Fiber Cable breaks down near Indonesia's sea area, for that the country's second Submarine Cable SEA-ME-WE-5 network has been out of service. As a result, the customers including the internet service providers of the country are getting slow internet service for the last four days. Meanwhile, Bangladesh Submarine Cable PLC said that the repairing time of the submarine cable can be lengthy till the last week of May. BSPLC General Manager Saidur Rahman informed that news on Tuesday (April 23). He said that the SEA-ME-WE-5 cable broke down in the sea coast of Indonesia at midnight last Friday. They take a little more time for administrative work. All in all, they said, the work can be done amid of the third or fourth week of next month.

Aitana, 25, a pink-haired woman from Barcelona, receives weekly private messages from celebrities asking her out. But this model is not real. Aitana, the first model created by artificial intelligence (AI) in Spain, was born in the middle of a difficult period. Rubén Cruz, her designer and founder of the agency The Clueless, was going through a rough patch because he didn't have many clients. "We started analysing how we were working and realised that many projects were being put on hold or cancelled due to problems beyond our control. Often it was the fault of the influencer or model and not due to design issues," Cruz told Euronews. So, they decided to create their own influencer to use as a model for the brands that approached them. They created Aitana, an exuberant 25-year-old pink-haired woman from Barcelona whose physical appearance is close to perfection.  The virtual model can earn up to €10,000 a month, according to her creators, but the average is usually around €3,000. "We did it so that we could make a better living and not be dependent on other people who have egos, who have manias, or who just want to make a lot of money by posing," said Cruz. Aitana's income is quite varied. She earns just over €1,000 per advert, and has recently become the face of Big, a sports supplement company, and as if that weren't enough, she uploads photos of herself in lingerie to Fanvue, a platform similar to OnlyFans. In just a few months, she has managed to gain more than 121,000 followers on Instagram and her photos get thousands of views and reactions. She even receives private messages from celebrities who are unaware that she is not an actual person. "One day, a well-known Latin American actor texted to ask her out. This actor has about 5 million followers and some of our team watched his TV series when they were kids," said Cruz. "He had no idea Aitana didn't exist," he added. Source: Eeuro News

The moon of the month of Shaban was seen in the sky of Bangladesh today (Jan 11), the holy Shab-e-Barat will be celebrated all over the country on the night of February 25. This information has reported from a meeting of the National Moon Sighting Committee at the meeting room of Islamic Foundation on Sunday (February 11). Earlier, a meeting presided by Religious Affairs Minister, Faridul Haque Khan, was held at 6:30 pm (after Maghrib) in the meeting room of the Islamic Foundation.  As the moon of the month of Shaban is sighted today, the counting of the month of Shaban will begin from Monday (February 12). Accordingly, holy Shab-e-Barat will be celebrated on the night of February 25.  

July was the hottest month ever recorded on Earth, the EU's climate observatory confirmed on Tuesday. Marked by heat waves and wildfires around the world, the global average temperature in July was a third of a degree Celsius (six-tenths of a degree Fahrenheit) higher than the record set in July 2019, according to the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service.  How was July 2023 the warmest month on record? Copernicus reported that the monthly average temperature for July was 16.95 C (62.5 F), well above the previous record of July 2019, which was 16.63 C. From July 3 to 6, the daily global mean surface air temperature record was broken, with July 6 being the hottest as the global average temperature reached 17.08 C. The two days before and after that were within 0.01°C of the record temperature, Copernicus said.  The 29 days from July 3 to 31 were the hottest since the EU started recording in 1940. This year also saw another first: temperatures in July temporarily exceeded the 1.5 C threshold above the preindustrial level, which is the limit set in the Paris Agreement. This was recorded during the first and third weeks of July.   Where was July the hottest? The burning of fossil fuels has contributed to longer and more frequent heat waves as well as more intense storms and floods. The EU's climate agency pointed out how heat waves were "experienced in multiple regions of the Northern Hemisphere, including South Europe." Several parts of South America and much of Antarctica also experienced well-above average temperatures. The temperature of oceans of the world also set new records, causing concern regarding the effects it would have on marine life and coastal communities. What does this mean? Samantha Burgess, deputy director of Copernicus, said that 2023 "is currently the third warmest year to date." Burgess warned that the data indicates that the world will face "dire consequences." "Even if this is only temporary, it shows the urgency for ambitious efforts to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions, which are the main driver behind these records," she added.  UN chief Antonio Guterres issued an SOS call recently, warning that the "terrifying" rise of temperature "is just the beginning." Urging immediate and strong action to reduce emissions, Guterres said: "The era of global warming has ended; the era of global boiling has arrived.

