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Bangladesh

The latest news, analysis and opinion on Bangladesh. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.

Capital

Dhaka

Head of State

President Mohammed Shahabuddin

Head of Government

Chief Adviser of the Interim Government Muhammad Yunus

A woman cuddles her nine-month-old son, who suffers from measles and receives treatment at the Infectious Diseases Hospital in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters

Measles outbreak

More than 1,000 children dead in Bangladesh measles crisis

The South Asian nation of 170 million has recorded 1,002 deaths and 187,484 infections among children since March.

9 Sep 2026 - 9:35PM

SCMP Highlights

Cambodia scam gangs; viral Jennie clip tests South Korea law: 7 Asia highlights

8 Sep 2026 - 4:59PM

Measles outbreak

Bangladesh measles outbreak nears 1,000 child deaths as hospital wards fill

5 Sep 2026 - 11:45AM

India

Bangladesh’s talk of joining an ‘Islamic Nato’ raises red flags in India

Joining the Saudi-Turkish-Pakistani security alliance offers Dhaka leverage, but could also threaten its non-aligned stance.

3 Sep 2026 - 5:27PM

India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar (right) shakes hands with his Bangladeshi counterpart Khalilur Rahman during a meeting in New Delhi in April. Photo: AFP

Malaysia

Malaysian heritage site caught in row over non-local staff

A viral video shot at the Sultan Abdul Samad Building has sparked a backlash, despite management insisting the worker was not a tour guide.

2 Sep 2026 - 1:03PM

China's military weapons

Bangladesh confirms Chinese J-10CE jet deal, citing Rafale shot down by Pakistan

Dhaka’s decision to buy the fighters shows that views on Chinese weapons are shifting and the market is opening, military expert says.

29 Aug 2026 - 2:58AM

India

Why South Asian students are rethinking Western university education

Rising costs, visa restrictions and better regional choices drive a shift towards domestic undergraduate study before going abroad.

26 Aug 2026 - 7:00PM

India

India rescues 2 Chinese nationals from sunken cargo ship, searches for others

The Panama-flagged vessel had ‌24 crew on board, including 20 Chinese nationals, according to India’s coastguard.

23 Aug 2026 - 3:03PM

United States

US court strikes down Trump visa ban affecting South Asian nations

Federal judge calls 75-country suspension ‘patently unlawful’, ruling officials cannot block visas based on nationality.

22 Aug 2026 - 1:51PM

US-China trade war

Editorial | ‘Transshipment scam’ is not a global conspiracy but a warning to the US

The White House’s accusation that over 40 nations are involved in a shadow network that harms the US betrays a misunderstanding of how trade works.

20 Aug 2026 - 7:15AM

Containers at the Port of Long Beach in the US on May 20. Photo: Los Angeles Times/TNS

India

Bangladesh’s energy crisis opens door for India to mend ties

Ties have been strained by Sheikh Hasina’s self-exile in New Delhi, with Bangladesh ruling out a visit by its president to India for now.

20 Aug 2026 - 1:09AMvideocam

Auto-rickshaws that run on compressed natural gas queue up to refuel at a filling station in Dhaka on Monday amid an energy crisis in Bangladesh. Photo: EPA

Jobs

Bangladesh rolls out women-only pink buses

The service is operated by women, for women, creating a safe, female-only space on the go.

19 Aug 2026 - 5:41PMvideocam

India

9 killed in Indian budget hotel fire after suspected air-con explosion

Some victims are believed to be Bangladeshi nationals who had travelled to Kolkata for medical treatment.

19 Aug 2026 - 1:37PM

India

Rahman will not visit India until Hasina extradited to Bangladesh

Foreign ministry officials played down media speculation about a possible trip to India next week by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.

16 Aug 2026 - 6:44PM

Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Tarique Rahman attends a meeting with Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim (not pictured) at the Federal Government office ‘Perdana Putra’ in Putrajaya, Malaysia, on June 22. Photo: Reuters

Thailand

How Cambodian worker exodus exposes Thailand’s fragile labour model

An estimated 780,000 Cambodian workers have left Thailand since last year’s border conflicts, affecting a wide range of industries.

16 Aug 2026 - 12:00PMvideocam

Cambodian migrant workers cross the border at Ban Laem Border checkpoint in Chanthaburi province, Thailand, in July last year to return to their home amid the deadly border conflict between Thailand and Cambodia. Photo: Reuters

Human rights

Toxic gas leak kills 8 at Bangladesh ship-breaking yard

Ship-breaking in Bangladesh has long faced global criticism due to its unsafe and environmentally damaging practices.

