Politics

Tarique Rahman to meet Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in Tokyo on 27 October

The four-day visit is expected to produce agreements on farm and fish trade, skills, aviation and local government, while Dhaka presses for cheaper loans and fresh Japanese investment.

ScrollBeat DeskPublished: 20 Oct 2026, 16:00

File photo: Prime Minister Tarique Rahman speaks at the first session of the 13th National Parliament in Dhaka on 12 March 2026. Press Information Department, Government of Bangladesh

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman will hold bilateral talks with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in Tokyo on 27 October, during a four-day visit that the Foreign Ministry says is meant to widen trade, investment and energy cooperation.

Foreign Secretary Asad Alam Siam told reporters on Tuesday that the two governments are discussing a set of memorandums covering agriculture, fisheries, human resource and skills development, domestic aviation, trade, environmental protection and the modernisation of local government. He said he hoped many of them would be signed during the visit.

Siam said the trip should help accelerate projects already under way, attract new private investment from Japan and expand development assistance. The two leaders are also expected to discuss the Rohingya crisis, the global energy squeeze and efforts to end international conflicts, he added.

Dhaka Post reported that five to six memorandums may be signed, although no treaty is expected. Citing diplomatic sources, it said Bangladesh could ask Japan for about $2 billion in support to soften the pressure of higher energy costs, and would seek lower interest rates on Japanese loans that finance the metro rail, the third terminal at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport and the Matarbari deep-sea port.

The schedule includes a keynote address at the Japan-Bangladesh Economic Forum and meetings with the Japan International Cooperation Agency, the Japan Bank for International Cooperation and the Japan External Trade Organisation. The prime minister is also expected to visit an LNG terminal and power plant in Katsuura in Chiba, the nuclear headquarters and a Toyota factory in Nagoya.

The visit follows the economic partnership agreement the two countries signed in February and an employment skills memorandum on 17 October, under which Japan is due to begin hiring Bangladeshi workers from April 2027.

Japan is one of Bangladesh's largest development partners and has funded major infrastructure, including the metro rail and the airport terminal. Officials say the government wants to keep Tokyo engaged while balancing ties with other major partners.

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France extends curfews after riots, with more than 2,500 arrested

Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said the overnight restrictions will continue where needed after France's worst street violence in years, which left more than 3,000 businesses looted and 67 people jailed.

ScrollBeat Desk20 Oct 2026, 17:20Open this article

Riot police stand outside a looted shop in Paris on 17 October 2026, during the unrest that began with protests over school conditions and the cost of living. Jorge Jaramillo / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

France will keep night-time curfews in place on Tuesday and extend them wherever needed, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said, after weekend riots that damaged public buildings, looted shops and led to more than 2,500 arrests.

Lecornu said the targeted restrictions introduced in Paris and other cities on Monday had helped keep the night calm, and that new curfews would be decided "where the situation requires it". Parts of Paris, Marseille, Lille, Bordeaux and Nice have been placed under curfew.

The unrest began on Saturday, when largely peaceful student protests over poor conditions in high schools and the rising cost of living turned into some of the worst street violence France has seen in years. More than 3,000 businesses were hit by looting, according to preliminary estimates, and 67 people have already been jailed. Officials said the violence came six months before the presidential election.

The government is also under pressure to respond to the cost-of-living complaints behind the protests. President Emmanuel Macron, on a tour of the Gulf, secured an extra 200,000 tonnes of diesel a month from the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, his office said. Added to 95,000 tonnes previously agreed with Saudi Arabia, the shipments amount to about 10 per cent of France's monthly consumption.

Interior Minister Laurent Nunez offered to resign on Sunday, saying police had lost control during the unrest. Macron rejected the offer. Lecornu has called emergency meetings, including talks with major social media platforms, and will meet trade unions on Wednesday and political parties on Thursday.

The violence has injured demonstrators as well as damaging property. In Mulhouse, a 17-year-old girl lost an eye, and in Saint-Etienne a 17-year-old boy lost a hand to a grenade, according to reports cited by AFP.

The political reaction has been sharp across the spectrum. Far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen called the unrest a wake-up call that exposed a deep crisis of authority, while US President Donald Trump said the trouble was caused by immigration rather than schools.

Several countries, including the United States, China and Germany, have issued travel advisories for their citizens in France. Police said the night from Monday to Tuesday passed without major incidents, but new protests have been called for the coming weekend.

NEXT STORY Bangladesh

Bus and truck collide head-on in Natore, killing at least 13

At least 13 people died when an overnight coach and a sand-laden truck met head-on near Bonpara in Baraigram early on Tuesday. Police say the bus was overtaking and its fitness certificate had expired.

ScrollBeat Desk20 Oct 2026, 17:16Open this article

File photo: the Dhaka-Rajshahi highway near Baraigram in Natore, where a bus and a truck collided head-on on 20 October 2026. The photo shows the highway in 2016, not the crash scene. Salim Khandoker / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

At least 13 people were killed and more than 25 injured when a passenger bus and a sand-laden truck collided head-on on the Natore-Pabna highway in Baraigram upazila early on Tuesday, police and fire service officials said.

The crash happened around 4:30am near Sarkarpara, in front of the Bonpara Police Investigation Centre. The RP Paribahan night coach was heading from the south towards Chapainawabganj, while the truck was travelling from Panchagarh towards Jhenaidah. Both drivers died.

The death toll moved during the morning as hospitals updated their counts. Prothom Alo reported 13 deaths, while Dhaka Tribune put the figure at 14. Several of the injured were in critical condition and were sent to Rajshahi Medical College Hospital, so the number could rise.

Sub-Inspector Shamim Hossain of the Bonpara police investigation centre said early information suggested the truck was in the left lane when the speeding bus hit it while trying to overtake other vehicles. A passenger, Abdus Salam, said the bus was overcrowded, with people standing in the aisle, and that it was moving fast.

Natore Deputy Commissioner Sumoni Akter said the bus did not have a valid fitness certificate. Records at the district office of the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority showed the certificate expired on 13 May this year, although the route permit runs to 2028. The police superintendent, Shariful Haque, said action would be taken against vehicles running without valid fitness papers.

The district administration formed a seven-member committee led by Additional District Magistrate Abul Hayat to establish the cause. It includes police, BRTA and health department officials. The deputy commissioner announced Tk 25,000 for each bereaved family, and local MP and parliament whip Ruhul Quddus Talukdar Dulu said the prime minister would also provide assistance.

The injured were taken to Baraigram Upazila Health Complex, Natore Sadar Hospital, nearby clinics and Rajshahi Medical College Hospital. The bodies were kept at Natore Sadar Hospital morgue.

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami expressed grief and said the crash exposed repeated failures in traffic management. Its secretary general, Mia Golam Parwar, called for removing unfit vehicles from the roads, action against transport syndicates and better enforcement against unqualified drivers.