July is deadliest month as 109 dengue patients die, 20465 cases in Bangladesh.  In the past 21 days, July has already become the worst month as the authorities recorded 109 deaths from dengue and 20,465 positive cases. (Reports BSS) According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), 156 deaths were reported from dengue disease between January 1 and July 21, this year while 28, 443 dengue patients died during the same period.  Among the total deaths since January 1, the month of July alone witnessed 109 deaths linked to dengue simultaneously 20,465 positive cases were recorded, the DGHS added.  Month-wise data of dengue disease-2023 showed 566 dengue patients were detected in January with six fatalities, 111 cases with zero deaths in February, 143 cases with two deaths in March, 50 cases with two deaths in April, 1036 cases with two deaths in May and 5,956 cases with 34 deaths.   In comparison, last year was less severe in terms of dengue positive cases and death figure as 268 patients died and 62,382 cases were recorded, the DGHS data said adding in 2019, the country saw the highest number of dengue cases -- 101,354, with 179 deaths.  Health experts feared August and September will be more severe as these two months are more suitable for breeding Aedes mosquito.  "The number of dengue patients had been increasing alarmingly since January this year giving a signal of dengue pandemic during rainy season as 566 dengue cases were reported in the first month of the year, which are almost five times higher than that of same period of past three years," a DGHS official added. 

A 10-year-old girl from South Kashmir’s Shopian has handwritten 30 chapters of the Quran in just 30 days. Muntaha Maqsood (10) daughter of Maqsood Ahmad Ganie from Chitragam Shopian who is a class 5 student at Kindergarten Public School wrote the Quran on close to 700 pages. Quoting news agency KNO Muntaha said that she started reciting the Quran when she was just 4 years old. “I have already completed my Nazira and writing the Quran with my hand was my dream. In February, I decided to write it and completed writing the Quran on 692 pages”, she said. “My family supported me wholeheartedly in the procedure. I would like to thank my brother Hafiz Sahil Ganie who is my inspiration and he helped me and strengthened my moral compass,” she added. She in her message to youth said that they must prefer the life after death more and must stay away from social evils so as to make the society better. She said that giving education to girls is must as educating a woman is considered to be like educating the whole family but education shouldn’t take them away from Islam. Source: Good Mornig Kashmir

State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid today expected to come out of load shedding by the end of the next month. "We are in crisis due to the global situation. This is a temporary problem. If the global situation becomes normal, we will go to the better position," he said while addressing a seminar as the chief guest at Bidyut Bhaban in the capital. Forum for Energy Reporters of Bangladesh (FERB) organized the seminar on "Energy Security in Bangladesh: Volatile International Market", remembering Bangabandhu's contribution to the power and energy sector, with its chairman Shamim Jahangir in the chair. Noting that the government will adjust the fuel price if it decreases in the international markets, Nasrul said, "This price may need to be adjusted several times in the next few months. Everyone should stand together during this time. Lengthy discussions will bring no outcome during this challenging period". There is lacking in government efforts to tackle the crisis, he said, adding, "We were in a good situation even a few months ago. Then the fuel was cheaper, but the price has now soared". Mentioning that the oil-fired power plants have no capacity charge, the state minister said the plants, which now remain closed, will be used in emergency situation. Executive Director of FERB Rishan Nasrullah moderated the seminar while FERB former chairman and Editor of the Energy and Power Magazine Mollah Amzad presented the keynote paper in the seminar. Senior Secretary of the Energy and Mineral Resources Division Md Mahbub Hossain, Bangladesh Oil, Gas and Mineral Corporation (Petrobangla) Chairman Nazmul Ahsan, Professor Shamsul Alam, Professor Badrul Imam, economist Dr Mahfuz Kabir and senior journalists Shahnaj Begum, Sadrul Hasan and Shahed Siddiqui spoke at the seminar, among others. Source: BSS AH

