.

Turismo de Islas Canarias

Far from the glare of big-city lights, the Canary Islands have some of the darkest skies in Europe, drawing stargazers for late-night looks into the cosmos.

The islands of La Palma, Fuerteventura and Tenerife are designated Starlight Reserves, with night-sky clarity ideal for viewing. (Even professional star-watchers prize a trip to the Canary Islands, and Tenerife is home to Europe's largest solar telescope.)

On Tenerife, stargazing tours ascend the flanks of Teide volcano for the best possible views, offering visitors the chance to use high-powered telescopes that can reach beyond our galaxy.

Visitors to La Palma can make their own way to Roque de los Muchachos, near the multi-national Roque de los Muchachos Observatory, to watch constellations unreel above the largely rural island.

And while the tiny island of El Hierro isn't designated a Starlight Reserve, it's still a magnificent place to watch the skies.

Head to the remote Orchilla Lighthouse to catch a natural show: It's the westernmost point in Spain, so visitors can watch the sunset linger later than anywhere else in the country.

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How to visit the Canary Islands

Ruled by Spain since the 15th century, the Canary Islands are geographically closer to Africa than Europe. (The Moroccan coast is just 52 nautical miles from the island of Fuerteventura.)

When visiting the Canary Islands from the United States, most itineraries make a stopover in mainland Europe. With the exception of tiny La Graciosa, which joined the archipelago in 2018, each of the Canary Islands has an airport.

The majority of international travelers touch down at airports on the islands of Tenerife, Gran Canaria and Lanzarote. You're not limited to a single island, however, as a network of ferries and affordable, inter-island flights make it easy to hop along the archipelago.

Jen Rose Smith is a freelance writer and award-winning guidebook author whose work explores travel, adventure and food. With a home base in Vermont, her recent adventures include cycling around Peru's highest mountain and eating her way through Istanbul. Read more of Jen's work at jenrosesmith.com.

Schiff: Trump and allies want to suppress Bolton testimony because they are "deathly afraid"

Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP

Asked about GOP Rep. Mark Meadows’s suggestion that the New York Times story on John Bolton was a coordinated leak from Democrats and if he was in any way involved in the leak, House impeachment manager Rep. Adam Schiff said he was not.

“Of course not,” Schiff said, “It came as quite a surprise to all the House managers when the New York Times story came out, but I guess that’s the best Representative Meadows has right now. Look I can understand the reasons why — and I think we knew these already — why the President and his allies have wanted to suppress John Bolton’s testimony. They evidentially had this manuscript, they understood what John Bolton had to say and they were deathly afraid the American people would find out."

Schiff continued: "There seems to be a real shift in where the Republican senators are and I think it’s very hard for them to maintain that they wanted a fair trial, wanted to know all the facts when there’s a witness who said I’m ready, I’ve got something to say, we have an outline of what he has to say, it’s really hard to say we’re not going to hear that.”

46 min ago

Top House Democrat says they would consider bringing in Bolton if Senate doesn’t

From CNN's Laurie Ure

Asked if the House would reconsider bringing in former White House national security adviser John Bolton if the Senate decides not call trial witnesses, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said they would consider it, but he wouldn’t speculate beyond that. 

“We'd certainly consider what action we would take. I don't know, I don't want to speak of what action we would take," he said.

55 min ago

The Senate is back in session

Senate TV

The Senate impeachment trial has resumed.

Robert Ray, a member of President Trump's defense team, is delivering his opening arguments right now.

50 min ago

Trump ally suggests Bolton manuscript was leaked to convince GOP senators to call witnesses

From CNN's Clare Foran, Ellie Kaufman, and Lauren Fox

Rep. Mark Meadows speaks with reporters in Washington on Monday. Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP

Rep. Mark Meadows, a Republican from North Carolina and a stark defender of the President, suggested today that the John Bolton manuscript was leaked to convince GOP senators to vote for witnesses. He also said he's not in favor of calling additional witnesses.

"Why was this leaked out at this particular time right before today's presentation by the Trump defense team? I know I'm asking that. Some have suggested that it was to sell more books. Some have suggested that indeed the leak was designed to create chaos. What we do know is that this is a pattern that my Democrat colleagues have embarked on when it was over in the House, and they continue to leak out things trying to change the narrative so that you will write about it, so that the American people can get all worried about it, only to find out the facts later don't necessarily support the accusations that were made," he said.

Meadows continued: "My Republican colleagues in the Senate are going to make up their own minds on whether or not to call witnesses, but this leak was designed for one purpose and one purpose only, and that was to try to manipulate the thinking of my Republican colleagues in the Senate to encourage them to open it up and provide for more witnesses," he said.

"I'm not in favor of calling additional witnesses," he added.

Don’t panic take caution

The government has urged people not to panic over coronavirus as it has taken necessary preparation to prevent the virus from entering the country.
Healthcare experts also said people should stay alert, but no case should be considered a coronavirus infection without proper tests.
Dhaka had initiated talks with Chinese authorities to bring back the Bangladeshis, mostly students, stranded in China after the outbreak prompted lockdown of several cities there.
State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam on his Facebook page yesterday wrote, “We have started discussion with Chinese government to bring back willing Bangladeshi citizen staying in China. The process would be fixed based on consent of the local [Chinese] authorities considering the reality.”
But China would not allow any Bangladeshis to leave Wuhan city, the epicenter of the outbreak, for at least the next 14 days, said Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen last night after Dhaka’s communication with Beijing.

“Our prime minister had instructed us to bring back the Bangladeshis living in the Chinese city. We have already prepared a plane, but the Chinese authorities said they won’t allow any foreigner to leave the city for the next 14 days because they will be kept under observation,” he told The Daily Star over the phone.
It is not only Bangladeshis; there are some 700 Indians and several hundred Sri Lankans there, he said.
The minister said Bangladesh embassy in Beijing established contact with 245 Bangladeshis in Wuhan. The Chinese authorities allowed them to go to their closest stores and get groceries yesterday.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, at a cabinet meeting yesterday, also directed all to stay alert.
“The prime minister asked us to be more alert … those who are coming through or from China should also be taken care of specially,” Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam told journalists later.
He said the PM directed installation of special quarantine facilities at all ports of entry.
Authorities of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport have screened 2,610 people entering Bangladesh from China since January 20, but found no suspected coronavirus infections.
“The number of passengers from China has gone down drastically. We are maintaining all precautionary measures when screening the passengers from China,” said Dr Jahir, assistant health officer at the airport.
Meanwhile, despite the calls for calm and not to panic, villagers of Jasaldia in Munshiganj’s Louhajang started panicking after a woman and her nephew died following high fever.
The district civil surgeon said they, following preliminary probe, believe the two died neither of coronavirus nor nipah virus.
Prof Meerjady Sabrina Flora, director at the Institute of Epidemiology Disease Control and Research, told The Daily Star, “Our team is investigating the area. They [victims] had no history of travelling to China; the symptoms don’t go with nipah virus infection either. We would be able to know the cause of death after complete investigation.”

