06 February 2005	Sunday	26 Zilhaj 1425

DHAKA, Feb 5: At least 150 people were injured in sporadic clashes mainly between the law enforcers and opposition pickets on the first day of the countrywide non-stop 36-hour general strike, began on Saturday morning.

Police arrested 200 political activists from different parts of the country as they locked in clashes with police during the stoppage sponsored by the main opposition party Awami League and its allies.

Reports reaching Dhaka from the districts say violence marked the hartal in many places including Chittagong, Nilphamari, Natore, Bhairab, Narshingdi on the first day of second spell of non-stop strike. In Dhaka, some opposition MPs were seen assaulted by the police in the morning.

The pro-hartal pickets damaged a good number of public transports plying the Dhaka streets.

The opposition parties enforced a 60-hour non-stop shutdown on Jan 29, 30 and 31, and then a 12-hour on Feb 3 and a 36-hour hartal on Feb 4 and 5 to protest the grenade attack on an Awami League rally in Habiganj on Jan 27.

However, the strike disrupted normal life and business activities throughout the country on Saturday.

Airport sources said that three out of eight scheduled flights including two GMG and one Bangladesh Biman were cancelled due to strike while the rest five flights including an international one were operated from Shah Amanat International Airport usually.

The intercity trains and local mails ran uninterruptedly with fewer passengers, Bangladesh Railway sources said.

Activities inside the Chittagong port were normal but transportation of goods to and from Chittagong remained disrupted for non-availability of truck and lorry, sources at Chittagong Port said.

Agencies add: The government doubled the number of security personnel deployed in Dhaka ahead of strike.

Nearly 11,000 police, paramilitary troops and other security forces were on duty in Dhaka, where there were few buses and taxis on the usually teeming streets.

Police said the doubling of security personnel included 300 specially trained women police brought into the capital from outlying districts to tame women opposition activists - who often turn violent - during the strike.

Abdul Jalil, general secretary of the main opposition Awami League, said on Friday the strikes were aimed at toppling what he called the failed government of Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia.

The opposition has been campaigning to oust Khaleda for several years, accusing her government of being corrupt, inefficient and repressive.

JOURNALISTS INJURED: Two journalists were injured, one seriously, when a bomb exploded on Saturday in the southern Bangladeshi city of Khulna, police said.

The explosion occurred outside the city's press club, deputy inspector general of police M.A. Aziz Sarker said.

"Two journalists were injured, one of them seriously," he said. "We believe the explosion was caused by a bomb and we are investigating the matter."

No arrests have been made, he said.