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Fire at Bangladesh juice factory kills 52
At least 52 people were killed, 20 injured and many more feared trapped after a massive fire raged through a juice-making factory in Bangladesh, officials said on Friday, the latest industrial fire accident in the country.
The fire started on Thursday evening at the ground floor of a six-storey factory building in the Narayanganj district, 20 km (12 miles) southeast of the capital Dhaka, run by the private firm Hashem Food and Beverage, which is a unit of Bangladesh‘s multinational Sajeeb Group. The factory makes mango fruit drinks under the Shezan brand.
“Three people died from jumping off the building to escape the fire and 49 charred bodies have been recovered so far,” Mustain Billah, the administrator for the Narayanganj district, told Reuters by phone from the scene.
“It is still burning on the top floor. Firefighters are struggling to control it, as chemicals and flammable materials were stored inside the building.”
He said that the cause of the fire is not yet known.
“Plastics and flammable substances and chemicals all made it hard to douse the fire,” said Abdullah Al Arefin, a district fire service official, adding the severe heat from the fire caused cracks in the building.
Al Arefin said each floor in the building is about 35,000 square feet (3,250 square meters) but they were only accessible by two stairways and that many workers could not get out as the fire spread to the stairs.
One of the doors leading from the stairs to the roof was locked, he said.
“We rescued 25 people after setting a ladder to the rooftop. We could have saved more if others could reach the rooftop,” said Debashish Bardhan, deputy director of the national fire service.
Many workers were injured in trying to jump off the building’s second and third floors to escape, said Shah Alam, another district fire service official.
Officials at Hashem Foods and Sajeeb Group did not immediately respond to calls seeking comment.
As relatives of the missing staged protests around the factory site, a mother searching for her son, Nazma Begum, cried out, “There is no justice! Where is my son?”
Narayanganj in central Bangladesh is packed with factories making everything from jute to textiles.
Disasters because of poor fire and building safety standards are common in Bangladesh, largely in the textiles sector that employs millions and contributes the most to its economy.
Industry officials promised better safety standards after the collapse of the Rana Plaza garment factory building in 2012 in Dhaka that killed more than 1,000 workers and injured hundreds. But many factories inside and outside the textiles sector still fall short, leading to accidents each year.
The Narayanganj district administration has formed a five-member probe committee to examine the incident, Al Arefin said.
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IEA should respond to Pakistan’s security concerns with concrete actions: Andrabi
Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesman Tahir Hussain Andrabi says both Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Sadyr Japarov, the President of Kyrgyzstan, who visited Islamabad on Thursday, expressed their mutual commitment to a peaceful, stable Afghanistan with a sustainable future for the Afghan people.
Speaking in a press conference on Friday, Andrabi stated that both sides agreed that the Islamic Emirate must fulfill its obligations toward the international community and take concrete steps against terrorist groups to address Pakistan’s legitimate security concerns.
This comes while the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has repeatedly emphasized that no terrorist groups operate from Afghan territory and that it will not allow anyone to use Afghan soil against any country.
The Islamic Emirate has also stated that Pakistan’s security concerns are an internal issue of that country, and Pakistan itself must take measures to prevent any security incidents.
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Malaysia’s PM calls peaceful solution to Afghanistan-Pakistan tensions
Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has voiced deep concern over escalating tensions between the Afghanistan–Pakistan during a telephone conversation with Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
In a statement posted on Facebook, Anwar said he emphasized Malaysia’s concerns regarding regional stability and urged all parties to pursue a peaceful resolution through dialogue and diplomatic engagement to prevent further escalation.
His remarks follow media reports indicating heightened tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan after a series of attacks in October.
During the call, the two leaders also exchanged views on several aspects of Malaysia–Pakistan bilateral relations.
Anwar also briefed Sharif on the ongoing flood situation in Malaysia and similar challenges facing neighboring countries, including Indonesia and Thailand.
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Afghanistan makes major strides in cutting drug trafficking, says Putin
Putin stated that Afghan authorities have “substantially reduced” opium cultivation and are “seriously confronting” drug-related threats from within their borders.
Russian President Vladimir Putin says Afghanistan has taken “active and effective” steps to curb drug trafficking, noting a significant drop in opium production across the country. He made the remarks during an exclusive interview with India Today during his India trip, highlighting what he described as “visible progress” in Afghanistan’s internal security efforts.
Putin stated that Afghan authorities have “substantially reduced” opium cultivation and are “seriously confronting” drug-related threats from within their borders. He added that Afghanistan has also made important advancements in the fight against terrorism.
Responding to a question about why Russia officially recognized the Islamic Emirate, the Russian president said Afghanistan had been engulfed in civil conflict for many years, but the current authorities now hold control over the country. “This is the reality, and it must be acknowledged,” Putin emphasized.
He further noted that maintaining contact with Afghanistan’s leadership is crucial for shaping events inside the country. “If you want influence, you must engage with the people in charge — and that is exactly what we are doing,” he said.
Putin’s remarks come as several regional powers continue to recalibrate their diplomatic strategies toward Afghanistan, focusing on stability, counterterrorism, and economic cooperation.
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