The IEDCR also said they do not believe that a Chinese patient at a Dhaka hospital was infected with coronavirus. They, however, would conduct tests for good measure.
In China, the number of cases has reached nearly 3,000 and at least 81 people have died so far.
Since the outbreak in China around a week ago, Nepal has confirmed a coronavirus case while India has quarantined four people for observation.
Experts suggested that the government take all precautionary measures so that the virus, which can be transmitted from human to human, does not enter Bangladesh.
“All entry points should be brought under necessary screening; especially those through which people from China or countries with reported coronavirus cases enter Bangladesh,” Prof Saif Ullah Munshi of BSMMU’s virology department told The Daily Star.
He suggested that people maintain good habits, like using masks, covering cough, and washing hands often.
“This virus could remain incubated inside a body for a period [14 days]. It is tough to identify such a person. In such a situation, it is important that our preparations are methodical,” Prof Saif said.
Colds do not necessarily mean coronavirus infection. “However, we would urge people to stay alert and inform us via our hotline +8801937000011,” Flora of IEDCR told The Daily Star.
The number of people killed in China by the new coronavirus has risen to 81 as the hard-hit province of Hubei announced 24 new fatalities.
The first death was recorded in Hainan province; an 80-year-old woman.
Outside China, at least 44 cases have been confirmed in Thailand, the United States, France, and Australia. There have been no deaths outside China.

Losing tongue fat can lessen sleep disorder severity

Losing weight is an effective treatment for Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), and now researchers have found that improvements in sleep apnea symptoms appear to be linked to the reduction of fat in the tongue. Using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to measure the effect of weight loss on the upper airway in obese patients, the study, published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, found that reducing tongue fat is a primary factor in lessening the severity of OSA.
"Most clinicians, and even experts in the sleep apnea world, have not typically focused on fat in the tongue for treating sleep apnea," said study researcher Richard Schwab from University of Pennsylvania in the US. "Now that we know tongue fat is a risk factor and that sleep apnea improves when tongue fat is reduced, we have established a unique therapeutic target that we've never had before," Schwab added.
A 2014 study led by Schwab compared obese patients with and without sleep apnea, and found that the participants with the condition had significantly larger tongues and a higher percentage of tongue fat when compared to those without sleep apnea.
The researchers next step was to determine if reducing tongue fat would improve symptoms and to further examine cause and effect.
The new study included 67 participants with mild to severe obstructive sleep apnea who were obese -- those with a body mass index greater than 30.
Through diet or weight loss surgery, the patients lost nearly 10 per cent of their body weight, on average, over six months.
Overall, the participants' sleep apnea scores improved by 31 per cent after the weight loss intervention, as measured by a sleep study. Before and after the weight loss intervention, the study participants underwent MRI scans to both their pharynx as well as their abdomens.
Then, using a statistical analysis, the research team quantified changes between overall weight loss and reductions to the volumes of the upper airway structures to determine which structures led to the improvement in sleep apnea.
The team found that a reduction in tongue fat volume was the primary link between weight loss and sleep apnea improvement.
The study also found that weight loss resulted in reduced pterygoid (a jaw muscle that controls chewing) and pharyngeal lateral wall (muscles on the sides of the airway) volumes.
Both these changes also improved sleep apnea, but not to the same extent as the reduction in tongue fat.
The authors believe that tongue fat is a potential new therapeutic target for improving sleep apnea

Air Quality Index: Dhaka ranks 3rd worst

Bangladesh’s capital Dhaka ranked third worst in the Air Quality Index (AQI) on Saturday morning. It had an AQI score of 207 at 851 am. The air was classified as ‘very unhealthy’.  When the AQI score is between 201 and 300, this would trigger a health alert signifying that everyone may experience more serious health effects.
India’s Delhi and Bosnia Herzegovina’s Sarajevo occupied the top two positions in the list of cities with worst air with scores of 302, 241 and 210 respectively. When the AQI score is between 201 and 300, every city dweller is likely to be affected.
But when the value is more than 300, the air quality is considered hazardous and everyone may experience more serious health effects.
The AQI, an index for reporting daily air quality, informs people how clean or polluted the air of a certain city is, and what associated health effects might be a concern for them.
In Bangladesh, the AQI is based on five criteria pollutants - Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2 and Ozone (O3). The Department of Environment has also set national ambient air quality standards for these pollutants. These standards aim to protect against adverse human health impacts.
Dhaka, the overcrowded megacity, has long been grappling with air pollution. The air quality usually improves during monsoon.

India Citizenship Act, passed by Parliament last month, comes into effect

The contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act of India, 2019 that grants citizenship on the basis of religion came into force on Friday. In a gazette notification, the Union home ministry said the act under which non-Muslim refugees from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan will be given Indian citizenship, will come into force from January 10.
“In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (2) of the section 1 of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (47 of 2019), the Central government hereby appoints the 10th day of January, 2020, as the date on which the provisions of the said Act shall come into force,” the notification said. The CAA was passed by parliament on December 11 last year.
Inidian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have on several occasions underlined that it only provides a refuge to the six communities who have faced religious persecution in the three countries mentioned above.

20 charred to death as bus bursts into flames after accident in India’s UP

At least 20 passengers were charred to death and 21 others injured after a bus burst into flames at the GT Road in  Uttar Pradesh's Kannauj of India on Friday night. The double-decker bus caught fire after a head-on collision with a truck on the highway. The accident took place around 09:30 pm near Chiloi village. "Some 20 people are feared to have died in the incident while 21 have been rushed to a hospital," Kannauj Superintendent of Police Amrendra Prasad Singh told PTI.
Earlier, Kannauj District Magistrate Ravindra Kumar, who is also on the spot, had told India Today Tv that around 43 passengers were suspected to be onboard when the accident took place. "We are trying to ascertain the number of passengers. So far we know at least 26 passengers had boarded the bus from Gursahaiganj, while 17 others started their journies from Chhibramau." The bus was going to Jaipur from Gursahaiganj in Kannauj.
CM Yogi Adityanath, who earlier directed the district administration to take stock of the situation at the earliest.
"It isn't yet clear how many lives were claimed in the incident.” the chief minister said.
"Instructions have been given to provide all help to the injured. The state government has decided to provide ex-gratia of Rs 2 Lakh each to families of the deceased and Rs 50,000 each as compensation to the injured," he said.
According to initial ground reports, the passengers were unable to escape when the bus caught fire as it was sleeper bus and passengers were asleep with doors and windows shut. Unconfirmed reports have said that several passengers stuck in bus may have died, but officials have not confirmed any casualty yet.