August reappeared as the month of mourning commemorating the August 15, 1975 carnage when Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was assassinated along with most of his family members under a well-orchestrated plot. A candlelight procession marked the start of the month-long mourning programme at one-minute past zero hours Monday when mourners staged a street march with candles in front of Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi, the then residence of Bangabandhu and the scene of the black night 47 years ago.   Bangladesh Chhatra League and Awami Swechchhasebak League leaders and workers brought out the candlelight procession while Mahila Awami League also staged candlelight vigil joined by Awami League (AL) Joint General Secretary Dr Dipu Moni. Leaders and workers of AL and its associate bodies also attended the programme. Chhatra League also staged a candlelight vigil on Dhaka University campus which was joined by the university's Vice-Chancellor Prof Md Akhteruzzaman. Awami League drew elaborate programme to observe the martyrdom anniversary of the country's founding father's death throughout the month of August. Krishak League arranged a voluntary blood and plasma donation programme on Bangabandhu Bhaban premises this morning. A group of derailed military officers killed Bangabandhu along with most of his family members including his 10-year-old son Sheikh Russell in a predawn attack while the killers were rewarded by the subsequent rulers with diplomatic postings abroad and enacted an indemnity law to protect the assassins from the justice. Others who were killed on that black night were - Bangabandhu's wife Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib, sons Sheikh Kamal, Sheikh Jamal and Sheikh Russell, daughters-in-law Sultana Kamal and Rosy Jamal, brother Sheikh Naser, brother-in-law Abdur Rab Serniabat, nephew and eminent journalist Sheikh Fazlul Huq Moni and his pregnant wife Arzoo Moni and Bangabandhu's military secretary Brigadier (posthumously major general) Jamil. The delayed trial of the carnage began when Awami League returned to power in 1996 general elections and scrapped the infamous indemnity act while after a prolonged trial process, five of the killers were hanged on January 27, 2010. They were Syed Farooq Rahman, Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, Bazlul Huda, AKM Mohiuddin Ahmed and Mohiuddin Ahmed. Another death row convict sacked military captain Abdul Majed was arrested in the wee hours of April 7, 2020 from Gabtoli area, after decades of remaining absconding. He was executed at Dhaka Central Jail in Keraniganj at 12:01 am on April 12, 2020. The other convicted killers are sacked Lt Col Khandaker Abdur Rashid, SHBM Noor Chowdhury, Shariful Haque Dalim, Rashed Chowdhury, and Risaldar Moslehuddin remained at large. One of the convicts Aziz Pasha died a natural death in Zimbabwe in June, 2001. The month of August also witnessed a series of subsequent attacks like August 21, 2004 deadly grenade attack which incumbent prime minister and Bangabandhu's daughter Sheikh Hasina narrowly survived sustaining permanent hearing impairment and the nationwide series bombings on August 17 next year staged by Islamist militants. The grisly grenade attack killed 24 people and wounded over 500 others while the subsequent investigations found an influential quarter of the then BNP-led coalition government with Jamaat being a crucial partner masterminded the assault carried out by Islamist militants of banned HuJI. The August 17, 2005 countrywide blasts were staged by the outlawed JMB to announce their emergence while the outfit with a reorganized structure naming neo-JMB called by law enforcers is now believed to have staged the two back-to-back terrorist attacks on July 1 and July 6 in 2016. Bangladesh passed an era of darkness after the August 15 carnage that gave birth to undemocratic and unholy forces which dominated until 1996 general elections. Source: BSS AH

The month of mourning begins tomorrow commemorating the brutal assassination of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and most of his family members on August 15, 1975. The August 15 carnage is the ugliest chapter of the nation's history as the self-confessed killers not only assassinate the nation's founding father alone, but also killed 16 other members of his family, friends and relatives. The nation observes with heavy heart the month of August as the month of mourning to recall the barbaric killing on 1975's 15 August.   The August 15 carnage martyrs included Bangabandhu's wife Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib, his sons Sheikh Kamal, Sheikh Jamal and Sheikh Russell, daughters-in-law Sultana Kamal and Rosy Jamal, Bangabandhu's brother Sheikh Naser, brother-in-law Abdur Rab Serniabat, nephew and eminent journalist Sheikh Fazlul Huq Moni, Moni's pregnant wife Arzoo Moni and Bangabandhu's military secretary Colonel Jamil. Bangabandhu's two daughters - incumbent Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Sheikh Rehana - escaped the planned assassination as they were visiting Germany at that time. With the killing of Bangabandhu, the greatest Bangalee of all times, a pall of gloom descended and a sense of deep sadness spread among the people in the country and across the globe. The world protested and condemned the killing, saying it is an irreparable loss to millions of people of Bangladesh. The month of August is also black marked with another conspiracy of assassination. The nation cannot ever forget the heinous attempt of killing Sheikh Hasina through grenade attacks in 2004. The vested quarter, who assassinated Bangabandhu in 1975, also tried to destroy Awami League (AL) by killing its president Sheikh Hasina with grenades on an anti-terrorism rally at Bangabandhu Avenue in the capital on August 21 in 2004. Sheikh Hasina narrowly escaped the attack suffering splinter injuries when 24 of her party men, including Awami League's women affairs secretary Ivy Rahman, were killed and 500 others injured. Like in the previous years, different political and socio-cultural organisations, including ruling Awami League (AL) and its associate bodies have chalked out month-long programmes to observe the month of mourning. Source: BSS AH

The Taliban captured a provincial capital near Kabul on Thursday, the 10th the insurgents have taken over a weeklong blitz across Afghanistan as the US and NATO prepare to withdraw entirely from the country after decades of war. The militants raised their white flags imprinted with a famous Islamic proclamation of faith over the city of Ghazni, just 150 kilometres southwest of Kabul. The Taliban published videos and images online showing them in Ghazni, the capital of Ghazni province.   President Ashraf Ghani is trying to rally a counteroffensive relying on his country’s special forces, the militias of warlords and American airpower ahead of the US and NATO withdrawal at the end of the month.   Source: France 24 BM