ICT-1 gets report on Mir Kashem probe

The prosecution on Sunday submitted to the International Crimes Tribunal a report on the progress of investigation into war crimes allegedly committed by Jamaat-e-Islami central leader Mir Kashem Ali.
Prosecutor Sultan Mahmud submitted the progress report as soon as the tribunal had started its day's proceedings in the morning.
ICT-1 led by Justice Nizamul Haque ordered to complete the investigation by September 27.
After submission of the report, prosecutor appealed to the tribunal to give them time to complete the investigation against the Jamaat leader.
In this situation, the tribunal asked the prosecution to complete the investigation by the stipulated time or submit a report before it on the progress of investigation on that very day.
Mir Kashem was produced before the tribunal from Dhaka Central Jail during the day's proceedings.
Kashem was arrested at a newspaper office in Dhaka on June 17 two hours within the tribunal had issued arrest warrant against him for his alleged involvement with crimes against humanity.
The tribunal later sent him to jail with a custodial warrant.
Mir Kashem, who lived in Harirampur of Manikganj in Chittagong in 1971, was known as Mintu then.
In his youth, he was an activist of the Islami Chhatra Sangha, the then student wing of the Jamaat-e-Islami.
Six top Jamaat leaders--Ghulam Azam, Matiur Rahman Nizami, Delawar Hossain Sayedee, Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed, Mohammad Kamaruzzaman and Quader Mollah--and two BNP leaders--Salahuddin Quader Chowdhury and Abdul Alim--are now being tried before the tribunals.

SA U-19 shock Bangladesh

A blistering 95 off 93 by opener Q de Kock which was well-supported by TB de Bruyn helped South Africa U-19 to seal a 133-run victory over Bangladesh at Brisbane in Australia on Sunday.
Put to bat first, South Africa scored a competitive total of 294 losing eight wickets in allotted 50 overs in the fifth match of ICC Under-19 World Cup.
TB de Bruyn scored 63 from 54 balls as Bangladeshi bowlers Noor Hossain and Nasum Ahmed grabbed three wickets respectively while Naeem Islam jnr and Soumya Sarkar took one wicket each.
Bangladesh faced early batting jolt when they lost both their openers - Soumya Sarkar and Liton Das early at only 25 runs.
Chasing the target of 295 runs, Bangladesh obtained only 133 runs as they bundled out for 161 runs at 34.3 overs.
Earlier, Bangladesh earned their first victory stunning Sri Lanka by 25 runs in their opening match at Brisbane on Saturday.

Cambodia by Bicycle

Whenever you see three Cambodians, remember the fourth one who was killed by the Khmer Rouge.” A friend shared this sobering thought on the eve of a special adventure I was about to embark on: a bicycling trip from Bangkok to Angkor Wat in Cambodia. While this undercurrent of sadness was a part of the trip, my adventure was also filled with unexpected challenges, friendly people, and awe at seeing the magnificent ruins at Angkor.After spending our first day (March 14) cycling in Thailand, we reached the Cambodian border at Prum at noon of the second day. We bicycled onward 17 km to Pailin and stopped there for the night. Pailin is famous for two things: sapphire mines nearby and several retired Khmer Rouge officials. Luckily I did not run into the latter while exploring the town in the afternoon. The streets of Pailin were torn up for installing sewage pipes and it was dusty and hot. Many more children than I had seen in Thailand played in the streets. The market reminded me of the bazaars of the smaller towns of Bangladesh, with the vendors waiting with their offerings while their children entertained.
The next day was our most difficult: 92km from Pailin to Battambang, the second largest town of Cambodia. Expecting another hot day (mid-30s) we started bicycling at 7am. Having braved Dhaka's traffic and shattered roads for many years, riding through Pailin's potholes was easy for me. But just outside the town I ran into trouble. That's because we started climbing the foothills of the Cardamom Mountains.