Iran plane crash: Ukrainian jet was 'unintentionally' shot down - state TV

Iran's military says it "unintentionally" shot down a Ukrainian passenger jet, Iran's state TV reports. The statement said it had done so due to "human error" after the plane flew close to a sensitive site belonging to Iran's Revolutionary Guards.
Those responsible would be held accountable, the statement said. Iran had previously rejected suggestions that one of its missiles brought down the plane near the capital, Tehran, on Wednesday.
But pressure mounted after the US and Canada, citing intelligence, said they believed Iran had brought the plane down with a missile, possibly accidently.
The crash of Ukraine International Airlines flight PS752 with the loss of 176 lives came just hours after Iran carried out missile strikes on two airbases housing US forces in Iraq.
The Ukrainian flight was headed to the Canadian city of Toronto via the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv.
US media have speculated that the airliner may have been mistaken for a warplane as Iran prepared for possible US retaliation.
Iran has promised a full investigation. However, TV images from the crash site on Thursday showed a mechanical digger helping to clear debris away, raising concerns that important evidence could have been removed.

Countdown to Bangabandhu’s birth centenary celebration begins today

The countdown to the observance of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s birth centenary will begin on Friday at the Tejgaon Old Airport in the city where Bangabandhu landed in the freshly liberated and sovereign Bangladesh on January 10, 1972. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate the countdown today afternoon for the observance of Bangabandhu’s birth centenary from March 17, 2020 to March 17, 2021 aimed at presenting the life and works of Bangabandhu before the people, especially the new generation.
Through the inauguration, the countdown will begin simultaneously in every district, upazila and all public gathering places across the country. Devices for countdown are being set up at different public places in the city, divisional cities, districts, city corporations and upazilas across the country. Twelve city corporations are setting up devices in the 28 points while 83 devices are also being set up divisional cities, 53 districts, two upazillas and Dhaka city, including Dhaka University.
Many ministries, divisions, departments, socio-cultural organisations and public and private universities are also setting up devices through their own initiatives.
Talking to BSS, Chief Coordinator of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s Birth Centenary Celebration National Implementation Committee Dr Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury said the countdown to the observance of the birth centenary will begin through creating a symbolic atmosphere of the return of Bangabandhu, the undisputed leader of the nation, to the sacred soil of independent Bangladesh.
As January 10 is a historic day for the nation, he said, they are going to start the countdown from the day.
On January 10, 1972, Bangabandhu returned to the sacred soil of independent Bangladesh via London and New Delhi, after 290 days of captivity in Pakistan jail.
Bangladesh, Kamal Chowdhury said, is going to celebrate the birth centenary aimed at accelerating the country’s development activities and services for building a hunger and poverty free ‘Sonar Bangla’. “Our goal is not just to celebrate the birth centenary, but to add a new dimension in the country’s development activities and services for building ‘Sonar Bangla’ as dreamt by Bangabandhu,” he added.
The chief coordinator said different socio-cultural and political organisations from grassroots to national level, ministries and divisions are taking programmes to celebrate the birth centenary.
“Many programmes are being taken marking the Mujib Year. We have already selected over 299 proposals of programmes, came from home and abroad. We are providing necessary supports to implement the programmes. We have formed eight subcommittees for ensuring smooth implementation of the programmes,” he added.
The programmes include short films, screening documentaries, introducing international award in the name of Bangabandhu and Green Factory Award.
Kamal Chowdhury said there will be an inauguration programme on March 17 this year where eminent personalities from home and abroad will attend.
For ensuring smooth celebration of the birth centenary, the government has formed a national committee and a national implementation committee. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been made the president of the national committee, while PM’s former principal secretary Dr Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury became the member secretary.
National Professor Mohammad Rafiqul Islam and PM’s former principal secretary Dr Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury have been made president and chief coordinator of the national implementation committee respectively

Nineteen killed as bus plunges into Iran ravine

At least 19 people have been killed and 24 others injured in a bus crash in northern Iran, local media say. The vehicle plunged into a ravine in the Veresk area of Mazandaran province, about 130km (80 miles) east of Tehran, according to the Isna news agency. Officials were cited as saying that the crash happened when the bus's brakes failed.
A pregnant woman and four children under the age of six were reportedly among the victims.
Iran has one of the worst road safety records in the world.
About 15,000 people are killed annually in traffic-related accidents, according to Iran's National Disaster Management Organization.
In November, 28 Afghans died when two vans collided in south-eastern Iran.

63 terrorists, 25 others killed in Niger army base attack

Heavily armed assailants stormed a military base in Niger on Thursday killing 25 people and leading to fierce clashes that killed 63 “terrorists”, the defence ministry said. The raid near to the volatile frontier with Mali by attackers in vehicles and on motorbikes began in Chinegodar, in the western Tillaberi, at 01:00 pm (12H00 GMT), defence spokesman Colonel Souleymane Gazobi said on television. “The response with the combined air support of the Niger air force and partners made it possible to strike and rout the enemy outside our boundaries,” he said. Partners often means US drones in the Sahel, or French fighter planes or drones in the countr
It was the deadliest on Niger’s military since Islamist extremist violence began to spill over from neighbouring Mali in 2015, and dealt a blow to efforts to roll back jihadism in the Sahel.
That attack spurred leaders of the G5 Sahel nations to call for closer cooperation and international support in the battle against the Islamist threat.
Militant violence has spread across the vast Sahel region, especially in Burkina Faso and Niger, having started when armed Islamists revolted in northern Mali in 2012.
Thousands of civilians have also died and more than a million have been forced to flee their homes since the jihadist revolt began.
The Sahel region of Africa lies to the south of the Sahara Desert and stretches across the breadth of the African continent.

British lawmakers finally approve historic Brexit deal

Britain’s parliament finally approved Brexit on Thursday, allowing it to become the first country to leave the European Union later this month, ending years of arguments that toppled two governments and splintered society.

The House of Commons erupted in cheers after MPs ratified Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s divorce deal with Brussels by 330 votes to 231, turning the page on an extraordinary era of political drama and chaos.
For much of the time since the 2016 Brexit referendum, lawmakers have been at each others’ throats over how, when or even if Britain should leave its closest trading partners after nearly 50 years. Some view Brexit with horror, fearing it will strip them of their European identities and turn Britain into an insular, less important nation.
Others embraced it with fervour, viewing it as a chance to “take back control” from officials in Brussels and see Britain regain some of its past might.
Businesses and governments in Europe, puzzled by Britain’s struggles over what they viewed as a self-inflicted wound, hoped that Brexit could still somehow be undone.

