Lebanon's government has resigned amid mounting anger over the explosion on Tuesday that devastated parts of Beirut and left more than 200 people dead. The announcement was made in a national TV address by Prime Minister Hassan Diab on Monday evening. Many people have accused the country's leaders of culpability through their alleged negligence and corruption. Protesters have taken to the streets for two straight days over the blast. The president has said the massive blast was the result of the detonation of 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate stored unsafely at the port for years. Source: BBC AH

The transfer of a judge critical of the violence in Delhi has raised concerns in India, as politicians come under fire for perceived inaction. Justice S Muralidhar, who was hearing a petition into the religious riots, had sharply condemned both the government and police on Wednesday. Orders for his immediate transfer came late at night the same day. More than 30 people have been killed so far in the deadliest violence the Indian capital has seen in decades. The clashes first broke out on Sunday between protesters for and against a controversial citizenship law in north-east Delhi. But they have since taken on communal overtones, with reports of many Muslims being attacked. Even though the violence largely abated on Wednesday, there were reports of sporadic clashes in affected areas overnight and the city remains tense. On Thursday, focus had shifted to Justice Muralidhar's transfer from the Delhi high court. His move was first announced nearly two weeks before the violence broke out, but BBC correspondents say that his biting comments in court may have hastened his transfer. However, the government has insisted that the move was not politically motivated. The case was taken up again on Thursday and a new bench gave the government a month to respond to the petitions against them. While hearing petitions about the violence, the judge said that the court could not let "another 1984" happen on its "watch". In 1984, more than 3,000 Sikhs were killed in riots against the community in Delhi. Videos showing leaders from India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) inciting Hindu crowds against largely Muslim protesters were played during the cases he was hearing. Justice Muralidhar then questioned how police were registering complaints and directed the government to ensure that any displaced victims were given temporary shelter as well as medical treatment. His comments made headlines on Wednesday, with many praising his "courageous stand". So the news that he had been removed saw many Indians express concern and outrage. But the government has maintained that the transfer was done with the judge's consent and a "well-settled process" was followed. Justice Muralidhar has not commented on the development. The law minister, Ravi Shankar Prasad, took to Twitter, where most of the outrage was being expressed, to say it was only a "routine transfer". But, a former Delhi High Court judge questioned the timing of the move, asking, "what was the hurry?" In an interview with news channel NDTV, Kailash Gambhir called the timing of the order "disturbing". "The language of the transfer order is not routine," he added. Opposition parties also remained unconvinced - and continued to blame the government for the violence. Opposition leader Sonia Gandhi called for the resignation of Home Minister Amit Shah, saying he was "responsible". Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has also been criticized for not coming out when the violence first broke out. Source: BBC AH

Members of both the treasury and opposition benches in parliament on Thursday shared their concerns over the exorbitant prices of onion in the domestic market while an opposition MP demanded that its price manipulators be put in crossfire as drug peddlers were done to set an example. Jatiya Party MP Mujibul Haque Chunnu urged Home Minister Asaduzzamn Khan and Commerce Minister Tipu Munishi to investigate whether there is any conspiracy against the government to undermine the achievements of the government. He said drug (Phensidyl) peddlers are seen caught and killed in gunfights with cops. “Let a few of them who pushed up onion price (artificially) die. Then there’ll be an example.” Chunnu sought an urgent drive to find out the reasons as he believes there are huge onions in the domestic market. He said Bangladesh maintains very good relations with India and mentioned that farmers there crying as onion is selling Tk (rupees) 8 only per kg. Chunnu sought Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s personal initiative to import onion from India. He said the day before yesterday the price of onion was Tk 80 per kg, yesterday it became Tk 150 while today the price hit Tk 200. Senior Awami League MP Mohammad Nasim raised the issue first taking floor on a point of order joined by Tofail Ahmed, Chunnu and AL MP ASM Feroz. Nasim criticised Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi for his remark that the onion price is unlikely to come down below Tk 100 per kg anytime soon. “The onion price is almost Tk 200 per kg. The businessmen take the opportunity when the Commerce Minister said the onion prices will not go below Tk 100 per kg.” he said. The senior AL parliamentarian demanded immediate and effective steps to bring the onion price under control. Another veteran AL lawmaker, Tofail Ahmed, demanded the withdrawal of import duty on onion to bring down its price in the local market. Noting that the Finance Minister has the responsibility over the business, he said, “If you (Finance Minister) today announce that there is zero import duty on onion, it’ll definitely have an impact on the market.” Tofail said they never thought in the past that the onion price would go up to Tk 200 per kg. Source: UNB AH

