Asia

China has expelled at least 13 American journalists in the biggest crackdown of its kind in recent memory, a move that Beijing called “self-defense” for restrictions placed on Chinese state media representatives in the US. The journalists, from The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal, …

China’s foreign ministry said on Tuesday that U.S. President Donald Trump’s tweet calling the coronavirus a “Chinese virus” smears China and said Beijing strongly opposes Trump’s usage of the words. Foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters during a daily briefing that the U.S. should first take care of its …

Thai villagers scouring a dark cave for bat guano, sought after by farmers as a nutrient-rich crop fertilizer, are undaunted by scientists’ suggestion that it could be behind a coronavirus that has infected more than 150,000 people worldwide. The source of the virus remains a matter of debate after it …

Taiwan will from Saturday require travelers from countries in Europe’s Schengen border-free travel zone as well as Britain and Ireland to undergo a 14-day quarantine upon arrival to control the spread of the coronavirus, its government said. The quarantine rules also apply to travelers arriving from Dubai, including people who …

The US began to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan as part of a peace agreement with the Taliban, according to Associated Press, citing an official representative of American troops in Afghanistan. The United States will reduce the number of its troops in Afghanistan from 13,000 to 8,600 in the next …

Some key industries in Wuhan, the Chinese city at the epicenter of the coronavirus epidemic, were told they can resume work on Wednesday, a day after President Xi Jinping visited the city for the first time since the outbreak began. The city of 11 million has been in lockdown since …

At least 27 people have been killed in an attack on a political rally in Kabul in the deadliest assault in Afghanistan since the US signed a withdrawal deal with the Taliban. The attack highlights the glaring lack of security in the heavily fortified Afghan capital 14 months ahead of …

Twitter and Facebook have suspended more than 80 accounts following a Reuters investigation that linked them to a network of news sites backed by the Indonesian army that publish pro-government propaganda about the restive region of Papua. The 10 sites in the network appear to be independent news outlets. But …

The United States has conducted an airstrike against the Taliban militant group’s positions in Afghanistan’s southern Helmand Province, just days after the two sides signed a “peace” deal. The Taliban militants “were actively attacking an (Afghan National Security Forces) checkpoint. This was a defensive strike to disrupt the attack,” Colonel …

India has summoned the Iranian ambassador to New Delhi to protest a tweet by Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in condemnation of the recent wave of deadly violence against Muslims in India. Indian media cited unnamed official sources as saying that Ambassador Ali Chegini had been summoned on Tuesday …

Finance ministers from the Group of Seven leading economies are holding talks Tuesday to discuss how to respond to a coronavirus outbreak that has brought cases to at least 70 countries. The G-7 talks come as South Korean President Moon Jae-in sought funding in his country to help with medical …

A man was shot and about 30 people taken hostage on Monday by a gunman at a mall in the Philippine capital, Manila, where armed police and negotiators attempted to end the standoff peacefully. The gunman, a former security guard at Virra Mall in Manila’s San Juan City, shot a …

China is currently producing large amounts of favipiravir, a first antiviral drug approved to fight the Covid-19 outbreak, from which about 1,770 people have already died and the other 70,548 have been infected. According to China Daily, this is a generic version of the anti-catarrhal fapilavir and the National Medical …

An airstrike in Afghanistan has killed at least eight civilians, officials said Saturday, as the war-torn country prepares for a “reduction in violence” under a deal between Taliban militants and the United States. The incident took place in the eastern province of Nangarhar on Friday when a vehicle carrying civilians …

-China reported 121 new deaths on Friday, bringing the toll to 1,380. Another 5,090 new cases were confirmed, pushing up the number of infected patients to 63,851. -In Hubei province, the epicentre of the outbreak, daily new cases jumped by 4,823, while the number of new deaths rose by 116. …

The United States and the Taliban have reached an agreement on a proposed pact that centers around reducing violence in Afghanistan, U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper said on Thursday. “The United States and the Taliban have negotiated a proposal for a 7-day reduction in violence. I’m here today consulting …

The Chinese province at the center of the coronavirus outbreak reported a record rise in deaths and thousands of more infections using a broader definition on Thursday, while Japan became the third place outside mainland China to suffer a fatality. The epidemic has given China’s ruling Communist Party one of …

Automaker Nissan announced Wednesday it has filed a $90 million civil lawsuit against former executive Carlos Ghosn in Japan, saying it is owed monetary damages from suspected fraud and misconduct while he was chairman. The suit is the latest fight between the Japanese auto giant and its fugitive former executive …

China reported on Wednesday its lowest number of new coronavirus cases in nearly two weeks, lending weight to a forecast by its foremost medical adviser for the outbreak to end by April – but a global expert warned it was only beginning elsewhere. The 2,015 new confirmed cases took China’s …

The death toll from the novel coronavirus outbreak surged past 1,000 in China on Tuesday as the World Health Organization warned that the epidemic poses a “very grave” global threat. The WHO is holding a conference in Geneva on combatting the virus as Beijing struggles to contain a disease that …