– A smile and a nod –
  But Johnson’s comprehensive victory in last month’s general election brought an abrupt end to the turmoil, giving his Conservatives a parliamentary majority with which to push it through.
MPs gave their initial blessing to the EU Withdrawal Agreement Bill before Christmas, and the government set aside just three days this week for detailed scrutiny of the complex text.
But few even bothered to turn up on Tuesday and Wednesday, with both sessions ending early.
The momentous day on which Johnson effectively won permission to abandon the European integration project was all but ignored in Thursday’s media.
Instead, it became a footnote to Prince Harry and his wife Meghan’s decision to quit royal front-line duties — christened “Megxit” and shaping up to be equally complicated and divisive.
“We will be leaving the EU on January 31. We will have delivered on the PM’s commitment to get Brexit done,” a government spokesman said, echoing Johnson’s election mantra.
Britain’s main opposition Labour party, bruised by its worst beating at the polls since 1935, voted against Brexit on Thursday knowing the battle had been lost.
We “may not win many votes in parliament just now, but we can win the moral argument”, said Labour’s Brexit spokesman Keir Starmer, a potential successor to Jeremy Corbyn as party leader.
Johnson attended the session but did not speak, savouring his victory from the front bench, where he smiled and nodded before the historic but all-but ceremonial vote.
The Brexit bill must still be passed by the unelected House of Lords and the European Parliament, which is seen as a formality.

– Turning to trade –

All eyes are now on another major challenge: the negotiation of a new relationship between Britain and the remaining 27 EU nations, which form the world’s largest single market.
The Brexit deal covers separation issues such as EU citizens’ rights and Britain’s financial settlement, and sets out an 11-month transition period in which to agree a wider partnership.
Brussels warns the current deadline of December 31 this year is extremely tight, and has given London the option to ask for more time.
But Johnson insists there will be no extension of the transition period, saying that Britain must be free of EU rules as soon as possible.
Ahead of talks with Johnson on Wednesday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said it would be “basically impossible” to agree everything within London’s timeframe.
“We will have to prioritise,” she said in a speech to the London School of Economics university, warning of “tough talks ahead”.
In response, Johnson’s office indicated that it could accept a partial trade deal.
London does not want the EU’s long-standing policy that “nothing is agreed until everything is agreed” — intended to stop one side cherry-picking bits of a deal they like — to define the coming negotiations, a spokesman said.
“We are very clear we want to get on in terms of negotiating a deal,” he said.

US House votes to limit Trump war powers on Iran

The US House of Representatives has approved a largely symbolic resolution seeking to limit President Donald Trump's ability to make war on Iran. The measure passed the Democratic-run chamber 224-194, but faces an uphill climb in the Republican-held Senate.
It aims to mandate congressional approval for any conflict with Iran, except in cases of an imminent attack against the US. Neither the US nor Iran has declared plans for further military action.
Iran this week fired missiles at Iraqi bases housing American forces, injuring no-one, after the US last week killed a senior Iranian commander in a Baghdad drone strike.
Thursday's measure directed the president to "terminate the use of United States Armed Forces" against Iran unless granted congressional authorisation.
It offered an exception when necessary to "defend against an imminent armed attack".
Even if the House measure cleared Congress, it would not face a potential Trump veto because it is known as a concurrent resolution, which does not require a presidential signature.
The proposal cited the 1973 War Powers Act, which granted Congress the ability to check the president's power to commit the US to armed conflict. But legal questions remain unresolved as to whether Congress can use a concurrent resolution to bind the president.
The Democratic leader of the House, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, said earlier on Thursday she did not believe Trump had made the US safer after last week's drone strike that killed Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani.
House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy of California called the resolution a "meaningless vote", while Republican House Whip Steve Scalise dismissed it as "a press release″.
Trump, a Republican, had tweeted that he hoped "all House Republicans will vote against Crazy Nancy Pelosi's War Powers Resolution".
He also made a new claim about the intelligence behind the air raid, telling reporters at the White House the Iranians were "looking to blow up our embassy" in Iraq.
The war powers resolution gathered momentum after a congressional briefing on Wednesday by administration officials seeking to justify the attack.
Following the briefing by the secretary of state, defence secretary and CIA director, two Republicans senators broke ranks.
Mike Lee of Utah and Rand Paul of Kentucky said they might back a similar resolution in the Senate seeking to limit the president's war powers.
Their potential defection raises the chances for the measure in the upper chamber, where Republicans hold a 53-47 majority.
Lee told reporters it was "the worst briefing I've seen at least on a military issue in the nine years I've served".
He said the administration officials had asked them not even to debate the president's authority to strike Iran. He described their approach as "un-American" and "insane".
But most Republicans lawmakers have stood by the president.
Doug Collins of Georgia claimed Democrats were "in love with terrorists" and grieving more for Soleimani than for US service personnel killed by the Iranian commander.
"They mourn Soleimani more than they mourn our Gold Star families who are the ones who suffered under Soleimani," he told Fox News.

Dedicated Rail Bridge Over Jamuna: Work yet to start, cost up by 33pc

Rejaul Karim Byron and Tuhin Shubhra Adhikary

The project cost of building a rail bridge over the Jamuna river has increased by Tk 3,216 crore even before the start of physical work.
The cabinet committee on purchase yesterday gave conditional approval to the project aimed at improving the capacity and safety of rail communications across the river to the northwestern and southern regions.
The project now costs an estimated Tk 12,950.6 crore, which is 33 percent more than the amount mentioned in Development Project Proforma approved by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) in December 2016.
The Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Railway Bridge Construction Project was supposed to be implemented between January 2016 and December 2023. But the purchase committee approval comes more than three years after the Ecnec approved it.
After yesterday’s purchase committee meeting, Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal said they gave “conditional approval” because of the significant increase in the project cost.

The railways ministry will have to place the revised Development Project Proforma (DPP) for Ecnec approval, he said.
Its work order will be issued once the Ecnec approves the revised DPP.
“The project will proceed as per the revised DPP. But we have given the approval so that they don’t have to come to us [purchase committee] again,” the minister said.
According to the project document, the new 4.8 km bridge will be built some 300 metres upstream to the Bangabandhu bridge.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to launch the physical work of the dual-gauge double-track bridge in March, Bangladesh Railway Director General Md Shamsuzzaman told The Daily Star.
The bridge would be constructed under two packages. Japan will provide the lion’s share of the cost in soft loans.
A joint venture of the Obayashi Corporation, TOA Corporation and JFE would construct the eastern part of the bridge at the cost of Tk 6,801 crore while another joint venture of the IHI and SMCC companies will work on the western part involving Tk 6,148 crore, officials said.
All the companies are from Japan.

WHY COST ESCALATED?