Naturally Narail

WE were supposed to visit Narail months ago. But then many moons moaned by and all our plans collapsed one after another for one reason or another. Finally when we found time, it began with a disaster.
On a perfectly nice winter morning, we parked our car at the Mawa police station for two nights and went over to the speedboat terminal. On the other side of the Padma would wait a microbus. This arrangement would have been the quickest to Narail. With a heavy backpack and the jacket wrapped round my hand, I first stepped on the front deck of the speedboat. As I was about to step inside the canopy, two more halfwit fellow travellers with no knowledge of a speedboat's behaviour jumped in.
It took a second for the boat to rock vigorously, like a bucking horse; and the next second I found myself floating on the Padma. My backpack felt like a tonne of brick and impossible to dislodge. My jackets were fitted tightly. Somehow I swam against a current that was trying to carry me out to the middle. Then I found the white hull of the speedboat above my head. I grabbed its edge and calmed myself.
Then I was laughing manically. All those birdbrains responsible for the mayhem and my watery state were also in water. All with their backpacks and one of them swimming like a rat thrown into the pond.
There were people stretching out their hands to me and I caught a few of them, or they rather caught me and pulled. Try to climb onto a speedboat from the river and find out how difficult it is. Almost when I was thinking the rest of my life would be spent on the Padma bobbing like the float of a fishing rod, they landed me on the deck. The rest were rescued as well.
Drenched, we sat like some catfish and chattered teeth as the speedboat roared through the Padma for half an hour. I tried to see the best of the river view -- the seagulls dancing on the waves, the long sandy beaches and wonderful squirt of silts thrown up by dredgers looking like whales spraying water.
Thankfully, the chilly ride was over, but not our indignation. All the fools on the other side of the bank -- from village morons to newly-wed girls going to in-law's house -- asked if we fell over the speedboat. Our answers varied -- No, we were scuba-diving, only we forgot to change clothes; No, we were up in the sky too high and got drenched by the clouds; No, we are Argentinean pearl fishers.
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Once on the other side, the journey transformed into one of bliss and wonderment. The road was wide and empty eerily empty for Bangladesh . For minutes we traveled before meeting another vehicle. The roadside view also changed dramatically. The fields spread away to the horizon and uncountable palm trees gave that special feature to the landscape. Then I realized all those tals we have in Dhaka must have come from here. Jute sticks were piled up along the road in the most interesting fashion. The stacks looked like witches' hats.
In exactly four and a half hours from our journey in Dhaka we found a narrow side road and followed it to a beautiful river. The narrow river meandered very gracefully through bright yellow mustard fields. Not a ripple in it. Its marbled water looked almost blue. Only occasionally a jute-laden boat would appear lazily and sail away.
A few blackened figures stood knee-deep in the river and used buckets to throw water onto their saplings on the slanted paddy fields. We looked at the cotton-balling clouds above and inhaled the utterly village smell -- of water, mud, mustard and paddy -- and knew heaven is here.
There was a strange ferry here -- a private one inscribed “Arunima Modhumoti Ferry” on it. Its triangle shape made us to research out that it was in fact the sawed-off front of a steel boat, probably a cargo ship. A Chinese diesel engine has been fitted to its side in a watchtower like room.
It took us a few minutes to cross the ferry. Here we had to board a rickshaw-van. A ten-minute trip through a village took us to the resort Arunima Countriside. The tree-frilled wide road welcomed us inside the sprawling resort to a cosy bungalow.
