BANGLADESH will reopen schools from next week despite a brutal heatwave sweeping the country that has seen temperatures soar to 43 degrees Celsius (109°F), officials said on Thursday (25).
The severe conditions had forced authorities to close schools this week.
The education ministry, however, will reopen schools despite the Meteorological Department warning that there was no end in sight for the heat.
"All kinds of preparations have been made to open educational institutions from next week. Students will be kept away from extracurricular activities. The daily assembly will remain closed until further orders," an education ministry official said.
Scientists have said climate change is contributing to more frequent, severe, and longer heatwaves during summer months.
Authorities have been encouraging residents to stay indoors and drink water.
Those who work outdoors like labourers and rickshaw drivers say the brutal heat has become extremely challenging.
"It is becoming very hard to pull a rickshaw. But we can't stay home. What will we eat then?" Mohammad Zamir, a rickshaw puller said.
The UN children's agency said it was "urging parents to be extra vigilant in keeping their children hydrated and safe" through the heatwave.
"The severity of this heatwave underscores the urgent need for action to protect children from the worsening impacts of climate change," UNICEF said in a statement.
Temperatures across Bangladesh have reached more than 42C (108F) in the past week.
"April is usually the hottest month in Bangladesh. But this April has been one of the hottest since the country's independence (in 1971)," said government forecaster Tariful Newaz Kabir.
Kabir said fewer rainstorms than average for the period had contributed to the heat.
"We expect the high temperature will remain until the end of this month," he said.
Meanwhile, thousands of Bangladeshis gathered to pray for rain on Wednesday (24) in the middle of an extreme heatwave that prompted authorities to shut down schools around the country.
Bangladesh's weather bureau said that average maximum temperatures in the capital Dhaka over the past week have been 4-5 degrees Celsius (7.2-9 degrees Fahrenheit) higher than the 30-year average for the same period.
Muslim worshippers gathered in city mosques and rural fields to pray for relief from the scorching heat, which forecasters expect to continue for at least another week.
Hospitals in the southern coastal district of Patuakhali had recorded local outbreaks of diarrhoea due to higher temperatures and the resulting increased salinity of local water sources, said state medical officer Bhupen Chandra Mondal.
(Agencies)
Moglai Bap and Mo Chara of Kneecap perform at Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset, Britain, June 28, 2025. REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
Police may probe anti-Israel comments at Glastonbury
BRITISH police said they were considering whether to launch an investigation after performers at Glastonbury Festival made anti-Israel comments during their shows.
"We are aware of the comments made by acts on the West Holts Stage at Glastonbury Festival this afternoon," Avon and Somerset Police, in western England, said on X late on Saturday (28).
Irish hip-hop group Kneecap and punk duo Bob Vylan made anti-Israeli chants in separate shows on the West Holts stage on Saturday. One of the members of Bob Vylan chanted "Death, death, to the IDF" in a reference to the Israel Defense Forces.
"Video evidence will be assessed by officers to determine whether any offences may have been committed that would require a criminal investigation," the police statement said.
The Israeli Embassy in Britain said it was "deeply disturbed by the inflammatory and hateful rhetoric expressed on stage at the Glastonbury Festival".
Prime minister Keir Starmer said earlier this month it was "not appropriate" for Kneecap to appear at Glastonbury.
The band's frontman Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh was charged with a terrorism offence last month for allegedly displaying a flag in support of Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah at a concert in November. He has denied the charge.
A British government minister said it was appalling that the anti-Israel chants had been made at Glastonbury, and that the festival's organisers and the BBC broadcaster - which is showing the event - had questions to answer.
Health secretary Wes Streeting said he was also appalled by violence committed by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank.
"I'd also say to the Israeli Embassy, get your own house in order in terms of the conduct of your own citizens and the settlers in the West Bank," Streeting told Sky News.
"I wish they'd take the violence of their own citizens towards Palestinians more seriously," he said.
(Reuters)