14 Aug 2026 - 10:06PM

India

‘Islamic Nato’? Why Pakistan’s new defence pact has India on edge

Analysts say the pact could evolve into a broader ideological military bloc that could extend its influence to the Indian Ocean region.

11 Aug 2026 - 6:45PM

India-Pakistan tensions

Maldives’ plea to restart South Asian bloc hits India-Pakistan brick wall

Calls for reviving Saarc are likely to fall on deaf ears as long as the two neighbours are at loggerheads, analysts say.

9 Aug 2026 - 2:00PMvideocam

Pakistani hardline organisation Jamaat-ud-Dawa supporters burn a poster of then Indian home minister Rajnath Singh as he arrives in Lahore for a Saarc summit in Lahore on August 3, 2016. Photo: AFP

Protests around the world

Opinion | South Asia’s Gen Z protests offer one lesson in common

From Sri Lanka and Nepal to Bangladesh and India, youth protests have shaken or even toppled governments, but creating lasting change has been more challenging.

9 Aug 2026 - 5:30AMvideocam

India

Sheikh Hasina’s planned speech revives fresh India-Bangladesh row

The exiled former prime minister is scheduled to give a virtual address at a foreign correspondents’ club event in Delhi on Wednesday.

4 Aug 2026 - 1:15PMvideocam

Pakistan

Pakistan, Bangladesh face economic squeeze as US-Iran crisis widens

Another energy-price shock could mean renewed pressure on their currencies, subsidies and public finances.

31 Jul 2026 - 8:53PM

A worker refuels a vehicle at a petrol station in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Monday, amid rising fuel prices. Photo: EPA

India

Can a Brics invite mark a new chapter in India-Bangladesh ties?

Analysts welcome the outreach, saying the summit will be an opportunity for both sides to work together if Rahman accepts the invitation.

30 Jul 2026 - 6:31PM

India’s Prime Minister Narendra  Modi (fifth from right) with other Brics leaders at the summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on July 6, 2025. Photo: Reuters

United Nations

Opinion | Can the gigacities of tomorrow keep human connection alive?

We have learned to accommodate more people in larger metropolises while losing the ability to bring those people together into families.

29 Jul 2026 - 8:30PM

Sheikh Hasina

Bangladesh’s Sheikh Hasina vows to return despite believing she ‘may be killed’

The ex-prime minister sidesteps the question of her return to politics, saying: ‘Power is not my destination. Service to the people is’.

29 Jul 2026 - 3:04PM

Asean

Asian scam gangs snare educated English speakers with fake job ads: UN agency

Victims from over 80 different countries are being trafficked into cross-border scams, the International Organisation for Migration says.

29 Jul 2026 - 12:30PMvideocam

People from China, Vietnam and Ethiopia, believed to have been trafficked and forced to work in scam centres, are detained in Myawaddy district in eastern Myanmar on February 26, 2025. Photo: AP

India

Opinion | How China and the US are sidelining India in its own neighbourhood

India is being denied the uncontested dominance it once held. The task ahead is not to restore the old hierarchy but to find a new path.

30 Jul 2026 - 7:24AM

Myanmar

Video | Rohingyas risk deadly voyages as trafficking surges

One in seven of the Rohingya people who headed to sea hoping to escape poor conditions of the world’s largest refugee camp in Bangladesh was reported missing or dead in 2025.

26 Jul 2026 - 9:00AM

Myanmar

Video | 500 feared dead in Myanmar smuggler boat tragedy

The UN confirmed many passengers were Rohingya refugees fleeing camps in Bangladesh.

24 Jul 2026 - 9:48PM

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Bangladesh

More than 1,000 children dead in Bangladesh measles crisis

The South Asian nation of 170 million has recorded 1,002 deaths and 187,484 infections among children since March.

Cambodia scam gangs; viral Jennie clip tests South Korea law: 7 Asia highlights

Bangladesh measles outbreak nears 1,000 child deaths as hospital wards fill

Bangladesh’s talk of joining an ‘Islamic Nato’ raises red flags in India

Joining the Saudi-Turkish-Pakistani security alliance offers Dhaka leverage, but could also threaten its non-aligned stance.