It's a beautiful place full of tall trees and big ponds. There was a beel as well -- a water body so huge that the end part of it had been turned into a bird sanctuary. Amid thousands of red lotus were nesting the winter birds, mostly whistling teals, cormorants, egrets and herons.
On the bank of the beel is the dining place. We watched the birds cackling and whistling and rising above the water and dropping again as we had our lunch.
I took a stroll around the resort. It has many promises. The whole place has been turned into a golf course as well. We were told that a team from Dhaka Club had recently come here to play. The landscaping has been outstanding at places. So close to the Dhaka city, it could be anybody's dream retreat. With conference rooms and all, a corporate attraction.
The bamboo rooms with ACs and all by the beel are interesting. Only their balconies are too narrow for any meaningful lazing.
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There was this big field behind our bungalow and a high ground for the golf tee. We sat there in the after noon and watched two horses grazing nearby. There was this lonely farmland beyond the field -- the paddy stalks looked dry and golden in the dying sun. A long stretch of tall trees lined round the field like a looming forest.
Suddenly the sun died down and a fine layer of mist settled in. A little girl in a red frock limped along the field. The sun was now hanging very low, looking like a pink fireball. The horses neighed. The cackling of the birds peaked as their nesting time neared.
We watched the whole Dalisque transformation of nature and felt content.
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Before evening we took a walk through the village. It was the most beautiful village I had ever come across. Bamboo huts with clean yards fenced off with hedges. The traditional bamboo pigeon pens hanging under the ceiling ledges. The calf with their mothers chewing the cud. The jute straws burning in the mud oven. That old acrid smell.
You could hear the children's laughter and the silhouettes of the women cooking in the outhouse. The kerosene lamps and the burning firewood throwing a kind of wavering glow on the faces. The men were sitting in the yards, puffing on their hukkas. Their faces content with the smell of the hays stacked in the corner. The harvesting was just completed and it was a good year. The rain had lifted the crops in time and the pests were few.
Then I heard the unmistakable hoots. Our searching eyes found two owlets sitting in the gathering dusk on the electric line passing over the barren field. They were waiting for the field mice to come out.
We left them to their own affairs and walked to the Modhumati river. A half moon had cast a magic spell and flooded the river silver. We could see as far as the farthest bend. The river lay there prattling some mysterious songs to the universe.
We listened as a perfect night closed in.
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It was time to come back. This time at Mawa we were extra cautious while getting on the speedboat. One after another we filed ourselves. No rush. Ah. All safe.
After about fifteen minutes we were in the middle of the Padma and something queer caught our eyes. Lots of speedboats were moored in the mid-river. What are they doing, we wondered. First I thought they were tourists enjoying the Padma cruise. But what interests should tourists find here? Then they must be some kind of geological surveyors looking for minerals. But then why so many women and children?
Just then our speedboat passed by one stationary boat. To our surprise we found that the outboard engine had been taken apart and the boatman was fiddling with it. Then we passed another boat and its engine was also dismounted. We passed another and another. And then we realized what had happened. The river was so shallow here that the boats were all stuck.
Hardly a second went by before our boat suddenly stopped with a sudden jerk and three of us just simply tumbled over into the river. The same three. I stood up sheepishly, all wet once again. But then I again started laughing maniacally.
Whoever has ever heard of the Padma flowing just ankle deep in midstream?

