Asia

Hong Kong fans turned their backs to the Chinese national anthem once again but supported their team and were rewarded with a first win in Asian qualifying, 2-0, over Cambodia, on Tuesday. Before the match, home fans jeered and turned their backs to the pitch as the Chinese national anthem played. FIFA fined the Hong […]

by Yan ZHAO / Catherine LAI Dozens of exhausted pro-democracy protesters occupying a Hong Kong university defied warnings to surrender Tuesday on the third day of a stand-off with police, as China sent fresh signals that its patience with nearly six months of unrest was running out. Fearing arrest or being shot at by police, […]

China insisted Tuesday it alone held the authority to rule on constitutional matters in Hong Kong, as it condemned a decision by the city’s high court to overturn a ban on face masks worn by pro-democracy protesters. The statement could further fan the flames in Hong Kong after months of violent protests over concerns that […]

North Korea is “no longer interested” in summits with the US unless Washington offers new concessions in their nuclear negotiations, Pyongyang said Monday, hours after Donald Trump hinted at the prospect. “You should act quickly, get the deal done,” Trump tweeted Sunday, referring to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. “See you soon!” Kim and […]

by Maude BRULARD Sri Lanka’s new president and scourge of the Tamil Tigers Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Monday urged minorities unnerved by his election victory to work with him, as he was sworn in at a ceremony steeped in symbolism for his core supporters. Having spearheaded the brutal end of the Tamil separatist war a decade […]

China confirmed on Monday that its first domestically built aircraft carrier had sailed through the Taiwan Strait for “routine” training and tests after Taipei accused Beijing of intimidation around upcoming elections. The ship, which has yet to be named, is Beijing’s second carrier and will add massive firepower to its navy once it is officially […]

by Abhaya SRIVASTAVA A thick grey smog choked New Delhi for the fifth day Saturday, adding to a mounting pollution health crisis, but retired naval commander Anil Charan is one of the vast majority of the city’s 20 million inhabitants who do not wear a mask. Indian media is packed with warnings about the risk […]

by Catherine LAI / Su Xinqi Government supporters took to the streets of downtown Hong Kong on Saturday after a chaotic working week saw hardcore pro-democracy activists cause widespread disruption in the city and stretch police resources. A “Blossom Everywhere” campaign of roadblocks and vandalism across the semi-autonomous financial hub shut down large chunks of […]

Hong Kong—The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) became part of the ongoing protests in the city earlier this week as a confrontation occurred, with students endeavouring to bar police from entering the university campus. University officials suspended classes a fortnight earlier than the original schedule, but CUHK may yet continue to be the scene […]

by Danny KEMP International investigators looking into the downing of flight MH17 over Ukraine released intercepted phone calls on Thursday showing close links between “high-ranking” Russian officials and rebel suspects facing trial over the crash. The probe said the recordings raised questions about the possible involvement of key Kremlin officials — including Defence Minister Sergei […]

China on Thursday completed a test of its Mars exploration lander ahead of Beijing’s first mission to the red planet slated for 2020. Beijing is pouring billions into its military-run space programme, with hopes of having a crewed space station by 2022. Thursday’s hovering and obstacle-avoidance test, which took place in northern Hebei province, was […]

by Haeril HALIM Indonesian Mirnawati once ate rice with every meal, but its link to diabetes convinced her to join a growing movement to quit a staple food in the third biggest rice-consuming nation on Earth. As World Diabetes Day is held Thursday, the Southeast Asian nation is struggling to tackle a disease that affects […]

Pro-democracy protesters challenging China’s rule of Hong Kong on Thursday choked the city for a fourth straight working day, firing arrows at police, barricading roads and disrupting transport links, as schools and businesses closed. The territory has entered its sixth month of protests, which have morphed from mass rallies into a “blossom everywhere” campaign of […]

by Shaun TANDON Uighur activists said Tuesday they have documented nearly 500 camps and prisons run by China to detain members of the ethnic group, alleging that Beijing could be holding far more than the commonly cited figure of one million people. The East Turkistan National Awakening Movement, a Washington-based group that seeks independence for […]

by Amal JAYASINGHE Police stepped up security across Sri Lanka on Wednesday over fears of violence on the final day of campaigning for the fiercely contested presidential election, officials said. Elite police commandos reinforced police as the two frontrunners in Saturday’s vote Sajith Premadasa and Gotabhaya Rajapaksa held rival rallies in and around Colombo. “There […]