Bangladesh Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed has confirmed that a full investigation is underway into the killing of Sharif Osman bin Hadi, spokesperson of Inquilab Moncho. He said a new investigation process began after the current administration took office, and details will be disclosed once the inquiry is completed. The minister made the remarks on Wednesday while speaking to journalists at the Dhaka Metropolitan Police headquarters on Minto Road during a meeting with senior police officials.

During the same event, the minister also discussed efforts to address Dhaka’s traffic congestion, noting that the challenges posed by battery-powered rickshaws would be resolved gradually. Inspector General of Police Md Ali Hossain Fakir and Acting DMP Commissioner Md Sarwar, among others, attended the meeting.

The ongoing investigation and the minister’s comments indicate the government’s intent to pursue the case thoroughly while simultaneously focusing on urban management issues in the capital.

Leaked Pentagon assessments reported by US media suggest that if the current strikes on Iran continue beyond 10 days, the United States could face shortages of key missiles. The US and Israel began coordinated attacks on Iran while diplomatic talks over Tehran’s nuclear program and regional activities were still underway. Iran retaliated with missile and drone strikes across the region, targeting Israel and US military assets in several Middle Eastern countries. The Pentagon reportedly cautioned President Donald Trump that a prolonged campaign would carry serious risks, including the high cost of replenishing munitions. Trump, however, insisted that US stockpiles were sufficient to sustain extended operations.

Analysts told Al Jazeera that interceptor missiles such as THAAD, Patriot, and SM‑3 could run low within weeks if the conflict persists. The US military’s Central Command confirmed the use of more than 20 weapons systems, including advanced bombers, drones, and missile defense platforms. Experts warned that manufacturing replacements takes months, and high-end interceptors are designed for limited engagements, not prolonged wars. Secretary of State Marco Rubio noted that Iran can produce far more offensive missiles monthly than the US can build interceptors.

Reports also indicate that the US has already depleted some ship-borne interceptors and suffered friendly-fire losses. Sustaining the campaign is expected to be extremely costly, with early operations estimated to have cost over a billion dollars.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has declared that it now holds complete control over the Strait of Hormuz. The statement was made by IRGC naval officer Mohammad Akbarzadeh, who said the strategic waterway is under the full authority of the Islamic Republic’s naval forces. The announcement was reported by Iran’s Fars News Agency.

The IRGC had previously warned that it could close the strait if necessary. The Strait of Hormuz is a critical maritime route for global oil shipments, and control over it has long been a point of contention in regional security. The report also recalled that U.S. President Donald Trump had earlier stated his readiness to deploy naval forces to protect oil tankers in the area.

The claim of full control adds to the ongoing military and political friction in the region, where recent incidents have included U.S. strikes on Iranian targets and heightened tensions involving Israel and Saudi Arabia.

The verdict in the Rampura war crimes case, scheduled for announcement today, has been postponed after the prosecution requested a four-week delay to submit new evidence against the accused. Chief Prosecutor Aminul Islam stated that after assuming his role, he discovered additional evidence that he deemed necessary to present in the interest of justice. The application was submitted to the International Crimes Tribunal-1, chaired by Justice Golam Mortuza Majumder, with Justices Shafiul Alam Mahmud and retired District Judge Mohitul Haque Enam Chowdhury as members.

The tribunal had earlier fixed today’s date for the verdict on February 15. The case involves charges of crimes against humanity during the July uprising, including the shooting of Amir Hossain and the killing of two others. Fourteen witnesses testified for the prosecution, while accused Chanchal Chandra testified in his defense. The prosecution completed its arguments on January 29, asserting that evidence and witness statements proved the involvement of five accused individuals, four of whom remain absconding.

The tribunal had formally framed charges against the five accused on September 18 last year, following the submission of the formal charge on August 7.

Bangladesh Home Minister Asaduzzaman Ahmed announced that the government will soon publish a list of extortionists and terrorists and launch an operation against them. He stated that maintaining law and order remains the government’s biggest challenge. The minister made these remarks on Wednesday afternoon while speaking to journalists.