The temple at last

Ada Chai forest station looked forlorn in this deep forest -- an outstation with a pale existence. We walked down a long wooden pier that had developed gaping holes through its rotten wood planks. At the end of it was the wooden station its planks blacked by continuous rain, damp, musty smell hanging in the air. The lanterns could hardly beat the gloom of the gathering dusk as we entered the ramshackle station. The dampness enters your inside and you feel dizzy. I was taken aback by the unbelievably sorry living condition of the foresters.
What surprised me more was the backyard of the station. A long pier about ten feet above the ground had run to the toilets. And it was protected with tightly knit golpata partition all the way. The floor was also made with solid wood.
“The man-eaters,” one of the foresters smiled. “This is a tiger infested area. Only a few days ago, a tiger visited our station. We don't want to get dragged away at night while going out to the toilet.”
We took a short walk at the back of the station. Thick thorny hetal bush had spread all the way to the keora forest.
“Don't walk any further,” a forester warned. “The tiger often sleeps in this forest. We should not take risk at this hour.”
We felt bad for these people who were living in constant fear of the big cats. And worst still, their life had turned bleaker by the lack of drinking water. The only fresh water pond had become unusable after Aila had dumped salt water into it. Tonight they were left with only a jug of water and if fresh rain did not come tonight they would be left without any.
It was getting late and we had to leave the station in a sullen mood, leaving the poor souls to fend for themselves. As our boat crossed the river to the ship, we could see Shibsha forest on our left where that mysterious temple sits tight amidst thick forest and where that even more mysterious tiger lives. Tomorrow we are going to look for it.
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The day began with a heavily overcast sky. It rained the whole time last night and it was now drizzling. Breakfast was quick and then the ship set out along the Shibsha River. But at the entry to the Shibshah canal we had to anchor again. It was now low tide and we waited for the high tide so that we could enter the serpentine canals in an engine boat.
From here, I looked out to the deep forest lying ahead and wondered what a daunting task it was for Raja Protapadittya to set up a township here to fight the pirates some 450 years ago. Who were those brave men and women who came to this wilderness and tried in vain to make this place liveable? We were here to get inside that deep forest to have a look at the remnants of the temple that was built by the Pratapadittya settlers.
The tide turned soon and we took the engine boat to cross the choppy stretch of the river to enter the channel that twisted through the deep forest and gradually became narrower. We saw a huge white-bellied sea eagle slowly winging above us to the other side of the forest. What a majestic bird it is! We saw a honey buzzard and a grey-headed eagle too.
The journey was becoming mysterious now and we felt a kind of adrenaline rush thinking about the temple tiger. We were slowly rowing and a strange kind of silence had wrapped us tight. There were no songbirds singing. Only the crowing of an occasional red jungle fowl proved that it was not a dead forest.
Rows of golpata and hetal bushes frilled the blackish muddy banks. Beyond them stood the sundari and kewra and myriad other varieties in a tangle to form a dense forest. Reza Khan pointed out to the hetal fruits and said these are a variety of dates. They looked brilliant orange. Mudskippers and blue fiddler crabs crawled the banks among sharply pointed breathing shoots.
The canal had become so narrow here that the boatmen climbed down in the mud and pushed the boat as oars were of no use here. Khosru was looking intently ahead to locate the canal that would take us closest to the temple. The spiky hetal branches were brushing our faces and we had to be careful to save our eyes. It was drizzling again.
Suddenly Khosru signalled to stop. He was silently pointing to the bank. The pugmark was definitely imprinted a few minutes ago -- a huge male tiger had jumped across the canal. The claw marks were sharp and fresh -- the swampy mud had not blunted them yet. We silently watched the mark, a weird feeling descending upon us. We did not know whether the tiger was watching us from behind the bushes. What was he thinking?
From the boat we stepped right onto the bank and sank knee-deep in the spongy mud. Very slowly we climbed up the steep slope and found ourselves into a hedo bush. Hedo is the ideal place for tigers in the Sundarbans as the cats can use the reed like plants as mat to sleep on in the swamp forest.
“Everybody! Shout! Shout loudly!” Siraj yelled. “Not every forest is a good place to sight a tiger. Make noise as much as you can!” Siraj had seen some recent human victims of tiger attack and the memories were still fresh in his mind.
