Prothom Alo steps into the Gulf
![[From left] The Peninsula editor-in-chief Khalid Al Sayed, Bangladeshi ambassador in Doha Syed Masud Mahmood Khundoker, Prothom Alo editor Matiur Rahman and Dar Al-Sharq Foreign Publications manager Neegal Noronha hold copies of Prothom Alo Weekly Gulf Edition at its launching ceremony in Doha on Wednesday. Photo: Prothom Alo](http://media.prothomalo.com/prothomalo-english%2Fimport%2Fmedia%2F2014%2F10%2F18%2Fdc7b7d285dd822a17409ee56bd1b768b-Prothom-Alo-in-Qatar-2.jpg?w=640&auto=format%2Ccompress)
Prothom Alo launched its Weekly Gulf Edition for Qatar and Bahrain through a brief but glittering ceremony at Doha in Qatar on Wednesday.
The initiative will provide news and opinions for millions of Bangali expatriates and immigrants in Bangla language on every Thursday. The paper will be available in 350 sales centres in Qatar and 200 in Bahrain.
It is for the very first time that any national daily of Bangladesh is being printed and distributed outside the country.
The prestigious Qatar-based publication house Dar al Sharq prints and distributes Prothom Alo Weekly Gulf Edition. The house presently brings out two popular dailies in the Gulf — The Peninsula in English and Al Sharq in Arabic — and Sayyidat al Sharq, an Arabic magazine for women.
It also prints the International Herald Tribune, Lebanese Daily Star and Al Akhbar newspapers, Malayalam Varthamanam Daily from India, Nepalese weekly Rajdhani and Sri Lankan weekly Lankadeep.
The Peninsula editor-in-chief Khalid Al Sayed, while addressing the inaugural ceremony at the Dar al Sharq auditorium, said the publishing house takes pride in joining a relation with Bangladeshis living in the Gulf.
He said Bangladesh is a trusted friend of Qatar and in his long professional life he achieved many things from the people of Bangladesh.
Bangladeshi ambassador in Doha Syed Masud Mahmood Khundoker joined the programme that began in the early evening. He said the publication had opened a new dimension in Bangladesh-Qatar relationship. This day was not only memorable, but historic, he added.
He also said that it was a duty for all Bangladeshis to uphold the new triumph procession.
![[From left] The Peninsula editor-in-chief Khalid Al Sayed, Bangladeshi ambassador in Doha Syed Masud Mahmood Khundoker, Prothom Alo editor Matiur Rahman and Dar Al-Sharq Foreign Publications manager Neegal Noronha cut a cake at the launch of Prothom Alo Weekly Gulf Edition at a ceremony in Doha on Wednesday. Photo: Prothom Alo](http://media.prothomalo.com/prothomalo-english%2Fimport%2Fmedia%2F2014%2F10%2F16%2Fec3f09d04dedac7dd619f4024195916c-Quatar-resize-2.jpg?w=640&auto=format%2Ccompress)
Prothom Alo editor Matiur Rahman thanked the people involved in the operation.
He said Prothom Alo was proud and grateful for its launch in the Gulf.
The edition's primary goal is to present news of Bangladesh to its people staying on a foreign land, he added.
The programme was attended by eminent personalities and leading journalists of Qatar.
A 12-page special supplement accompanied the maiden 16-page issue.
Earlier, Prothom Alo editor Matiur Rahman greeted people at several markets and shops in Qatar on Wednesday and announced the launch of its Gulf edition.
He also exchanged views with teachers and students of Bangladeshi origins and distributed free copies of the edition.