Hong Kong's chief executive Carrie Lam has used a colonial-era emergency law to ban face masks to try to quell months of anti-government unrest. She said the ban would come into force on Saturday, after an escalation of violence during protests on 1 October. Ms Lam said the decision was taken because the situation could not be allowed "to get worse and worse". Protesters, who have promised to defy the new law, immediately took to the streets in response. Mask-wearing activists had also earlier called on others to wear masks in defiance of the government, which critics fear is becoming increasingly authoritarian. Ms Lam said she was forced to implement the colonial-era law because the violence at the now-weekly protests was "destroying the city". Observers say the regulation will be hard to enforce and hugely controversial: critics have warned the mask ban could be the first in a series of "draconian" measures. "This is a watershed. This is a Rubicon," pro-democracy lawmaker Claudia Mo told news agency AFP. "And I'm worried this could be just a starter. More draconian bans in the name of law could be lurking around the corner." The announcement has also prompted reaction from further afield, with Marta Hurtado, the United Nations human rights spokeswoman, noting at a press conference in Geneva that "any restriction must have a basis in law and be proportionate and as least intrusive as possible". UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, meanwhile, has said "political dialogue is the only way to resolve the situation". Where does the ban apply? Secretary for Security John Lee said the ban would apply for approved and unapproved public assemblies - rallies and marches - as well as in unlawful assemblies and riots. The ban covers all kinds of facial covering, including face paint. Protesters have increasingly worn masks for a number of reasons, including to conceal their identities - from employers, parents and, in some cases, police - and to protect themselves from tear gas. There are exemptions for people wearing masks for health reasons, or if required by their profession. Ms Lam said "violence had been escalating to alarming levels" leading to a situation of "chaos and panic" in the city. What is the Emergency Regulations Ordinance? The legislation invoked by Ms Lam, called the Emergency Regulations Ordinance, dates to 1922 and has not been used in more than 50 years. It enables the chief executive to bypass the normal legislative process, where bills have to go through the city's parliament, the Legislative Council. The ERO was last used in 1967 to help stop riots in the territory's trading hub. Ms Lam stressed the new regulation did not mean that Hong Kong was in a state of emergency. But she said the city was "in a state of serious public danger" What else did Carrie Lam say? The city's chief executive said what had been single rallies or marches, when the protests began, had spread to many areas across Hong Kong. She said petrol bombs were being used inside closed spaces like railway stations, and that violent protesters had targeted public buildings and private properties. She also accused protesters of not just criticising but "lynching" people with different views. It is unclear exactly what she was referring to. According to the government, the percentage of demonstrators who are students has risen from 25% to 38%. Ms Lam said the mask ban would help prevent students breaking the law. She also pointed out that similar bans on facial coverings were in place in other places around the world. What is the background? Hong Kong's protests started in June, sparked by proposals to extradite suspected criminals to mainland China. The extradition bill has since been cancelled but protests have widened into pro-democracy and anti-police demonstrations. Over the months, clashes between police and activists have become increasingly violent. On Tuesday, police shot a protester in the chest with a live bullet for the first time. Authorities say the 18-year-old - who was attacking police and was arrested after being shot - is in a stable condition in hospital. Hong Kong is a former British colony handed back to China in 1997. It has a "one country, two systems" agreement that guarantees it some autonomy, and its people certain freedoms, including freedom of assembly and freedom of speech. But those freedoms - the Basic Law - expire in 2047 and it is not clear what Hong Kong's status will then be. Source: BBC AH

The High Court has expressed anger over National Board of Revenue (NBR), Bangladesh Bank and Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) for not starting the investigation over allegation of revenue evasion against internet based firms like search engine google, you tube and facebook. The High Court bench comprising Justice Mainul Islam Chowdhury and Justice Md. Ashraful Kamal expressed the anger on Thursday. The writ petitioner Lawyer Mohammad Humayun Kabir Pallab told the newsmen, according to the order of the High Court the date was fixed today (Thursday) to submit the report after investigating the revenue evasion allegations against all internet based firms including google, you tube and facebook. But report was not submitted. For this reason the court expressed anger. The court also said that action will be taken if report is not submitted on March 7 next. On April 18, 2018 the High Court ordered to carry out investigation against all types of internet based firms over revenue evasion. Besides, the court also ordered to collect the payable revenue from the transacted amount paid for advertisement, domain selling and different license selling fees by the internet based firms. As well as the High Court issued rule asking why order will not be given to collect the required revenue from the companies based on internet. AH         