“Whaaaoooo,” we hollered, almost in unison. And we started walking, trying to cross the hedo brushwood as quickly as possible. But however fast we tried, our progress was painfully slow. Every step saw us sinking deeper in the most sticky mud. And we almost lost balance with every step too. That posed a most perilous prospect as the sharp breathing shoots were everywhere around us in great numbers. One fall and at least ten of them would pierce you through.
But then there were two more dangers. Our shoes were getting stuck in the mud and we had to vigorously pull our legs to free them. This was really challenging. And then we had to first place our foot slowly and carefully to be sure that we were not stepping on any breathing shoots hidden in the mud.
Some of us were slowing down and Khosru shouted us to a halt.
“One guard in the front and the other in the rear,” he ordered. “Everybody must be covered by the guards. No-one should fall behind!”
I very much doubted how much protection the two forest guards could provide in case of a tiger attack. Before they could aim their rifles, they would skid and roll over on the mud. But still they gave us a kind of mental protection -- by now a strange kind of fear had seeped into our mind and we did not want to meet this mysterious temple tiger any more.
Soon one by one we got rid of the shoes because with them on it was impossible to move any further. Barefooted, we were exposed to more danger though. Anytime a breathing shoot could nail through our soles. And a little later our situation was further jeopardised as Reza Khan dragged out a dog-faced water snake by its tail from the mud. Who knows how many of them are lying on our path. And I remembered Khosru warning us to be extremely careful at the temple sight because it is teeming with cobras.
Thickets brushed against our faces and they stung like wasps. The drizzle, the danger, the crooked branches of the trees and the deep shadow of the forest created a ghoulish atmosphere. Suddenly Reza Khan stopped dead. He was the only guy still courting a boot.
“The tiger is close by,” he whistled. “It is stalking us.”
The words hit us like bullets and froze us for a moment. An icy wave trickled down my spine. We felt helpless in this terrible terrain. For the first time, I resented having come here. And I did not know whether I would have the energy left, if not life itself, to cross the same distance back. Worst of all, we had no idea how much path we had yet to cross to the temple.
“Shout louder!” Khosru ordered and we tried to best use our lungs. Someone suggested the guards shoot in the air. But the foresters looked unsure they have to explain to their officers for any bullet spent.
“It's useless,” Ronald Haldar murmured beside me. “If it is a man-eater, no shouts can deter it.”
“But we are twenty together. The tiger surely would not dare to attack such a large pack,” I said hopingly.
“Ha! There you say,” Ronald snorted. “I know of tiger attacks on bigger packs. Man-eaters are man-eaters.”
We started walking faster now probably by the fear of the unseen tiger softly following us. And no-one wanted to be too far away from the guards. After sometime, I lost track of time. We were all walking mechanically like some haunted souls. Plop, plop, our feet rose and fell in the mud. I was no longer glancing at the reeds that almost sandwiched us from all sides. We just kept treading. In empty heads. In empty minds. And then finally came in view a bright brick structure through the bush.
Slowly the temple became clearer. It is about 30 feet high, a very old structure. The thin bricks had lost their sharpness of edge over the centuries. Plants had grown all over it, darkening its haunted look. There was an opening through which we tentatively stepped inside and held still for a few seconds. We did not want to be bitten by a cobra. Then as vision adjusted to the semi-darkness we panned our eyes around and then tilted up. It was a small place, about 350 square feet. The ceiling had arched and showed some obscure designs. Some 450 years ago, people used to come here and place their offerings. Smell of incense would swirl in the air, mixing with the strange outer smell of the forest. Sundarbans would then become a magical existence. Some 450 years ago, these people the kaguji or papermakers and molongi the salt producers would find spirituality in the shadows of this temple.
Someone called out from outside and my spell was broken.
“Tiger marks!” a voice was heard.
Right beside the temple we saw the pugmarks of the temple tiger. So fresh that even the grasses were yet to lose their rumple. It looked like a tigress. Was the large canal-crossing male its mate? The tigress was probably resting on the high ground of the temple when its sleep was disturbed by our shouts. She got up and went down to see who the intruders were to enter her kingdom.
“We must get back fast,” Khosru announced.
Headcounts were done and we lined up again -- one guard in the front, another in the rear. Then we plodded on through the mud, through the needles, through the same danger. Again.

