DHAKA: Bangladesh will hold elections in February 2026, interim leader Muhammad Yunus said Tuesday, the first polls since a mass uprising overthrew the government last year.
“On behalf of the interim government, I will write a letter to the Chief Election Commissioner requesting that the election be arranged before Ramadan in February 2026,” Yunus said in a broadcast on the one-year anniversary of the ousting of prime minister Sheikh Hasina.
Nobel Peace Prize winner Yunus, 85, is leading the caretaker government as its chief adviser until elections, and has said he will step down after the vote.
“We will step into the final and most important phase after delivering this speech to you, and that is the transfer of power to an elected government,” he said.
Yunus had earlier said elections would be held in April, but key political parties have been demanding he hold them earlier, and before the Islamic holy month of Ramadan in the Muslim-majority nation of 170 million people.
“I urge you all to pray for us so that we can hold a fair and smooth election, enabling all citizens to move forward successfully in building a ‘New Bangladesh’,” he added.
“On behalf of the government, we will extend all necessary support to ensure that the election is free, peaceful and celebratory in spirit.”
Bangladesh to hold elections in February 2026: Yunus
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Bangladesh to hold elections in February 2026: Yunus
- Yunus had earlier said elections would be held in April, but key political parties have been demanding he hold them earlier, and before Ramadan
US bombers join Japanese jets in show of force after China–Russia drills
- Japan says US B-52 bombers flew with Japanese F-35s and F-15s
- South Korea and Japan have scrambled jets during Chinese and Russian drills
TOKYO: US nuclear-capable bombers flew over the Sea of Japan alongside Japanese fighter jets on Wednesday, Tokyo said, in a show of force following Chinese and Russian drills in the skies and seas around Japan and South Korea.
Japan and the US “reaffirmed their strong resolve to prevent any unilateral attempt to change the status quo by force and confirmed the readiness posture of both the Self-Defense Forces (SDF) and US forces,” Japan’s defense ministry said in a press release on Thursday.
The flight of two US B-52 strategic bombers with three Japanese F-35 stealth fighters and three F-15 air-superiority jets was the first time the US had asserted its military presence since China began military exercises in the region last week.
The display follows a joint flight of Chinese and Russian strategic bombers in the East China Sea and western Pacific on Tuesday and separate Chinese aircraft carrier drills that prompted Japan to scramble jets that Tokyo said were targeted by radar beams.
The encounter drew criticism from Washington, which said the incident was “not conducive to regional peace and stability” and reaffirmed that its alliance with Japan was “unwavering.”
Both Japan and South Korea host US forces, with Japan home to the biggest concentration of American military power overseas, including an aircraft carrier strike group and a US Marine expeditionary force.
China denied Tokyo’s accusation, saying Japanese jets flying near the carrier had endangered its air operations south of Japan.
South Korea’s military said it also scrambled fighter jets when the Chinese and Russian aircraft entered its air defense identification zone on Tuesday, an area that extends beyond its airspace and is used for early warning.
Regional tensions have risen since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi triggered a dispute with Beijing last month with her remarks on how Tokyo might react to a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan.
China claims democratically governed Taiwan and has not ruled out using force to take control of the island, which sits just over 100 km (62 miles) from Japanese territory and is surrounded by sea lanes on which Tokyo relies.