Asked, the finance minister said the reason behind the delay and the increased cost would be known after the revised DPP was placed before the Ecnec.
Sources at the railways and finance ministries said the original DPP was approved with an estimated cost, and the actual cost was supposed to be fixed after completion of the detailed design.
After approval of the DPP in 2016, consultants financed by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) carried out different studies, reviewed feasibility and prepared a detailed design, documents show.
New technologies like Steel-Pipe-Sheet-Pile foundation, Direct Rail Fastener, Weathering Steel, Head Hardened Rail, and Derailment Guard will be used for the first time in Bangladesh.
Since the officials did not know that these technologies would be used, they could not make a proper estimation, another official said.
As per the loan contract signed in June 2018, Japan would provide the total fund for constructing the bridge and rail lines, while Bangladesh will bear the administrative expenditure, customs duties and VAT, the official said.

WHY A NEW BRIDGE?

The delay in schedules of trains that travel between the capital and northwestern and southern regions has been a common occurrence for years.
The delays are mainly due to restrictions on load and speed on the existing bridge, which has rail lines and roads.
With a top permitted speed of 20kmph, it takes about half an hour for a train to make it from the station on the east side to the one on the west, officials said.
Railways Minister Nurul Islam Sujan on several occasions said the problems plaguing train schedules on the routes could not be solved until the rail bridge and the dual-gauge double lines between Joydebpur and Ishwardi were constructed.
There is a single line from Joydebpur to Ishwardi. The railway operates 42 trains on this 174-km stretch that connects Dhaka with the western region via Bangabandhu bridge.
Officials said a maximum of 22 trains could travel smoothly on this route.
The Bangladesh Railway has taken a project to construct dual-gauge double lines from Joydebpur to Ishwardi.
DG Shamsuzzaman said the new bridge would put an end to the delays and improve communications.
The bridge will improve efficiency and operation of more trains would generate revenue. 

Bangabandhu’s Homecoming Day today

Bss, Dhaka

The historic Homecoming Day of the greatest Bangalee of all the times Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is being observed today in a befitting manner.

Bangabandhu, the undisputed leader of the nation and supreme commander of the country’s Liberation War, returned to independent Bangladesh via London and New Delhi on January 10 in 1972, after 290 days of confinement in a Pakistani jail.
This year, the observance of the Bangabandhu’s Bangabandhu’s
Homecoming Day will be more significant as the nation is going to celebrate the great leader’s year-long birth centenary programmes from March 17.
The government has already declared ‘Mujib Year’ from March 17, 2020 to March 17, 2021.
The countdown for the birth centenary celebration will begin today.

PM Hasina will inaugurate the countdown for the yearlong birth centenary celebration at the National Parade Ground in the capital’s Tejgaon.
To mark the day, the ruling Awami League, its associate bodies, other political parties and socio-cultural-professional organisations have chalked out elaborate programmes.
On the night of March 25, 1971, Pakistan army arrested Bangabandhu from his Dhanmondi residence and sent him to a West Pakistani jail the following day.
Bangabandhu was subjected to inhuman torture in the Pakistan jail where he had been counting moments for the execution of his death sentence that was pronounced in a farcical trial.
Earlier on March 26 in 1971, Bangabandhu proclaimed the independence of Bangladesh and urged people from all walks of life to participate wholeheartedly in the nation’s War of Liberation.
Immediately after the proclamation of independence, Bangabandhu was arrested by Pakistani military junta and then flown to West Pakistan to keep him in prison there.
Though the final victory in the nine-month-long bloody War of Liberation was achieved defeating Pakistani occupation forces on December 16 in 1971, the nation’s expectations were fulfilled and the people got the real taste of victory with the homecoming of Bangabandhu on January 10, 1972.
On reaching Dhaka (Tejgaon) airport in the afternoon on January 10, Bangabandhu was greeted by tens of thousands of jubilant people who had been eagerly waiting to see the beloved leader.

HELPFUL yet not much known

Have you ever heard of helpline 109? Or, are you familiar with mobile app “Joy”?

Similar to the national emergency helpline 999, these two services are dedicated to receiving complaints of harassment, sexual hostility, violence and potential threats against women. But they stay unknown to many.
The national emergency helpline 999 has created a noticeable impact since its launch in 2017, unlike “Joy” and the 24-hour helpline 109, both introduced by the women and children affairs ministry.
The Daily Star has conducted a random survey among over 40 female young professionals and students to know their experiences of using the app and the helpline, or whether they actually know about the two platforms. The responses were eye-opening.
None of them has ever heard of the mobile app, which was launched on July 29, 2018. On the other hand, only five said they heard about the toll-free 24/7 helpline 109 introduced in 2012, but none of them ever used it in reporting incidents of violence against them.
“I’ve heard about 999 but never heard of any other helpline or app for women and children. If the government has such platforms for helping women, there must be enough promotion of those. Otherwise, what’s the use of introducing such smart technologies?” asked Sadia Islam, project officer at a non-government organisation.

