Submit your Article

The lower House of the Federal Parliament, House of Representatives (HoR), passed the Federal Civil Service Bill, 2082 with a dozen new provisions on Sunday. 

The Bill was registered in the Parliament one-and-half- year back. 

The Bill has been passed with the provision of two years of cooling off. It is one of the significant features the Bill incorporated. As per the provision, civil servants are barred for two years from retirement from job to get public appointments- constitutional and diplomatic.  

This provision had earlier created an intense debate even among the lawmakers and top bureaucrats, prompting bureaucrats to run from pillars to posts to secure their interest to avoid cooling off. 

Since the registration of the Bill, it has witnessed debates in several other key points such as retirement age, lateral entry, entry age for men/women in civil service, cooling off, arrangement of additional secretary, term of chief secretary.

The current retirement age has been extended by two years, reaching 60. However, it will be enforced phase-wise. In the first year of the enactment, the civil servants will retire at the existing age limit- 58, while those to retire in the next fiscal year at 59 and those in the third fiscal year at 60.

The next meeting of the Parliament will be held on July 7. 

U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday pleaded for progress in ceasefire talks in the war in Gaza, calling for a deal that would halt the fighting in the 20-month-long conflict as Israel and Hamas appeared to be inching closer to an agreement, Associated Press reported.

An Israeli official said plans were being made for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to travel to Washington in the coming weeks, a sign there may be movement on a new deal. The official declined to discuss the focus of the visit and spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss plans that had not yet been finalized.

“MAKE THE DEAL IN GAZA. GET THE HOSTAGES BACK!!!” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social early Sunday between posts about a Senate vote on his tax and spending cuts bill, according to Associated Press.

Trump raised expectations Friday for a deal, saying there could be a ceasefire agreement within the next week. Taking questions from reporters, he said, “We’re working on Gaza and trying to get it taken care of.”

Russia launched its biggest aerial attack against Ukraine overnight, a Ukrainian official said Sunday, part of an escalating bombing campaign that has further dashed hopes for a breakthrough in efforts to end the 3-year-old war, Associated Press reported.

Russia fired a total of 537 aerial weapons at Ukraine, including 477 drones and decoys and 60 missiles, Ukraine’s air force said. Of these, 249 were shot down and 226 were lost, likely having been electronically jammed.

The onslaught was “the most massive airstrike” on the country since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, taking into account both drones and various types of missiles, Yuriy Ihnat, head of communications for Ukraine’s air force, told The Associated Press. The attack targeted several regions, including western Ukraine, far from the front line.

Poland and allied countries scrambled aircraft to ensure the safety of Polish airspace, the country’s air force said, according to Associated Press.

Thousands of protesters have gathered in the Thai capital Bangkok, calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra after a phone call she had with the former Cambodian leader Hun Sen was leaked, BBC reported.

In the call, which was about a recent incident on their border, she addressed Hun Sen as "uncle" and said a Thai military commander handling the dispute "just wanted to look cool and said things that are not useful".

The call has sparked public anger and a key partner in her ruling coalition has quit. Paetongtarn apologised, but defended the call as a "negotiation technique".