Jamaat\\\'s hartal underway

Jamaat-e-Islami’s nationwide 24-hour hartal (shutdown) is underway since Wednesday morning. The shutdown began at 6:00am today, and will end at 6:00am on Thursday. No long haul buses (inter-district) or trucks left Dhaka city for other districts since 6 in the morning. Movements of vehicles have also been thin in the capital since morning. However, no picketing or unexpected incidents were reported till filing of this report at 9:02am. On Tuesday, Jamaat called the shutdown protesting the Supreme Court (SC) Appeallate Division's verdict that upheld the death sentence to its secretary general Ali Ahsan Mujahid for his crimes against humanity during the country's independence struggles in 1971. A four-member bench of the SC's Appellate Division led by Chief Justice SK Sinha delivered the verdict around 9:00am on Tuesday. Ambulance, freezer van, vehicles of hospital, fire service and media will remain out of purview of hartal.