Saturday, 16 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…

North Korea Continues a Barrage of Missile Tests

SEOUL — North Korea said on Friday that it had test-launched a newly developed antiaircraft missile, carrying out the latest in a flurry of weapons tests in recent weeks even as it has declared an openness to dialogue with the South. The newest launch, conducted on Thursday, tested a land-to-air missile that has greater range, […]

Malaysia posts record monthly Covid-19 deaths as authorities cite backlog

KUALA LUMPUR (REUTERS) – Malaysia recorded 9,671 deaths due to Covid-19 in September, the deadliest month since the pandemic began, government data showed on Friday (Oct 1), though authorities have said the increase was mostly due to the delayed inclusion of fatalities from previous months. The spike has pushed Malaysia’s death toll to among the […]

North Korea Continues a Barrage of Missile Tests

SEOUL — North Korea said on Friday that it had test-launched a newly developed antiaircraft missile, carrying out the latest in a flurry of weapons tests in recent weeks even as it has declared an openness to dialogue with the South. The newest launch, conducted on Thursday, tested a land-to-air missile that has greater range, […]

India counters China in Sri Lanka with S$952 million port deal

COLOMBO (AFP) – An Indian company entered into a US$700 million (S$952 million) deal on Thursday (Sept 30) to build a strategic deep-sea container terminal in Sri Lanka, officials said, in a move seen as countering China’s rising influence in the region. The Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) said it signed an agreement with India’s […]

Morning Briefing: Top stories from The Straits Times on Oct 1

Good morning! Here are our top stories to kick-start your Friday, Oct 1. Two more market and food centres closed due to Covid-19 transmission The markets and food centres in Geylang Bahru and Bendemeer will be closed for three days, starting Saturday. READ MORE HERE 2,478 new Covid-19 cases in S’pore; 2 seniors die Both were not […]

Senior volunteers: 76-year-old is 'grandpa' to the pupils he mentors

SINGAPORE – Retired bank officer Morni Sulaiman has two grandchildren but they are not the only ones who call him grandpa. A group of pupils at Naval Base Primary School and Marsiling Primary School also address him by that term – a sign of the rapport built over the many hours he has spent mentoring […]

US plans to keep Al-Qaeda in check in Afghanistan with air strikes

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The Pentagon plans to rely on air strikes to prevent a resurgence of Al-Qaeda now that US troops have left Afghanistan, but experts and some lawmakers are sceptical about the effectiveness of the so-called “over-the-horizon” strategy. Announcing the complete withdrawal of US troops in April, President Joe Biden vowed he would not […]

Cambodia jails news site owner for 1 year over false posts

PHNOM PENH (REUTERS) – A Cambodian court on Thursday (Sept 30) sentenced the owner of a news website to a year in prison for incitement to cause a felony, a prosecutor said, for posting disinformation about a land dispute at a national park. Youn Chhiv, who ran the Koh Kong Hot News website, had “posted […]

Czech central bank shocks with 75 basis-point interest rate increase

FILE PHOTO: The Czech National Bank is seen in central Prague, Czech Republic, August 3, 2017. REUTERS/David W CernyPRAGUE (Reuters) – The Czech National Bank raised its main rate by 75 basis points on Thursday, an even heftier policy tightening than markets and analysts had expected, delivering its biggest hike since 1997 as inflation soars. […]

Philippine economy to take 10 years to recover from coronavirus, official says

MANILA (AFP) – The Philippine economy will take more than a decade to return to pre-pandemic growth, an official said on Thursday (Sept 30), warning the next two generations of Filipinos would be paying for the cost of Covid-19. Lockdowns and other restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus have shattered the Southeast […]