Global food prices spiralling again

Global food prices shot up last month due to extreme weather conditions, says the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
The price spike has raised the spectre of a food crisis like the one in 2007-2008 that badly hurt the world's poorest.
Unveiling a report on Thursday, the FAO said its food index rose 6 percent in July from June after dropping for three consecutive months.
The rebound of the index, which measures the monthly change in the international prices of staple foods, was driven by a sharp rise in grain and sugar prices.
Extensive drought in the United States pushed up maize prices by almost 23 percent in July, said the Rome-based UN agency. The US is the world's No. 1 exporter of maize.
During the same period, wheat prices surged 19 percent, as dry weather worsened production prospects in the Russian Federation.
July also saw a sharp increase in the price of sugar. The upturn, ending a steady fall since March, was triggered by untimely rains in Brazil, the world's largest sugar exporter. Poor rains in Australia also contributed, the FAO said.
A drought-like situation in some states of India, one of the world's largest food producers and consumers, may dent the production prospects of grains, sugarcane, pulses and oil seeds and cotton this season.
A piece of good news is that international rice prices remain mostly unchanged, as do dairy prices. The FAO's meat price index also fell.
The UN body closely monitors global food prices, as the cost of food is of constant concern for the poor. Hikes in recent years have led to riots in some countries.
Meanwhile, as a food-importing country, Bangladesh is alarmed by the looming crisis.
Making things gloomier is the lack of enough rain threatening a setback in domestic production of Aman rice this year.
Food Minister Abdur Razzaque said, "We are worried at the below-normal rainfall at home this year."
He added that his ministry had sought weather projections and relevant data from the meteorological office and the Water Development Board (WDB) to assess the situation.
The minister was talking to The Daily Star on Tuesday, hours after the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) issued a statement warning that the most severe and extensive drought in the US since the 1950s was adversely affecting production of maize and soybeans, driving up prices of agricultural products.
Considering the gravity of the situation, the Washington-based food policy think-tank asked for a halt to biofuel production from maize.
According to the Economic Research Service of the US Department of Agriculture, about 40 percent of maize and soybean, and 44 percent of livestock are produced in areas experiencing severe drought.
The IFPRI statement read, "Prices of maize and soybeans have already started to rise rapidly and could increase further depending on the degree of severity and extent of the drought. In the past two months alone, US export prices for maize and soybean increased by 30 and 19 percent respectively, with prices of both crops reaching record highs."
Abdur Razzaque said that in a little over a month, Bangladesh's import price for wheat rose from $280 to $335 a tonne.
"We'll be seriously affected if US drought situation pushes further, particularly in the prices of soybean oil and poultry feed (prepared from de-oiled soybean meal)."
Bangladesh is the 7th largest importer of soybean oil, and along with Brazil and India, the US is also a source country for its edible oil supplies, Razzaque added.
The food minister said if the pattern of less-than-normal rainfall persisted, it would have a negative bearing on the rain-fed Aman, now in the fields.
Met office figures show -- except for Chittagong and Rangpur -- all divisions in the country experienced less than average rainfall last month. Rainfall in Rajshahi was 33 percent less than the average, in Sylhet 31 percent, Dhaka 22 percent, Barisal 21 percent and in Khulna 6 percent less.
Farmers in the country's rice-rich northern region are awaiting a good shower so that they don't require any supplementary irrigation for the Aman production.
Arifuzzaman Bhuiyan, a sub-divisional engineer at the WDB Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre, told this correspondent that the country experienced less than normal rainfall both in June and July.
Explaining the weather charts from the Met office, Arifuzzaman said there was no prospect of a good rainfall in the first half of this month either. He, however, pinned high hopes on the prospect of a downpour in the later part of the month.

Nasa's Morpheus lander in fiery crash

A small Nasa lander being tested for missions to the moon and other destinations beyond Earth crashed and burned after veering off course during a trial run at the Kennedy Space Centre on Thursday, officials with the US space agency said.
There were no injuries after the prototype, known as Morpheus, burst into flames near the runway formerly used by Nasa's space shuttles.
The insect-like vehicle, designed and built by engineers at Nasa's Johnson Space Centre in Houston, had made several flights attached to a crane before Thursday's attempted free-flight.
Morpheus' engines, which burn liquid oxygen and methane, appeared to ignite as planned, lifting the 1,750-pound (794 kg) vehicle into the air. But a few seconds later, Morpheus rolled over on its side and plummeted to the ground.
Nasa video showed the vehicle engulfed in flames and then rocked by a spectacular explosion, presumably due to the fuel tanks rupturing.
“"Failures such as these were anticipated prior to the test, and are part of the development process for any complex spaceflight hardware," Nasa said in a statement.
An investigation is under way, the statement added.
Project Morpheus began in partnership with privately owned Armadillo Aerospace, which is developing re-usable, suborbital vehicles that take off and land vertically.
Nasa, which has spent about $7 million on the project over the past 2-1/2 years, is interested in developing technologies that could be used to fly cargo to the moon and other future missions beyond Earth orbit.
Project Morpheus was an example of what the former project manager called "“Home Depot engineering" - low-budget projects that use existing resources and partner with non-traditional aerospace companies.
“"The Morpheus lander is kind of our poster child. It's one of our first attempts to do these kinds of projects," former project manager Matt Ondler said in an interview with Reuters last year.
“"Instead of building some elaborate test structure, you go to Home Depot and build something very quickly that gets you 80 percent of the answer and allows you to keep moving forward," he said.
Morpheus arrived at Florida's seaside space centre in July for three months of increasingly rigorous test flights, including automated landings in a mock moonscape, complete with craters and boulders.
The lander was designed to deliver about 1,100 pounds (500 kg) of cargo to the moon, Nasa said on its Project Morpheus website.
Technologies being developed include a propulsion system that uses liquid oxygen and methane -- green fuels that could be manufactured on other planetary bodies, Nasa said.
The accident happened as Nasa scientists were still hailing the Mars rover Curiosity's descent and landing on the Red Planet earlier this week as a "“miracle of engineering."

