Thursday, 14 Nov 2024

Asia

Asia News – Get latest breaking news & top stories today in Asia, South-East Asia, South Asia, East Asia, Australia/New Zealand at…

Basketball court tragedy: Checks on hoop structures after boy's death completed

SINGAPORE – Following the death of a 17-year-old boy after a basketball backboard structure in Bedok fell on him, most town councils have completed checks on the basketball structures they manage. Speaking to The Straits Times on Thursday (Sept 8), Mr Lim Biow Chuan, who is coordinating chairman for PAP town councils, said that if […]

Rallies in Kabul called off after Taliban outlaws protests

KABUL (AFP) – Protest organisers cancelled rallies in Kabul on Thursday (Sept 9) after the Taliban effectively banned demonstrations and warned that violators “will face severe legal action”. Earlier this week, armed fighters dispersed hundreds of protesters in cities across Afghanistan, including the capital Kabul, Faizabad in the north-east and in Herat in the west, where two people […]

Evening Update: Today's headlines from The Straits Times on Sept 9

Good evening! Catch up on some of the main headlines on Thursday, Sept 9. Up to 500 vaccinated migrant workers allowed into community each week as part of pilot programme From next Monday, all migrant workers will also be allowed to visit their designated recreation centre twice a week. READ MORE HERE  New P1 registration […]

China Promises Aid to Afghanistan in Cautious Courtship

China this week pledged to give $30 million in food and other aid to the new Taliban government in Afghanistan as well as three million Covid-19 vaccine doses, in a cautious overture to a potentially dangerous neighbor that Beijing is eager to influence. Speaking to a meeting of officials from Afghanistan’s neighbors on Wednesday, Wang […]

Kampong Glam book by former resident wins $50k Singapore History Prize

SINGAPORE – When Ms Hidayah Amin’s ancestral home in which she lived for almost 30 years was acquired by the state in 1999, she felt as if a piece of herself had been taken away, and turned to writing to process her emotions. The heritage building, Gedung Kuning (Yellow Mansion) in Kampong Glam, was built […]

Thai device tests for coronavirus in armpit sweat

BANGKOK (AFP) – For Bangkok market sellers, the armpit sweat soaking their T-shirts during the humid monsoon season may contain subtle signs of coronavirus infection, local scientists have said. Thai researchers are developing a sweat-based mobile virus detector, and road-tested it on shopkeepers at a Bangkok food market this week. “From the samples, we found […]

Death toll from Indonesia jail blaze at 44 amid focus on overcrowding

JAKARTA (REUTERS) – The death toll from a blaze that tore through an Indonesian jail has risen to 44, as authorities pledged to look at whether more inmates could receive rehabilitation for drug-related offences to ease chronic overcrowding in the prison system. Wednesday’s (Sept 8) fire at the penitentiary in Tangerang, on the outskirts of […]

Dollar little changed, euro steady ahead of ECB decision

TOKYO (Reuters) – The dollar was supported on Thursday as doubts over the global economy’s strength subdued risk sentiment, while the euro steadied ahead of a European Central Bank policy meeting later in the day that is expected result in a reduction in stimulus.FILE PHOTO: Four thousand U.S. dollars are counted out by a banker […]

S.Korea central bank expects policy rate hike to slow household debt growth

FILE PHOTO: A man gets on a bicycle in front of the Bank of Korea in Seoul August 9, 2012. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea’s central bank said on Thursday raising its policy interest rate should help slow the pace of household debt growth going forward, and reiterated that it will continue to […]