He emphasized that, unlike the previous government, the current administration will not use the police force for political purposes. The statement signals a renewed focus on law enforcement and accountability in tackling criminal networks.

Further details of the planned operation and the list of individuals involved have not yet been disclosed, but the announcement suggests that action will begin shortly.

At least six people were killed on Tuesday when a tunnel collapsed at the Rubaya coltan mine in the rebel-controlled eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to eyewitnesses cited by AFP from Goma. The incident occurred about 70 kilometers west of Goma in North Kivu province, killing three women and three men and injuring several others.

Witnesses reported that authorities had ordered evacuations following the collapse, and bodies were seen being carried away on stretchers. Many relatives rushed to the site in search of missing workers. The Rubaya mine, one of the largest coltan sources in the country, employs thousands of miners who work in hazardous conditions with minimal equipment.

The mine, which supplies an estimated 15 to 30 percent of global coltan production, has been under the control of M23 rebels since April 2024. This was the second deadly collapse in Rubaya in recent weeks, following a landslide late last month that the government feared had killed at least 200 people.

The United States military announced that it has carried out strikes on approximately 2,000 targets inside Iran. According to the US Central Command, the operation was nearly twice the scale of the 2003 Iraq invasion. The commander reported that 17 Iranian ships were destroyed, and senior Admiral Brad Cooper stated that no Iranian vessels remained in the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz, or the Gulf of Oman.

Cooper described the campaign as the largest US troop deployment in the Middle East in a generation, involving more than 50,000 troops, 200 fighter jets, two aircraft carriers, and bombers. He said the attacks focused on eliminating potential threats to US forces and targeted Iran’s navy, including its most capable submarines.

The report also noted that there was no evidence Iran posed an imminent threat to the United States, despite the scale of the operation.

A drone attack targeted the CIA station inside the US Embassy compound in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Monday, March 2, according to a source cited by Reuters on Tuesday, March 3. The source confirmed that Iranian drones were used in the strike, though it remains unclear whether the CIA station was the intended target. The US Central Intelligence Agency declined to comment on the incident.

Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Defense reported that two drones hit the embassy premises, causing a limited fire and some material damage. Following the attack, the US mission in Saudi Arabia issued an emergency security alert, advising citizens to avoid the embassy area until further notice. It also warned of possible missile and drone threats in the Dhahran region.

The incident occurred amid ongoing tensions in the Middle East and has raised renewed concerns about the security of US diplomatic and intelligence facilities in the region.

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) announced that they killed Daud Ali Zadeh, commander of the Lebanon branch of Iran’s Quds Force, in an airstrike in central Tehran. IDF spokesperson Brigadier General Efi Defrin stated that the attack specifically targeted the senior Quds Force officer. The Quds Force is a branch of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

According to the report, Israel said it has launched renewed attacks inside Iran. Earlier, strikes were reported against the Iranian presidential complex and residences of top leaders. Since February 28, various sources have claimed that the United States and Israel have been conducting attacks in Iran, with reports alleging the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and his family.

In response, Tehran reportedly announced plans for retaliatory strikes against Israeli and U.S. bases across the Middle East, signaling a potential escalation of regional conflict.

Israeli forces carried out an airstrike on a hotel in Beirut, Lebanon, without prior warning, according to Lebanese authorities. The number of casualties from the hotel attack remains unconfirmed. The Israeli military has not clarified the intended target but reportedly conducted overnight operations across the country.

Al Jazeera reported additional strikes on a residential building in Aramoun and a village named Saadiyat in southern Lebanon. The Lebanese Ministry of Health confirmed six deaths and eight injuries from those incidents. Another attack occurred in the eastern city of Baalbek near the Syrian border, where a residential building was hit, leaving at least four people dead and 11 injured.

The series of attacks mark a significant escalation of Israeli military activity in Lebanon, with multiple civilian areas affected and uncertainty surrounding the motives and targets of the operations.