The app was funded by ICT Division under its “Access to Information” (a2i) project and developed by the women and children affairs ministry under its “Multi-Sectoral Programme on Violence against Women”.
If a victim presses the emergency button on the app in case of sexual harassment, child marriage or any other forms of violence or threat, her GPS location, audio recording of her surroundings and picture will go directly to the 109 helpline, said Sabina Sultana, senior programme officer of the project.
“Apart from that, a text message will automatically be dispatched to the nearest police station, the deputy police commissioner of the metropolitan area, the SP of the district level and three FNF numbers,” she added.
“One can find the app by typing Joy 109 on the Google Play Store. Women can also file a written complaint by attaching photos or videos,” she added.
Seeking anonymity, a domestic violence victim said the android application offered her instant help when she was in crisis.
“I was once beaten up by my husband badly. He threw me out of his home and I was restricted from keeping my baby with me,” she said, narrating the incident.
“Without even knowing the outcomes, I pressed the emergency button of the Joy app, which I installed in my phone previously, while I was still waiting right outside the door of his home.
“They contacted me immediately and took action. Within 35 minutes they sent local police to rescue my child. And with their help I managed to leave the place with my baby.”
According to the ministry, only 135 emergency complaints have been received through this app so far. Only 4,275 users have installed it on their android mobile devices since December 2019 though the number of mobile internet users crossed 9.37 crore by June 2019.
The ministry spent around Tk 45,00,000 on developing the app but sadly, it can only be installed on android 4.0.3 and updated version.
Needless to say, it is completely unable to provide any support for women having no smartphones. But they can call 109.   
According to the 2019 Mobile Gender Gap Report of GSMA, the global association of mobile operators, 58 percent of adult women in Bangladesh, own mobile phones while only 13 percent use the internet.
According to Sabina Sultana of “Multi-Sectoral Programme on Violence against Women”,
they have taken various initiatives to promote the app on social media and created TVC, billboards, stickers, festoons, brochures, sent letters to districts and upazilas.  However, she admits that a large number of women are not aware of the app.
“Wherever I go, I tell people about these and I know women are not aware of this. But I think the media can be a great help in this regard,” she said.
On the other hand, the 109 helpline was launched on June 19, 2012, after it was developed at the cost of Tk 1,25,00,000, funded jointly by Bangladesh and Danish governments. The helpline is also linked to 999 and the government service information helpline 333.
The 109 service is aimed at receiving complaints against domestic violence, child marriage, sexual harassment, physical abuse, dowry, detention, child custody, and many other forms of violence and abuse against women and children.
For example, if a woman faces any sort of violence or harassment in any place (be it her workplace, educational institutions, public places or her own home), she can call the helpline.
The person who attends the call at first tracks her location and contacts the local police station to send a force to rescue her. The operator would then continue following up with the woman in every five to 10 minutes, depending on the seriousness of her problems.
One very important aspect of the helpline is someone can also send text messages to the number mentioning her situation, as it happens most of the time that women become unable to make a phone call in front of the perpetrator or sometimes they need to be tactful in seeking help.
Raisul Islam, programme coordinator of 109 service, said last year they attended 18,14,991 calls from people mostly seeking information and advice on what to do in a violent situation, how to file a case in police station, what to do if a husband doesn’t provide alimony to his wife and much more.
“The call we get is mostly from Dhaka, Rangpur, Mymensingh and Rajshahi divisions,” he added.
According to Raisul, they have already placed the helpline number in the textbooks, created TVCs and newspaper advertisements, distributed leaflets, set up PVC boards in all the police stations, created campaigns in districts and upazilas and on the social media.
“The campaign is working well enough, as every day, we attend around 13,000 calls on a daily basis,” he said.
A total of 7 lakh 64 thousand 25 phone calls were made to the number from June, 2012 to February, 2018, according to the helpline centre, says a BSS report.
Last month, Tabarak Ullah, additional DIG of police, who is in charge of service 999, said they too are planning to launch a smartphone application that will include SOS button.
“If any person presses the button, we will receive their location and a 10-second video automatically in our stations,” said Tabarak.
Since the service was launched on December 12, 2017, it has responded to 1.49 crore calls till December 7 last year.
Of the calls, 21 percent (30 lakh calls) were for seeking service and among the 21 percent, 1.75 lakh calls were for police, fire and ambulance services, according to the national help desk database.
According to Ain o Salish Kendra data, a total of 5,733 incidents of rape were reported between 2013 and 2019, while the number was 1,413 last year alone, and 76 of them were killed after rape.
The number of rape victims in Bangladesh has doubled in 2019 than that of the previous year, found the rights body.
Violation of women rights and incidents of sexual assault also increased last year from 2018. As many as 258 women were sexually assaulted last year. The figure was 173 in 2018 and 255 in 2017.

UDC entrepreneur Moon earns Tk 45,000 monthly

Overcoming tough struggles against poverty, union digital centre (UDC) entrepreneur Arifuzzaman Moon now earns Taka 45,000 net profit monthly by providing online and offline services to people. Born in a poor family of village Keshobpur in Saddyapuskorini union of Sadar upazila in Rangpur, Moon, the elder among two sons of his parents, had to continue studies amid extreme poverty.
Talking to journalists, Moon said he passed the HSC examinations in 2006 and started to run after livelihoods for his family members. “I had to move here and there to earn at the age of only 16 then. My days were passing amid hardship,” he said.
Without losing self-confidence, Moon decided to acquire knowledge on computer and voluntarily joined a digital photo studio in Palichara Bazar near his village. Considering his innovative talent and devotion to work, the studio owner soon appointed Moon and started paying monthly salary. He continued studies along with assisting his family.
“Suddenly, I came to know that one male and another female entrepreneur would be appointed in every UDC when I applied for the post in 2010,” Moon said.
He completed training course on computer, ICT, internet and other digitised activities organised by the National Local Government Institute under the a2i programme.
“Since joining as an entrepreneur at Saddyapuskorini UDC on November 11 in 2010, I started dreaming to contribute to building a digital Bangladesh by realising Vision 2021 as envisioned by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina,” Moon said.
Meanwhile, Moon completed honours course in Chemistry from Rangpur Carmichael College in 2012. His entrepreneurship continued to expand with increasing demand of online and offline digitised services.
Moon has already launched two more digital service centres at Palichara Bazar and nearby Noyapukur area and employed seven youths trained by him on computer and digitised technologies.
Moon now pays monthly salaries of Taka 4,500 to 8,000 per month to each of his seven employees working at his three service centres.
The monthly average net income of Moon from Saddyapuskorini UDC and two other service centres stands at Taka 45,000 now excluding Taka 55,000 as establishment costs and salaries of employees.
“The average monthly banking transaction like bcash, rocket, sure cash, nagod, my cash, NRBC, pay well and electricity bill at my Saddyapuskorini UDC alone ranges between Taka 50 lakh and 60 lakh in addition to many other services,” Moon said.
Moon has already trained over 1,000 educated male and female youths on computer and digitised service technologies at his UDC. They now engaged with income generation activities.
Moon also conducts training on outsourcing and other digital activities as master trainer to earn additional income.Like many service recipients at Saddyapuskorini UDC, Rabiul Islam and Moksed Mian expressed satisfaction over easily availing Hajj registration services there.
Mizanur Rahman, Abdus Sobhan and Rahima Begum of Saddyapuskorini union told BSS that they easily got certified copies of their lost national identity cards from online services at the UDC.
Abdur Razzaque and Monwara Begum said they applied for land ‘Porcha’ from Saddyapuskorini UDC and received the same after only seven working days there.
Appreciating the performance of UDC entrepreneur Moon, Saddyapuskorini union Chairman Sohel Rana said Moon is contributing a lot to transforming every village into a town by providing digitised services to rural people along with changing his fortune.

Ukraine in national mourning after deadly airliner crash

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky announced a day of national mourning Thursday, promising to find the "truth" about the crash of a Ukrainian airliner in Iran which killed all 176 on board.

"January 9 has been decreed a day of national mourning," the Ukrainian leader said in a video address posted on his official Facebook account.
Zelensky on Wednesday cut short a trip to Oman and flew back to Ukraine after the Boeing 737 flying from Tehran to Kiev crashed shortly after takeoff. It was the first fatal crash of the country's largest carrier, Ukraine International Airlines. "Ukraine's priority is to establish the causes of the catastrophe. We are undoubtedly going to get to the truth," Zelensky said.
Some 45 Ukrainian security officials and experts flew to Tehran early Thursday to participate in the investigation, including "deciphering the black boxes" discovered by Iranian authorities at the crash site, Zelensky said.
They will also seek to identify the Ukrainian victims with a view to repatriating their remains.
Those who died on Flight PS752 were mostly Iranian and Canadian nationals, but they also included 11 Ukrainians.
These included nine crew members, whose photos were displayed at the departure hall in the Borispyl airport in a tribute.
The president's office issued a photo of Zelensky laying a bouquet of roses at the impromptu memorial. He called on the public to "refrain from all manipulation, speculation and conspiracy theories" about the crash, which occurred just minutes after takeoff on the same morning as Iran's missile strike against US forces in Iraq.

