Dhaka- The US government Saturday welcomed a Bangladesh proposal to prosecute war crimes committed during its 1971 liberation war.

"The trials of war criminals are being held in different countries and Bangladesh has to decide on the matter after taking experiences from those countries," US Ambassador in Dhaka James F Moriarty said, two days after the Bangladesh parliament adopted a resolution seeking trial of the war criminals.

Moriarty said it was an internal matter for the government and the people of Bangladesh to decide.

Dhaka - Authorities in Bangladesh beefed up security as more than 2 million people from home and abroad gathered for an annual Islamic festival near the capital, officials said Saturday.

A senior policeman said as many as 11,000 officers were deployed in and around the Biswa Ijtema, the second-largest Muslim gathering after the hajj.

Internationally acclaimed Muslim leaders have been delivering sermons since the three-day meeting began Friday at a site covering 5 square kilometres in Tongi, 35 kilometres north of Dhaka.

New Delhi, Jan. 30 : Largely insulated from the global financial meltdown, both the nations should come together to strengthen their economies.

The newly elected Bangladesh Government holds India as a strategic partner in its development endeavour. Trade between India and Bangladesh is yet to achieve desirable volumes. Towards achieving advantageous trade figures, both the nations need to diversify trade with active industry participation. Both the nations have to decouple politics and trade, said Rajeev Kher, Joint Secretary, Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

Jakarta - Indonesia said Friday that it would deport 193 Rohingya boat people but was seeking assurances from Myanmar and Bangladesh that they would not be harmed when returned.

The Muslim Rohingyas, who were rescued January 7 from the sea off Aceh province, have pleaded to the Indonesian government not to send them back, saying they faced persecution in Myanmar.

Dhaka- The newly elected National Parliament is to chose Bangladesh's next president on February 16, a government announcement said Thursday.

According to the election schedule, February 8 was set for the submission of nomination papers for the ceremonial post in the prime minister-dominated parliamentary democracy.

Chief Election Commissioner ATM Shamsul Huda discussed the election schedule with Speaker of Parliament Abdul Hamid before it was finalized.

Dhaka  - Lawmakers of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)- led alliance Wednesday walked out parliament protesting rearrangement of lawmakers' seating in the House by the new presiding officer.

A senior lawmaker of the BNP, M K Anwar, who led the protest, said that the new speaker of parliament made a unprecedented seating arrangement "unacceptable" to the opposition lawmakers.

"We have decided to discuss the new seating order with the speaker Thursday to set our next strategy," he added.