Tag Archives: Asia

More than a thousand homes were damaged and about 5,000 people evacuated in North Korea after flooding caused by heavy rains, the country’s state broadcaster reported, with swathes of farmland also inundated by the deluge. The TV report comes as the impoverished North in June admitted it was tackling a …

More than a thousand Thai anti-government protesters clashed with police on Saturday, as they protested against the government’s failure to handle coronavirus outbreaks and its impact on the economy. The protesters marched toward Government House, the office of Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha, demanding his resignation. Police sealed off a road …

A Myanmar militia force fighting the army in a central part of the country and residents have found at least 40 bodies in jungle areas in recent weeks, including some showing signs of torture, a militia member and media reports said. Since the military overthrew the elected government of Aung …

Britain has been granted “dialogue partner” status by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, a step forward in London’s push to build stronger diplomatic ties in Asia following its exit from the European Union. Britain has been seeking the status as part of its post-Brexit policy shift to focus more …

Singapore aims to have more than 200,000 police cameras by at least 2030, Minister for Home Affairs K Shanmugam said on Tuesday, over double the current number of cameras deployed across the island state. With a land area of little over 700 square kilometres (270 square miles), Singapore has strict …

Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin defied mounting pressure to quit on Wednesday, saying he retained majority support among lawmakers and that he will prove it when the Southeast Asian nation’s parliament reconvenes next month. Speaking in a televised address, Muhyiddin said King Al-Sultan Abdullah agreed that he should remain in …

A 5.9 magnitude quake struck off the coast of Indonesia’s easternmost Papua region today, the United States Geological Survey said, but there was no tsunami warning or immediate reports of damage. The quake hit at a relatively shallow depth of 12 kilometers (7.5 miles), about 180 kilometers northeast of Tual …

Attackers threw a hand grenade at a police van in Pakistan’s northwestern city of Peshawar on Friday, killing a policeman and wounding two others before fleeing the scene, police said. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. In a statement, Peshawar police said the attack happened while a government …

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is heading to Southeast Asia to “strengthen relationships” with allies as the Biden administration intensifies efforts to counter China. Austin will become the first cabinet secretary to visit Southeast Asia this week since President Joe Biden took office six months ago. “You’ll hear me talk …

This comes amid a recent surge in violence in Afghanistan following the start of the withdrawal of international troops from the country in line with an agreement reached between the Taliban* and the US in Doha last year. The delegations of the Afghan government and the Taliban issued a joint …

Heavy rain in border regions between Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan spurred mudslides that have left 14 dead, authorities in the Central Asian countries said on Tuesday. Landslides hit the mountainous region every year, blocking roads and often forcing families to rebuild homes from scratch. Kyrgyzstan officials said the bodies of six …

Myanmar’s military authorities will ensure that oxygen plants operate at full capacity to help treat COVID-19 patients as cases in the Southeast Asian country hit record highs, an army spokesman said on Monday. Zaw Min Tun told a news conference that vaccinations would be extended to those below the age …

The Taliban have been emboldened by the NATO troop withdrawal and – with peace talks in Doha deadlocked – appear to be pressing for a full military victory. The Taliban said on Friday it has seized control of 85 percent of territory in Afghanistan, a declaration government officials dismissed as …

At least 52 people were killed, 20 injured and many more feared trapped after a massive fire raged through a juice-making factory in Bangladesh, officials said on Friday, the latest industrial fire accident in the country. The fire started on Thursday evening at the ground floor of a six-story factory …

Taliban insurgents on Wednesday reached the entry points to the capital of Afghanistan’s northwestern Badghis province, officials said, causing panic among local people and prompting prisoners to break out of the city’s prison. Provincial governor Husamuddin Shams told Reuters the Taliban had attacked the city of Qala-e-Naw from three directions …

Russian military helicopters based in Tajikistan fired air-to-surface missiles during a training exercise on Tuesday as Moscow said its forces in the Central Asian nation were fully equipped to help secure the border with Afghanistan. Tajik President Emomali Rakhmon on Monday ordered the mobilisation of 20,000 military reservists to bolster …

A military plane crashed and broke up in flames in the southern Philippines on Sunday with 92 people aboard, and the army chief said at least 40 people had been rescued. The C-130 aircraft of the Philippine Air Force had a mishap on landing on the island of Jolo, the …

Police deployed in the streets of Hong Kong in large numbers on Thursday to prevent protests on the anniversary of its return to Chinese rule, and its acting leader said a national security law had brought order back to the city after chaos. Police vans, water cannon trucks, armoured vehicles, …

The Afghan Ministry of Defense announced on Wednesday that government forces had liberated five cities from the Taliban in the past 24 hours. Government forces recaptured control of Khost in Baghlan, Shinwari in Parwan, Khan Chahar Bagh, and Pashtun Kot in Faryab, and Kaldar in Balkh, the Afghan Ministry of …

Malaysia’s king on Wednesday asked for a special parliamentary sitting to be convened before Aug. 1, according to the speakers of both houses of parliament, as the country remains under lockdown amid a surge in coronavirus cases. Two weeks earlier, King Al-Sultan Abdullah said the country’s parliament should reconvene as …