Bolt makes history with 200m gold

Usain Bolt became the first man to retain both Olympic sprint titles as he led home a gold and green Jamaica clean sweep in the 200m.
Bolt matched Michael Johnson's then world-record time from the Atlanta Games of 19.32 seconds as he held off training partner Yohan Blake in silver and Warren Weir in bronze.
Blake had beaten Bolt at the Jamaican trials, his last race over the distance before London, but the double 100m championran a brilliant bend from lane seven to lead by a metre coming into the straight.
Glancing to his left he was aware of Blake closing in a fraction at 150m, but held his form to cross the line with a finger to his lips.
"This is what I wanted and I got it. I'm very proud of myself," the 25-year-old told BBC Sport.
"After a rough season I came out here and did it. I thought the world record was possible. I guess I was fast but not fit enough.
"I could feel my back strain a little bit, so all I did was to keep my form. I'm very dedicated to my work and London meant so much to me."
Blake's 19.44 secs was a season's best, while 22-year-old Weir set a new personal best with 19.84 secs to complete the Jamaican party.
But this was Bolt's race, and these have once again been Bolt's Games.
A month ago, his form questionable and his hamstrings and back giving him serious problems, there was genuine doubt whether the 25-year-old could retain one Olympic title here in London, let alone two.
Bolt has made those misgivings seem laughable. He now has five Olympic gold medals, the most decorated Jamaican Olympian of all time, and with the 4x100m still to come can make it six before he heads home to the embrace of an ecstatic nation.
On a warm, still summer evening perfect for sprinting, Bolt had clowned around as he waited to be called to his blocks, as ever a study in easy relaxation despite the magnitude of the occasion.
He flirted with the girl looking after his kit and then gave a regal wave before taking his rivals apart from the moment the gun sounded.
While there was no new mark on Thursday evening, this was the joint fourth fastest 200m in history - a display to rank among the best the event Bolt calls his own has ever seen.

