The polls will be held in the absence of its two most towering political figures, former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who has been in India since she was deposed in 2024, and Khaleda Zia, who died in December 2025.

Washington will begin making initial payments towards the billions of dollars it owes the United Nations “within weeks”, while continuing to push for reforms, the US ambassador to the UN said.

An e-mail received on Wednesday threatened a blast at the Hyderabad airport when a Gulf Air flight from Bahrain lands, according to sources.