Recycled cardboard used for beds at Olympics and Paralympics

The bed frames for athletes at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games will be made from recyclable cardboard.The mattresses for the beds will be formed of polyethylene materials that will be reused for plastic products after the events.There will be 18,000 beds needed for the Olympics, and 8,000 for the Paralympics.Medals for the Tokyo 2020 Games are made entirely from recycled consumer devices. The beds will be 2.10 metres long and the manufacturers say they will be able to support a weight of about 200kg, which is more than any athlete weighed at the 2016 Olympics in Rio.As part of plans to be more environmentally friendly, the Olympic torch is made from aluminium waste and the podiums from recycled household and marine plastic waste, while electricity will come from renewable sources.
The Tokyo Olympics take place between 24 July and 9 August 2020 and the Paralympics from 25 August to 6 September.

6th Population and Housing Census next year

The sixth Population and Housing Census (PHC) will be conducted across the country from January 2 to 8 in 2021 to find out demographic and socio-economic facts to be used for the next course of the country’s development planning. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) will conduct the 7-day census expending Tk 1761.79 crore, BBS census wing director Md. Zahidul Hoque Sardar said this while reading out a keynote paper at a workshop on PHC at its auditorium in the city on Thursday.
“The census will be different from the previous ones as it will include expatriate Bangladeshis as well as foreigners staying in Bangladesh for the first time,” he added. Speaking at the inaugural session of the daylong workshop, Planning Minister MA Mannan urged all concerned to work properly for collecting authentic data.
Different local and international organisations, including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), use BBS data and so the data must be authentic, he said.
“So you all (data collectors ) must collect accurate data. Now we need more support of knowledge instead of finance. However, we are getting technical support from UNFPA in this regard,” he added.
Statistics and Informatics Division secretary Saurendra Nath Chakrabhartty presided over the function while BBS Director General Mohammad Tajul Islam, Cabinet Secretary Khandaker Anwarul Islam, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister Dr Ahmad Kaikaus and United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) representative to Bangladesh Asa Britta Torkelsson also spoke.
The BBS conducts the census in every 10 years.The last one was conducted in 2011.

Case filed against Nobel laureate Professor Dr. Yunus

A case has been lodged with a Dhaka court against Grameen Communications, an initiative by the Nobel laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus, on charge of violating labour law. Tariqul Islam, Labour Inspector, filed the case with the third Labour Court in Dhaka on January 5.
The court will issue order on January 12 regarding the case, sources said. The accused are—CEO Naznin Sultana of Grameen Communications, Director Abdul Hye Khan and Deputy General Manager (DGM) Gouri Shankar.

'Serial rapist' Majnu placed on 7-day remand

Majnu outside the court premises on Thursday, January 9, 2020. Photo: Collected

Star Online Report

Majnu who was arrested in connection with the rape of a Dhaka University student has been placed on a seven-day remand by a Dhaka court.
The order was passed by the court of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Md Sarafuzzaman Ansary after Detective Branch (DB) of Police produced the accused before the court today.
DB Inspector Abu Siddique, also investigation officer (IO) of the case, had sought a 10-day remand for lone suspect Majnu but the court granted seven days after hearing his prayer.
Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) arrested Majnu from Shewra area in Dhaka yesterday. Later, the elite force handed him to the detectives.
A second-year student of Dhaka University said she was raped and tortured in the capital’s Kurmitola area on the night of January 5. She was walking from Kurmitola bus stop to a friend’s house in a nearby area around 7:30pm on that night.

Soon after getting down from the university bus, someone grabbed her from behind, gagged her and took her to an isolated place nearby where she was tortured and raped.
After arresting the suspect, Rab said at a briefing that tried to kill the Dhaka University student after raping her. 
The law enforcers also said the arrestee, a 30-year-old drug addict, had earlier raped several female beggars and intellectually challenged women near the same place.
“Majnu is a mugger, a vagabond and a serial rapist … He raped his victims whenever he got a chance while mugging them,” Rab sources said.
Rab also claimed that Majnu admitted during primary interrogation that he alone raped the DU student and tortured her for about three hours.
The rape incident sparked a firestorm of protests and condemnations across the country. The victim’s fellow students at Dhaka University took to the streets, demanding the rapist’s immediate arrest. They were later joined in by students in other districts.

PM urges textile sector to diversify products, expand market

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurating the ‘National Textile Day 2019 and Multipurpose Textile Fair’ at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka on Thursday, January 9, 2019. Photo: PID

BSS, Dhaka

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today urged the country’s textile sector to diversify products and expand the market for boosting the export income.
“I think it’s very much necessary to diversify textile products by keeping consistency with the demand of the world market,” she said while inaugurating the ‘National Textile Day 2019 and Multipurpose Textile Fair’ at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre (BICC) in Dhaka.
The premier simultaneously asked the related entrepreneurs to add value to their existing products and “explore new markets to raise the country’s export income”.
Sheikh Hasina said fashions, designs and colours of apparel items in global market were constantly changing requiring diversification of the products in line with buyers’ demands.
She said Bangladesh should have an own initiative to search new markets and know the demand of fashion and design of apparel items in the markets.

