By Uditha Jayasinghe COLOMBO (Reuters) -Cyclone Ditwah swept northward across Sri Lanka on Friday, leaving 46 people dead and 23 missing amid widespread floods, with torrential rain and strong winds expected to cause more flooding in the next 12 hours. Most deaths were caused by landslides triggered by more than 300mm (12 inches) of rainfall …
Sri Lanka braces for more flooding as Cyclone Ditwah claims 46 lives Read More »
BEIJING (Reuters) -China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi called on Britain on Friday to uphold the “one-China” principle, as Beijing seeks to rally support in its worst diplomatic dispute with Tokyo in years over democratically-governed Taiwan. The “One China” principle, which Beijing views as meaning both sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to one country, is …
China calls on UK to uphold ‘one-China’ principle Read More »
GENEVA (Reuters) -The U.N. human rights office voiced concern on Friday that the Myanmar junta was pressuring people into voting in an election next month and that electronic voting machines and AI surveillance could help authorities to identify opponents. International officials have already raised concerns about Myanmar’s phased election from December 28 into January, calling …
UN warns on voter surveillance ahead of Myanmar election Read More »
By James Pomfret and David Kirton HONG KONG (Reuters) -The last message Chris Wong received from her 72-year-old mother was a kindly reminder to wrap up warm as colder temperatures hit Hong Kong. A couple of hours after her post in the family WhatsApp group, the frail woman’s high-rise apartment block was a towering inferno. …
‘Just silence’: Families mourn elderly loved ones after Hong Kong inferno Read More »
By Athit Perawongmetha HAT YAI, Thailand (Reuters) -When Jantarakarn Kaewjan went to bed in Thailand’s southern city of Hat Yai last Friday, three days of heavy rains had only caused some waterlogging in the street outside her apartment building. But a little past midnight, the rising waters reached her building, forcing her to move her …
‘We’ve lost everything’: How floods devastated one of Thailand’s largest cities Read More »
HONG KONG (Reuters) -Hong Kong’s anti-corruption body has arrested six more people in an investigation over a massive apartment blaze that has claimed the lives of more than 100 people, the South China Morning Post reported on Friday. (Reporting by John Geddie in Hong Kong; Editing by Andrew Heavens)
By Stephanie van den Berg THE HAGUE (Reuters) -The International Criminal Court ruled on Friday that the Philippines’ 80-year-old former President Rodrigo Duterte must remain detained despite a defence appeal for his release on grounds of age and declining health. Duterte, president from 2016 to 2022, was arrested and taken to The Hague in March …
Philippine’s detained ex-leader Duterte loses appeal Read More »
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) -Malaysia’s anti-graft agency on Friday detained a former senior aide to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim for further investigation amid bribery allegations. Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akin, who resigned as Anwar’s senior political secretary this week, was held after being questioned by Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission officers, Chief Commissioner Azam Baki said. MACC will apply …
Malaysia detains former senior aide to PM in bribery probe Read More »
By Stanley Widianto and Panarat Thepgumpanat JAKARTA/BANGKOK (Reuters) -The death toll from floods across large swathes of Southeast Asia rose to at least 321 on Friday, with authorities working to rescue stranded citizens, restore power and communications and coordinate recovery efforts as the waters began to recede. Large parts of Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand have …
Rescuers step up recovery operations as Southeast Asia flood deaths reach 321 Read More »
TAIPEI (Reuters) -Taiwan’s ambassador to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines has congratulated the opposition New Democratic Party (NDP) for winning the election in the Caribbean country, one of Taipei’s last remaining formal diplomatic allies. The NDP has previously proposed severing relations with Taiwan, which Saint Vincent has held since 1981, in favour of greater proximity …
Taiwan congratulates opposition for election win in ally Saint Vincent Read More »