Rebels pull back in Syria's Aleppo, UN says no one will win

Syrian forces have pushed rebels back from a strategic district of Aleppo, but skirmishes continued in the city and the United Nations said the conflict engulfing Syria would have no winner.Diplomats told Reuters that veteran Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi could be named next week to replace the UN-Arab League Syria envoy Kofi Annan, who resigned in frustration at the international deadlock on how to end the violence.
But they warned there could be last-minute changes if a key government had concerns or the candidate had second thoughts.
Assad, engaged in an all-consuming fight with his mostly Sunni opponents, appointed a Sunni as his new prime minister on Thursday after his predecessor fled on Monday in the highest-level defection so far in the uprising that began 17 months ago.
Wael al-Halki, from the southern province of Deraa where the revolt began, replaces Riyad Hijab, who had spent only two months in the job before making a dramatic escape across the border to Jordan.
Assad's authority was already shaken by the assassination last month of four of his top security officials and by rebel gains in Damascus, Aleppo and swathes of rural Syria.
But he has persevered with a crackdown on opponents seeking to end half a century of Baathist rule and topple a system dominated by members of the president's minority Alawite sect.
He has focused his fierce army counter-offensive on Syria's two main cities, reasserting control over much of the capital Damascus before taking the fight to the northern commercial hub.
Rebels fighting in the Aleppo district of Salaheddine, a southern gateway to the city, said they had been forced to fall back from frontline positions on Thursday by a fierce bombardment which had reduced buildings to rubble.
"There have been some withdrawals of Free Syrian Army fighters from Salaheddine," rebel commander Abu Ali said.
Others said the main frontlines in the area, which had been held by rebels for more than a week, were now deserted.
ECHO OF ARTILLERY
The centre of the district, near Salaheddine mosque, was abandoned when Reuters journalists visited on Thursday. The only sound was the constant echo of artillery shelling. There were no rebels, no security forces, and only a few residents darting in and out to pick up belongings - while evading army snipers.
One rebel field commander, who did not want to be named, said 250 people had been killed in Salaheddine in the last three days, mostly by shelling and air attacks.
Rebels said sporadic clashes continued in the district and that while the government had at least 80 tanks stationed in various parts of Aleppo, it appeared reluctant to engage in close combat, preferring to use helicopters and fighter jets.
Sheikh Tawfiq, commander of the Nur al-Din Zinky brigade based on 15th street in Salaheddine, said the army's formidable weaponry was offset by apparently faltering morale.
"At the 10th street front line we are face-to-face with the army and can hear them make orders on their radios -- we hear their commanders give orders to soldiers to advance and they keep urging them to, but the soldiers don't and are hesitant.
"The commanders have even taken away the soldiers' mobile phones so that we don't have a chance to call them and create more defections," he said.
As the battle for Aleppo raged, Iran, Assad's closest foreign backer, called for "serious and inclusive" negotiations between the Syrian government and opposition.
Assad has repeatedly said he is ready for dialogue, but he has vowed to crush the armed rebels he says are terrorists. His opponents say he must step aside before any talks, arguing negotiations would be meaningless while the bloodshed persists.
Iran made the call after gathering diplomats from like-minded states in Tehran for talks on the conflict not attended by Western and most Middle Eastern states, which have demanded Assad end his family's 40-year rule.
The violence has already shown elements of a proxy war between Sunni and Shiites Islam.
"There will be no winner in Syria," UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said in a statement read by a UN representative to the conference in Tehran.
"Now, we face the grim possibility of long-term civil war destroying Syria's rich tapestry of interwoven communities."
AIR ATTACK
Already stretched by rebel activity in many parts of the country, the military, despite its advantage in tanks, warplanes and helicopters, has had to cede ground elsewhere as it struggles for control of Aleppo.
As part of a broader army offensive, Assad's forces attacked rebels on several fronts, including a neighbourhood near the airport in southeast Aleppo, several eastern districts, and a town on Aleppo's northwestern outskirts, state media said.
Despite the violence, the Red Cross delivered food and medical supplies to Aleppo, the first time one of its aid convoys managed to enter the city in several weeks.
Reuters journalists in Tel Rifaat, 35 km (20 miles) north of Aleppo, watched a Syrian air force jet diving and firing rockets, causing villagers to flee in panic.
Explosions rang out and black smoke billowed from an olive grove. A truck was engulfed in flames. Six children and a crying woman fled their tiny home.
One woman held the Koran above her head, kissing it, and another banged her head with her hands. Men stared at the sky and threw their arms up in despair.
Though sympathetic to the rebels, Western powers, Turkey and Sunni Arab states have not intervened militarily.
Russia and China have blocked United Nations action against Assad, while Iran has tried to bolster the Syrian leader in an Arab world where many view non-Arab, Shiites Iran as a menace

S Korea's Lee visits disputed islands

South Korea's president is visiting islands also claimed by Japan, in a move set to raise diplomatic tensions.
Lee Myung-bak flew to the islands, which are known as Dokdo in South Korea and as Takeshima in Japan.
A Kyodo news agency report said Japan had summoned South Korea's ambassador to protest against the visit.
Both South Korea and Japan say they have a historical claim to the islands, and the issue has been a long-standing thorn in relations.
The islands, which are roughly equidistant from the two countries, are small but lie in fishing grounds which could also contain large gas deposits.
South Korea has controlled them since 1954 and stations a small coastguard detachment on them.
Lee is the first South Korean leader to visit the islands. The visit was announced by his spokeswoman early on Friday.
"If the visit is made, it would go against our country's position and so we strongly urge its cancellation," Japanese Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba told journalists.
"We must respond to it firmly."
He said the visit "would definitely have a large impact" on ties.
The South Korean president was first due to visit Ulleung Island before flying on to the disputed area, his spokeswoman said.
Lee's visit comes with the two countries' football teams due to play off for the Olympic bronze medal later in the day.
It also comes shortly before South Korea marks the anniversary of the end of Japanese colonial rule.