Author: The Chief Editor

The interim government of Bangladesh has amended the Public Service Ordinance 2018, leading to protests. According to multiple sources, government employees carried out protests in the Bangladesh Secretariat in Dhaka for several days. After the talks with the high authority, the protesters canceled their protests for now. While the interim government says that the 2025 Public Service (Amendment) Ordinance has more scope to discipline unruly public officials, the protesters demand its complete cancellation. The protesters have withdrawn protests for now after talking with the government. But it remains uncertain how much the changes are justified and whether the protesters will…

Several peace talks have raised hopes for the resolution of the Ukraine war, which has been going on for more than three years. According to multiple sources including the British Broadcasting Corporation and Cable News Network, while several peace talks were held between the United States and Russia in Saudi Arabia, direct peace talks were held between Russia and Ukraine. The success of the US-Russia peace talks is the Russia-Ukraine peace talks in Istanbul. Positively saying, their direct peace talks have made several outcomes including the release of prisoners of war — though no concrete peace terms have yet been reached…

Hindering food supplies to Gaza has led to concerns. According to multiple sources including the British Broadcasting Corporation and Cable News Network, Israel has cut off food supplies to Gaza. The UN World Food Programme says all its food stocks are depleted in Gaza. The cut of the food aid corridor by Israel, which resumed its offensive against Gaza two weeks after the collapse of the two-month Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal, has led to food shortages of different sorts. The food blockade — imposed since March 2 —has exacerbated the already fragile markets and food systems in the war-affected Gaza Strip,…

The ending of the Ukraine war has become uncertain, leading to concerns. According to multiple sources including the British Broadcasting Corporation and Cable News Network, the United States is going to shift its Ukraine peace mediation, indicating the possibility of its stopping in the future, and has mostly left the efforts to the warring parties. This decision came after the unwillingness of Russia to reach a proposed ceasefire with Ukraine, making the situation complicated and riskier. Though the US, which signed a Mineral deal with Ukraine, has not yet completely left the promising resolution initiative, its leaving may not be…

Tensions have increased between nuclear-armed India and Pakistan, leading to concerns. According to multiple sources including the British Broadcasting Corporation and Cable News Network, India and Pakistan have been exchanging fires at the border for several days following an attack on tourists in an Indian village — near the picturesque town of Pahalgam — in the Himalayan region that led to 26 deaths. India suspects Pakistan for the deadly attack, leading to growing tensions between the parties with fires from both parties along the Line of Control. But Pakistan denies its involvement and says India’s accusations are entirely baseless. However,…

Tanzania has banned the main opposition party from elections, leading to concerns. According to multiple sources including the British Broadcasting Corporation and Cable News Network, Tanzania’s main opposition party Chadema is barred from participating in the 2025 elections, expected to be held in October following its failure to sign a code of conduct document days after its leader Tundu Lissu — who called for electoral reforms at a political rally in Southern Tanzania for free and fair elections — was charged with treason, deemed to be politically motivated. However, it remains unclear whether the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections will be free,…

The passing of controversial legislation in Indonesia has led to concerns. According to multiple sources including the BBC and CNN, the parliament of Indonesia passed changes to the legislation in March this year that now allows a bigger role of the military in the government. Military officers will be able to take up positions in the government, even without first retiring or resigning from the armed forces — if implemented — leading to the protests of hundreds of pro-democracy activists outside the parliament in the capital city of Indonesia. But it remains unclear whether the changes made in the legislation will bring…

The arrest of the opposition leader led to a huge protest in Turkey. According to multiple sources including the BBC and CNN, Ekrem Imamoglu, the mayor of Istanbul and the leader of the opposition, was arrested a few days ago, leading to the protests of tens of thousands of protesters across Turkey. The opposition leader —who was also suspended from the post of Mayor — was due to be selected as the 2028 presidential nominee of the Republican People’s Party in a vote this month. The protests in the meantime led to more than 1400 arrests. But it remains unclear…

Improving political culture is vital in Bangladesh. The 2024 July-August mass uprisings — which led to the ouster of the Hasina-led government — have reminded the importance of improving political culture and created its scope. The Yunus-led interim government has made various steps including reform steps which have the potential for improvements in political culture in Bangladesh since there will be changes in different laws that will increase checks and balances and secure more transparency and accountability in the government and political parties that can reduce the scope of the dictatorship. But it remains unclear whether and how much the chance of…

The deaths of political prisoners are a concern in Venezuela. According to multiple sources including the British Broadcasting Corporation, as the information of the Venezuelan Prison Observatory NGO reveals, 20 political prisoners have died in custody over the past few years in Venezuela. The latest was Reinaldo Araujo — a political prisoner and a leader of the Vente Venezuela party in the Trujillo state of Venezuela— who died last month in jail. Despite criticisms against the government, it remains unclear whether the deaths of political prisoners will end in Venezuela, which has one of the largest numbers of such prisoners in the…