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In pictures: Bangladesh a day after polls — BNP poised to form government

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) claimed a thumping win on Friday in the first elections held since a deadly 2024 uprising, with leader Tarique Rahman poised to become prime minister. But final official results are yet to come and BNP’s main rival Jamaat-i-Islami — leading a wider coalition — said it had “serious questions about the integrity of the results process”. The Jamuna television channel projected that the BNP had secured 212 seats. It said Jamaat had won 74, a huge leap from its past results but far short of the outright win it had campaigned for. Somoy TV broadcast similar figures. A man reads an English daily newspaper at a store, the morning after the 13th general election, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, February 13, 2026. —Reuters Election Commission officials announce updates, the day after the 13th general election, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, February 13, 2026. —Reuters A man reads a newspaper with an election related headline, a day after the national election...
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What are the key priorities of the BNP, winner of the Bangladesh election?

The Bangladesh National Party (BNP) won a decisive two-thirds majority on Friday in general elections, a result expected to bring stability to the nation after months of tumult following the ouster of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in a Gen Z-led uprising. The party, led by Tarique Rahman , will return to power after 20 years. Rahman, the son of BNP founder and former president Ziaur Rahman, is widely expected to be sworn in as prime minister. Here are some of the key promises made by the BNP in its election manifesto, which has the motto ‘Bangladesh before all’: Reforms The party aims to implement all points of the July Charter, which sought to create new constitutional bodies, introduce a bicameral parliament, along with broader changes in line with political parties’ commitments. A banner with a photo of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) chairman Tarique Rahman, is placed in a flower market, following the 13th general election, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, February 13. — Reut...
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When floods come back, they find the same people waiting

When the monsoon rains returned in 2025, they brought with them a fear quite familiar to millions of Pakistanis, not because the downpour was unusual, but because they had finally understood what it meant: floods are no longer rare disasters. Over the past several years, floods have become a recurring test of who in this country is protected and who is not. According to figures compiled by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), the 2025 floods claimed at least 1,000 lives and affected nearly seven million people across the country. Punjab was the hardest hit, followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and parts of Gilgit-Baltistan, where crops spread over hundreds of acres were lost, homes were washed away, and entire communities were displaced. Every time floods come, they bring with them a host of questions, all linked to their disproportionate impact: why do they affect some more than others? Why do some families lose everything while others rebuild within months? Why do they...
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ESSAY: RECLAIMING THE RIGHT TO THE CITY

What does a city owe its citizens and what do the citizens owe it in return? It is a question that should be central to every debate around the poor air quality, congestion and broken infrastructure in Pakistan’s cities. French philosopher Henri Lefebvre described this relationship as the right to the city — the idea that urban life should be shaped by those who live it, not merely managed by those who govern it. To have a right to the city is to have a voice in how it grows, breathes and welcomes, and to recognise a shared responsibility for its care. In Lahore and Karachi, as well as other urban centres, this balance has faltered. Pakistan’s cities have been stretched and strained by unchecked expansion, real-estate development and the logic of consumption. What we are witnessing now is environmental exhaustion, but also a deeper alienation between people and place. Re-examining the right to the city, then, is less about demanding entitlements and more about asking how to rebuild ...
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Gold, silver climb as US yields fall on softer retail sales

Gold and silver prices rose on Wednesday as US Treasury bond yields fell after data showed December retail sales growth stalled, signalling a softening economy ahead of key jobs data. Lower US yields reduce the opportunity cost of holding non‑yielding assets such as gold, and they often accompany macroeconomic shifts, like expectations of slower growth or looser policy, that tend to support precious metals. Spot gold was 0.7 per cent higher at $5,057.23 per ounce by 04:23 GMT. US gold futures for April delivery gained 1pc to $5,081.40 per ounce. Spot silver was up 2.3pc at $82.56/oz, after falling more than 3pc in the previous session. “Over the last couple of weeks, (precious metals) became very dislocated from fundamentals, so it pretty much decoupled from interest rate policy. Yields being lower are obviously supportive of gold today,” said Kyle Rodda, a senior market analyst at Capital.com . US yields fell on Tuesday after a raft of data suggested the economy may be softening...
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ATHLETICS: THE RUNNING CHILD

When nine-year-old Kainat Khalil finished ahead of adult runners on Pakistan’s road-running circuit, her performance should have been recognised as an extraordinary display of talent. Instead, it ignited a controversy that has exposed deep inconsistencies in sports governance, weak child-safeguarding mechanisms and the selective enforcement of age-eligibility rules. Kainat was recently stopped from officially competing in the 21-kilometre half marathon at the recent BYD Karachi Marathon 2026, despite having been registered and allowed to start the race. Although she recorded one of the strongest times on the course, organisers later declared her ineligible, awarding her an honorary prize instead and publicly criticising her coach for entering a child in a long-distance event. The incident followed an earlier episode at the National Games 2025, where Kainat was barred from competing in the 5,000-metre race after having already won a bronze medal in the 10,000 metres. In both instance...
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