Sheikh Hasina also asked the public and private sectors to work hand in hand to increase the demand of Bangladeshi products in the world market.
The premier said though Bangladesh holds the second position in textile export in the world, the reality is that the country’s share in world market was only 6.40 percent.
“The garment manufacturers and other concerned will have to work hard to increase the demand of our products in the world market … they’ve to formulate short, medium and long term plans for achieving this,” she said, assuring that her government will extend all sorts of cooperation to this.
Noting that Bangladesh sells garment items at very low prices, the prime minister urged the businessmen to take initiative so that international buyers increase the prices of RMG products at least to some extent.
Sheikh Hasina said: “As a competition prevails among the apparel manufacturers in the world market, I cannot say whether our exporters bargain or not with buyers. But I think they should do it and tell the buyers and concerned countries.”
She went on saying: “If the buyers raise the price of every garment item by at least one dollar, we could develop this sector further.”
In this connection, the premier said she always raises the issue of paying more prices of Bangladeshi garments when she visits the countries, importing Bangladeshi RMG products.
Pointing out that the textile sector is playing a great role in Bangladesh’s economy, the prime minister said her government has formulated the Textile Policy, 2017 and the
Textile Act, 2018 to fulfill the internal demand of cloths and enhance export.
“Our government has strengthened this sector by providing necessary legal support and incentive and presently, four sectors of textile are getting maximum four percent incentive,” she said.
To accelerate RMG export, the government has declared one percent incentive for rest of the textile sectors from this year, she said, adding additional Taka 2,825 crore has been sanctioned in the current budget.
The prime minister said the Textile Directorate has been upgraded to the Textile Department and it has been vested with the duty of Sponsoring Authority of textile sector by undertaking multidimensional planning.
Sheikh Hasina said “one stop service” has been introduced in the Textile Department to ensure faster and quicker services, while all kinds of registrations have been executed by online.
As a result, she said, the entrepreneurs of textiles and garments sectors are getting their required services easily and quickly.
The prime minister said it is necessary to create efficient manpower in textile sector and the Ministry of Textile and Jute is working on it.
“Simultaneously, non-government and private educational institutions are also contributing to skilled manpower in textile sector,” she said.
The prime minister said: “My government has brought down the poverty rate to 20.5 percent and our target is to cut down the rate further … We want to establish Bangladesh as a developed and prosperous country and I have firm belief that we could achieve the goal.”
“For this, we’ve to work hard for the development in all fields including industrialization, trade and commerce,” she added.
Sheikh Hasina, the elder daughter of Bangabandhu, said the countdown to the observance of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s birth centenary will begin tomorrow.
“We’ll celebrate Mujib Barsho in 2020-2021 and the golden jubilee of independence next year and we want to build a hunger and poverty-free Sonar Bangladesh by this time,” the premier said.
The Ministry of Textiles and Jute arranged the function with Textiles and Jute Minister Golam Dastagir Gazi in the chair.
The theme of the day is “globalization of the textiles sector—sustainable development”.
Though the National Textiles Day was observed for the first time in the country on December 4 last, its main programme was arranged today.
Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi, State Minister for Labour and Employment Monnujan Sufian, Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Textiles and Jute ministry Mirza Azam and Secretary of the ministry Lokman Hossain Mian also spoke on the occasion.
At the function, the prime minister handed over awards to nine organizations and business enterprises for their outstanding contributions to the development of the textile sector.
Later, she opened the “Multipurpose Textile Fair” by cutting a ribbon and visited its different stalls.

Fugitive ex-Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn blasts Japanese justice. It was escape or 'die in Japan'

London (CNN Business)Carlos Ghosn has used his freedom to blast Japan's legal system and denounce his arrest as part of a plot to topple him as head of the world's most powerful auto alliance.

"I did not escape justice. I fled injustice," the former Nissan chairman told reporters in Beirut on Wednesday, his first major public appearance since pulling off a stunning breakout from Japan, where he was awaiting trial on charges of financial wrongdoing.

Carlos Ghosn tells his side of the story: Live updates

He said his intention in speaking out was not to discuss how he fled the country, but to clear his name and explain why he "never should have been arrested in the first place."

Ghosn was first arrested in Tokyo more than a year ago. Among other charges, prosecutors alleged that he understated his income for years and funneled $5 million of Nissan's money to a car dealership he controlled.

The former auto industry titan has repeatedly denied the charges, and on Wednesday slammed Japan's criminal justice system, which he said "violates the most basic principles of humanity." He pointed to his time in solitary confinement, extended questioning without lawyers present, and the lack of a speedy trial. Japanese prosecutors were intent on extracting incriminating information, not on determining the truth, he claimed.

Tokyo prosecutors said in a statement following the press conference that Ghosn "has only himself to blame for being arrested and detained," and for the conditions of his bail. There was sufficient evidence, they said, to "determine that there was a high probability of obtaining conviction."

Japanese Justice Minister Masako Mori said in a statement that Ghosn "has been propagating both within Japan and internationally false information on Japan's legal system and its practice."

"That is absolutely intolerable," she said.

'I felt I was a hostage'

Ghosn said his lawyers told him he could be held in Japan for five years before he received a judgment, and he became convinced he would die in the country if he did not jump bail.

"I felt I was a hostage of a country that I have served for 17 years," said Ghosn, who became Nissan CEO in 2001.

Carlos Ghosn is now free to speak out. Japan's reputation could suffer

Ghosn claimed his arrest resulted from a plot to oust him from the automotive empire he built between Nissan (NSANF), Renault (RNLSY) and Mitsubishi Motors. Nissan executives were threatened by Renault's growing clout in the partnership, he said.

"Unfortunately there was no trust, and some of our Japanese friends thought that the only way to get rid of the influence of Renault on Nissan [was] to get rid of me," Ghosn said.

He said he favored greater integration between the companies, including the creation of a holding company that would consolidate shares of the automakers under a single name. Ghosn said he did not call for a merger and still wanted the companies to be run separately.

Tokyo prosecutors denied that they conspired with Nissan to prosecute Ghosn.

Nissan and Renault declined to comment. Earlier, Nissan said it would still pursue "appropriate legal action" against Ghosn.

Making the escape

Ghosn dodged questions about the logistics of his escape, which he pulled off despite strict bail conditions including a requirement that he stay in the country.

Japanese officials have been scrambling to contain the fallout from his escape and figure out how he managed to get out of the country.

On Sunday, Mori said Ghosn left the country "illegally by unjust methods," and she ordered Japan's immigration department to "further tighten" rules for leaving the country "so that the same situation won't be repeated."

Lebanon said last week that he entered the country legally, according to the country's national news agency.

Nissan's former chairman Carlos Ghosn slammed the Japanese justice system, claiming it "violates the most basic principles of humanity."

Ghosn is a citizen of France, Brazil and Lebanon. Three of his passports had been confiscated and held by his Japanese defense team to prevent him from fleeing the country. But Junichiro Hironaka, his Japanese lawyer, revealed Saturday that Ghosn had a second French passport, with the court's permission. Hironaka said that passport was tucked away in a keyed transparent box that apparently only his lawyers could unlock.

Turkish private jet company says rogue employee helped Carlos Ghosn flee Japan

Japanese prosecutors on Tuesday issued an arrest warrant for his wife, Carole Ghosn, accusing her of giving false testimony during a court hearing last April. She attended Wednesday's press conference in Beirut.

"You discover this nine months later, one day before this press conference? What a coincidence," Carlos Ghosn said at the press conference, his voice rising. "This is exactly the way it works."

Ghosn has denied reports that his family members were involved in helping him flee.

Interpol has issued a "red notice" for Ghosn confirming he's wanted by Japanese police. Ghosn said Wednesday that his lawyers are looking at next steps, and indicated they may fight back by claiming his case involves "political persecution."

He claims to be open to a trial outside Japan.

"The first forum where I can express myself in front of a justice which is not biased, I'll go for it," he said.

-— CNN's Chris Isidore, Chris Liakos, Yoko Wakatsuki and Nada AlTaher contributed to this report.