If you have missed out on all the latest updates of the day, then don't worry, we got you all covered. Find out the gist of the top 5 stories of The Daily Star today.

Dhaka once again world's most polluted city

Dhaka has once again topped the list of world cities with worst air quality. With an air quality index (AQI) score of 251 at 8:53am today, Dhaka ranked first in the list of cities with worst air. Dhaka has long been grappling with air pollution issues. Its air quality usually turns unhealthy in winter and improves during the monsoon.

Messi agrees to stay at PSG

Lionel Messi will celebrate his World Cup triumph by agreeing to stay at Paris Saint-Germain. He attempts to steer the French side to an elusive Champions League title.

The 35-year-old, who led Argentina to victory in the World Cup final against France in Qatar last weekend, will pen a one-season extension to his current deal in the French capital which expires in the summer.

Dumping bodies: Rivers are criminals' preferred site

At least 92 bodies remain unidentified after police recovered them from different rivers across the country in the first 10 months of this year, according to a database of the river police headquarters. Eighty-eight bodies recovered last year are still not identified. Most of the bodies were found in the four rivers surrounding Dhaka.

River police filed 41 murder cases until October this year and 36 murder cases last year, according to data. It is a race against time for the people dealing with such bodies since they are not able to preserve the bodies in refrigerators. For this reason, they have to bury the bodies after two or three days, said morgue sources.

UN Security Council adopts first ever Myanmar resolution

A general view shows a United Nations Security Council meeting during a vote on a draft resolution calling for an immediate end to violence in Myanmar and release of political prisoners, at the UN headquarters in New York on December 22, 2022. Photo: AFP

The UN Security Council called for Myanmar's junta to release Aung San Suu Kyi as it adopted its first ever resolution on the situation in the turmoil-ridden Southeast Asian country.

The 15-member Council has been split on Myanmar for decades and was previously only able to agree on formal statements about the country, which has been under military rule since February 2021. Suu Kyi, 77, has been a prisoner since the army toppled her government almost two years ago and violently cracked down on dissent.

Macroeconomic stability

Bangladesh Bank has published a research work carried out by its Chief Economist's Unit where it cited various risks emanating from the ongoing volatility in the country's foreign exchange sector.

The report said the unprecedented depreciation of the taka has contributed to the increase in the private sector credit growth at higher rates in recent times.

After carrying out the study, the central bank made an observation: "In view of tackling external factors-driven imported inflation, there are not many policy options available other than making appropriate supply-side interventions while managing the exchange rate adversities requires market-oriented flexibility."