Malaysian heritage site caught in row over non-local staff

A viral video shot at the Sultan Abdul Samad Building has sparked a backlash, despite management insisting the worker was not a tour guide.

Bangladesh confirms Chinese J-10CE jet deal, citing Rafale shot down by Pakistan

Dhaka’s decision to buy the fighters shows that views on Chinese weapons are shifting and the market is opening, military expert says.

Why South Asian students are rethinking Western university education

Rising costs, visa restrictions and better regional choices drive a shift towards domestic undergraduate study before going abroad.

India rescues 2 Chinese nationals from sunken cargo ship, searches for others

The Panama-flagged vessel had ‌24 crew on board, including 20 Chinese nationals, according to India’s coastguard.

US court strikes down Trump visa ban affecting South Asian nations

Federal judge calls 75-country suspension ‘patently unlawful’, ruling officials cannot block visas based on nationality.

.css-1pcrwvc{color:#2aa191;}Editorial | ‘Transshipment scam’ is not a global conspiracy but a warning to the US

The White House’s accusation that over 40 nations are involved in a shadow network that harms the US betrays a misunderstanding of how trade works.

Bangladesh’s energy crisis opens door for India to mend ties

Ties have been strained by Sheikh Hasina’s self-exile in New Delhi, with Bangladesh ruling out a visit by its president to India for now.

Bangladesh rolls out women-only pink buses

The service is operated by women, for women, creating a safe, female-only space on the go.

9 killed in Indian budget hotel fire after suspected air-con explosion

Some victims are believed to be Bangladeshi nationals who had travelled to Kolkata for medical treatment.

Rahman will not visit India until Hasina extradited to Bangladesh

Foreign ministry officials played down media speculation about a possible trip to India next week by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.

How Cambodian worker exodus exposes Thailand’s fragile labour model

An estimated 780,000 Cambodian workers have left Thailand since last year’s border conflicts, affecting a wide range of industries.

Toxic gas leak kills 8 at Bangladesh ship-breaking yard

Ship-breaking in Bangladesh has long faced global criticism due to its unsafe and environmentally damaging practices.

‘Islamic Nato’? Why Pakistan’s new defence pact has India on edge

Analysts say the pact could evolve into a broader ideological military bloc that could extend its influence to the Indian Ocean region.

Maldives’ plea to restart South Asian bloc hits India-Pakistan brick wall

Calls for reviving Saarc are likely to fall on deaf ears as long as the two neighbours are at loggerheads, analysts say.

Opinion | South Asia’s Gen Z protests offer one lesson in common

From Sri Lanka and Nepal to Bangladesh and India, youth protests have shaken or even toppled governments, but creating lasting change has been more challenging.

Sheikh Hasina’s planned speech revives fresh India-Bangladesh row

The exiled former prime minister is scheduled to give a virtual address at a foreign correspondents’ club event in Delhi on Wednesday.

Pakistan, Bangladesh face economic squeeze as US-Iran crisis widens

Another energy-price shock could mean renewed pressure on their currencies, subsidies and public finances.

Can a Brics invite mark a new chapter in India-Bangladesh ties?

Analysts welcome the outreach, saying the summit will be an opportunity for both sides to work together if Rahman accepts the invitation.

Opinion | Can the gigacities of tomorrow keep human connection alive?

We have learned to accommodate more people in larger metropolises while losing the ability to bring those people together into families.

Bangladesh’s Sheikh Hasina vows to return despite believing she ‘may be killed’

The ex-prime minister sidesteps the question of her return to politics, saying: ‘Power is not my destination. Service to the people is’.

Asian scam gangs snare educated English speakers with fake job ads: UN agency

Victims from over 80 different countries are being trafficked into cross-border scams, the International Organisation for Migration says.

Opinion | How China and the US are sidelining India in its own neighbourhood

India is being denied the uncontested dominance it once held. The task ahead is not to restore the old hierarchy but to find a new path.

.css-1f6sr3w{color:#727272;}Video | Rohingyas risk deadly voyages as trafficking surges

One in seven of the Rohingya people who headed to sea hoping to escape poor conditions of the world’s largest refugee camp in Bangladesh was reported missing or dead in 2025.

Video | 500 feared dead in Myanmar smuggler boat tragedy

The UN confirmed many passengers were Rohingya refugees fleeing camps in Bangladesh.

Editorial | ‘Transshipment scam’ is not a global conspiracy but a warning to the US

Video | Rohingyas risk deadly voyages as trafficking surges