Giving a warning to the government BNP standing committee member Barrister Moudud Ahmed said, like the movement of students demanding safety on roads, people’s suppressed anger will be expressed within a very short period. It is a part of mass upsurge. Similarly the anger is remaining among people considering the unlimited corruption and misrule of the government. This anger will explode. We have to wait a little more. He said these while delivering speech as the chief guest in a discussion organized by 20-party alliance member Bangladesh Labor Party on the occasion of their representative meeting. Moudud said, the students said-we do not want to see the digital Bangladesh of Awami League, we want to see a safe Bangladesh. The meaning of safe Bangladesh is that we want to see a beautiful Bangladesh. He said, it is a part of mass upsurge. There is anger among people over unlimited corruption and misrule by the government. This anger will explode. We have to wait a little more. In this mass upsurge not only BNP, all the democratic and political parties who want to restore democracy will unitedly step into the field as well as general people of the country will step into. Praising the agitating students the former law minister said, one of the students stopped my car today. He is about 17-18 years old. He stopped the car and asked driver to show documents. My driver showed documents. He said that the documents were okay, you may go. But do not keep papers there, keep those in bluebook. I was astonished to see this as well as inspired and proud. Presided over by Labor Party chairman Mostafizur Rahman Iran the program was attended by leaders of both BNP and Labor Party. AH   

Psychologists say anger is very normal and healthy expression. But that is true when you can control your anger. Excessive anger causes harm to the surrounding people of yours, mainly causes harm to you. Let’s take some tips to control your anger: 1. When anger emerges bodies of many shake terribly. If you know the symptoms of your anger then control accordingly. 2. Count from 1 to 10 when you are getting angry and then count from 10 to 1. Repeat the process until you are getting normal. 3. Take breath with your nose and release it through your mouth. Repeat the process. It will make you calm. 4. Strange to hear but its true that exercise can reduce your anger. Regular physical exercise can control your stress level. Jogging, running, swimming or yoga- these can reduce your anger. 5. Avoid alcohol for reducing anger. Besides, there is no alternative of regular sleep in this regard. 6. Creative habits like writing, singing, dancing or painting are very helpful for controlling anger. So engage in creative habits until you can to minimize anger. 7. Share your feelings with close friends. You friend could help you to think in different way. 8. Forgetting is the main tool to minimize anger. Forget the past quarrel or the matter of anger as early as possible. Psychologists say that man can live long if he forgets the bitter experiences. Anger should never be nourished. 9. If anger mounts then joke with something or make the situation normal with some expressions. You will see that anger may decrease. 10. When your anger is reduced then speak politely with cool headed attitude. Don’t speak loudly. Make other understand why you are angry. 11. Seek help of psychologist if you are unable to control your anger. AH      

Osmani Uddyan is going to be given a new shape to create ultra modern facilities on 29 acres of land under Jal Sabuj project of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC). As part of this DSCC Mayor Sayeed Khokon inaugurated the construction work of Gossa Nibaroni Park (Anger Removing Park) in Osmani Uddyan on Saturday. The Mayor said that construction work of the park will be concluded within 9 to 10 months. DSCC Chief Executive Officer Khan Mohammad Bilal, architect Arif Azam, counselor Farid Uddin Ratan and others were present on the occasion. There will be water reservoir, music system, separate zone for sitting, special facilities for children and facilities to hear the old days’ songs. Besides there will be giant TV screen. The entire park will be open from four sides. The project will cost 58 crore taka. In the program Mayor Sayeed Khokon said, sometimes anger occurs in the mind of city people. When they would come to this park they will feel good, they will be cheerful. Here is water reservoir and the facilities of tea, coffee, sandwich and old days’ song will be available. So normally people’s anger will be removed. With this thinking the anger removing park project has been taken. Later the Mayor inaugurated 4 modern police boxes at the Bangabazar intersection. Total 71 police boxes are going to be set up in DSCC area with a cost of 4 crore 20 lakh taka. In the current year DSCC has taken initiatives to construct 71 toilets and development work of 19 parking places and 12 play grounds. AH