Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has announced the names of the 15 players for Australia tour later this month. The board made three changes to the squad that took part in the Asia Cup in Pakistan.

The names of three new players are All-rounder Shakib Al Hasan, wicket keeper Dhiman Ghosh and pacer Nazmul Hossain. These have replaced Musharraf Hossain Rubel, Mushfiqur Rahim and Nazimuddin.

The team will be led by Mohammad Ashraful, while Mashrafe Bin Mortaza has been selected as the vice-captain.

Nazimuddin and Musharraf Hossain Rubel have been dropped because of their poor form in the Pakistan tour.

Dhaka, Aug 5 : Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday concluded his five-day Bangladesh visit during which he interacted with officials of the of the Grameen Bank run by the Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Younus and acquired an understanding of their micro-credit projects.

Rahul was seen off at Dhaka’s Zia International Airport by Grameen Bank Chief Younus and Indian High Commission officials, besides those of Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC), one of the world''s largest NGOs.

Dhaka - Candidates backed by the former ruling Awami League party were set for a thumping victory in local elections in Bangladesh, a spokesman for the national Election Commission said Tuesday.

In the limited local polls in four cities and nine towns candidates supported by the Awami League swept to victory, Election Commission sources said.

Badruddin Ahmad Kamran was elected mayor in Sylhet city in north-eastern Bangladesh, officials said.

The election, hailed as a first step to restore democracy by the army-backed national caretaker government, was the first since a state of emergency was declared in Bangladesh last year.

Dhaka - Thousands of Bangladeshi voters queued Monday in front of heavily guarded polling stations in four cities and nine towns to elect mayors in a landmark move to strengthen local governments, officials said.

The election, hailed as a first step to restore democracy by the army-backed national caretaker government, is the first since a state of emergency was declared in Bangladesh last year.

General elections, which were postponed after last year's violence, are now scheduled for December.

Voting in the four cities - Sylhet, Khulna, Rajshahi and Barisal - as well the nine towns started at 8 am (0200 GMT).

Dhaka, Aug 2 : At least 1800 Bangladeshis have been deported from Gulf States and Saudi Arabia.

Dhaka Airport officials claimed that nearly 170 Bangladeshi workers returned home from Kuwait on Friday, complaining that they had been beaten and expelled after taking part in a rare labour protest in the Gulf state.

Another batch of nearly 250 Bangladeshis flew back to Dhaka from Saudi Arabia on Friday saying they also had been summarily expelled.