Democratic Congress member Pramila Jayapal stated that there is no evidence Iran poses an imminent threat to the United States. She made the remarks after a House briefing on the Iran war, saying that no justification had been provided for an attack on Iran. Jayapal criticized the lack of a clear strategy regarding the conflict and noted that lawmakers were not informed about how long the war might last. She emphasized that congressional approval is required before initiating any war and warned of potential casualties.

Jayapal further argued that the justification for attacking Iran is weak and called for a congressional vote on the matter, insisting that Congress must decide on any war-related action. Meanwhile, the US-based Human Rights Activist News Agency (HRANA) reported that at least 1,097 civilians have been killed in Iran since February 28 amid ongoing violence. The report also claimed that 104 attacks occurred in the past 24 hours, targeting military bases, medical centers, and residential areas.

The developments highlight growing concern in Washington over the direction of US policy toward Iran and the humanitarian toll of escalating violence inside Iran.

The United States has launched a large-scale military operation against Iran involving more than 50,000 troops, 200 warplanes, two aircraft carriers, and several bombers, according to Admiral Brad Cooper, head of the US Central Command (CENTCOM). The announcement was made on Tuesday, with Cooper describing the campaign as the largest American military mobilization in the Middle East in decades.

Admiral Cooper stated that additional military support is being sent and that US forces are focusing on destroying targets that could pose threats to them. He said Iranian naval assets, including their most capable submarines, have been targeted. Cooper further claimed that 17 Iranian ships have already been destroyed and that the United States is conducting continuous attacks on Iran across sea, air, and cyberspace.

The report, citing The New York Times, underscores the scale of the operation and the intensity of US military engagement in the region.

A police constable named Sahmul Haque Shanto, aged 23, was seriously injured after being stabbed by a mugger in Tongi, Gazipur, on Wednesday night. Shanto, who serves with the Lalbagh Police Station under Dhaka Metropolitan Police, was attacked around 11 p.m. near the Hossain Market area on the Dhaka–Mymensingh Highway. The assailant, identified as Al Amin alias Roni, 26, was captured by an angry crowd and handed over to police after being beaten.

According to police, Shanto and his colleague Kawsar Islam had come to Tongi for a visit earlier in the evening. When they reached the Nippon Garments area, a group of muggers suddenly attacked them. During the confrontation, Al Amin stabbed Shanto in the neck with a sharp knife, leaving him critically injured. Locals rescued the wounded officer and took him to Dhaka Medical College Hospital, while the injured suspect was sent to Tongi Government Hospital.

Tongi West Police Station’s officer-in-charge said legal proceedings are underway regarding the incident.

The Cabinet Division of Bangladesh has issued a new circular requiring all government, semi-government, autonomous, and semi-autonomous officials and employees to remain in their offices from 9:00 to 9:40 AM daily. The directive, signed by Cabinet Secretary Nasimul Gani and dated March 2, 2026, aims to enhance citizen service delivery, administrative efficiency, and inter-departmental coordination. Previous circulars on similar attendance requirements were issued in 2019 and 2021.

According to the circular, many officials fail to arrive on time due to participation in official or personal programs such as seminars, workshops, or visits to banks and hospitals, which disrupts communication and affects public service and the government’s image. The new rule instructs authorities to ensure that official programs do not interfere with the mandatory attendance period.

The directive exempts certain categories, including teachers not in administrative roles, roster-duty staff in hospitals or security institutions, emergency service providers, and law enforcement personnel on field duty. Officials are prohibited from leaving the workplace without written permission from the authority.

Democratic Senator Chris Murphy has accused U.S. President Donald Trump of disregarding the American people and failing to follow proper procedures before initiating a conflict with Iran. Speaking after a congressional briefing, Murphy said the Trump administration had engaged in a war whose outcome remains uncertain.

Murphy stated that officials described the situation as an open engagement that has not yet fully begun but could lead to more American casualties. He added that the administration refused to rule out deploying ground troops. According to Murphy, this approach demonstrates contempt for the American public, as the administration believes it can wage one of the largest Middle East wars since Iraq and Afghanistan without a single congressional vote or debate.

Murphy’s remarks highlight growing concerns among lawmakers about executive overreach and the lack of congressional authorization for military actions in the region.