SINGAPORE: The Shangri-La Dialogue, which had been scheduled to take place on Jun 4 and Jun 5 in Singapore, has been cancelled two weeks before the meeting. This is due to the deterioration of the global COVID-19 situation, the organiser of the defe...

TAIPEI: Taiwan reported 286 new domestic COVID-19 cases on Thursday (May 20), a slight increase from the previous day. Having been held up as an example of how to successfully stop the virus in its tracks, Taiwan has over the past two weeks reported...

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has reported a record high of 6,806 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday (May 20), as the country continues to battle a third wave of infections. This is the second consecutive day Malaysia has logged record numbers of daily case...

JOHOR BAHRU: Johor ruler Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar has called for Members of Parliament (MPs) and state assemblymen representing constituencies in Johor to meet and discuss how to overcome the COVID-19 situation.  In a statement on his Facebook ...

AHMEDABAD, India: A major new storm was brewing in the Bay of Bengal off India's east coast, forecasters warned on Thursday (May 20), just days after the biggest cyclone to hit the west of the country in decades left at least 110 people confirmed dea...

HONG KONG: The first Hong Kong resident to be charged under Beijing's national security law can be tried without a jury, a senior judge said on Thursday (May 20), in a ruling that cements the financial hub's fast-changing legal traditions. Tong Ying...

TOKYO: Two officials at Myanmar's embassy in Tokyo have become the latest diplomats dismissed by the junta after protesting the military coup in their country, Japan's Kyodo news agency reported on Thursday (May 20). Administrator Aung Soe Moe and a...

JAKARTA: An Indonesian court has postponed the issuance of a verdict regarding a lawsuit against the government over the alarming levels of air pollution that regularly blanket Jakarta. The verdict was supposed to be handed down on Thursday (May...

BEIJING: China said on Thursday (May 20) that a United States warship illegally entered its territorial waters in the South China Sea, the latest salvo in the two nations' dispute over Beijing's territorial claims in the busy waterway. In a stateme...

BEIJING: China postponed a supply mission to its new space station on Thursday (May 20) for unspecified technical reasons. The Tianzhou-2 cargo spacecraft was expected to have been launched early on Thursday morning. China Manned Space announced th...

BENGALURU: India reported on Thursday (May 20) 276,110 new coronavirus infections over the last 24 hours, while deaths rose by 3,874. The country's infection tally stands at 25.77 million, with a death toll of 287,122, health ministry data showed. ...

TOKYO: Tokyo must boost its military at a "radically different pace" than in the past to counter Beijing's growing capacity, Japan's defence minister said in an interview published on Thursday (May 20). Nobuo Kishi warned the gap between Japan and C...

Vietnam plans to set up a 25.2 trillion dong (US$1.1 billion) fund to acquire 150 million COVID-19 vaccine doses for its population, its Ministry of Finance said in a statement on Thursday (May 20).

SHANGHAI: China reported 12 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday (May 19), down from 14 cases a day earlier, the country's national health authority said on Thursday. The National Health Commission said in a statement one of the new cases was a local inf...

TOKYO: After four years spent working and living alone, far from his family and friends, Tsuyoshi Tatebayashi packed his bags at the end of March and returned, at last, to his wife and two daughters. Like hundreds of thousands of other white-collar ...

SYDNEY: Australia is looking into the cause of a hold-up of table grape exports to China, with Trade Minister Dan Tehan saying about 20 per cent of the fruit shipped to the mainland is stuck at the border in yet another sign of deteriorating relation...

Even though India’s lockdowns are more targeted this year, significant economic losses remain likely, especially if subsequent waves of the infection continue to burden healthcare infrastructure, says economist Charu Chanana.

Solar panels against an alien landscape, ramps and rods pointing at the Martian horizon -- China's first probe on the Red Planet has beamed back its first "selfies" after its history-making landing last week.

MAHUVA, India: The number of casualties from a major cyclone that slammed into India jumped to at least 87 on Wednesday (May 19) as the navy searched for 65 people still missing, adding to the country's woes as it suffered a record number of COVID-1...

Thailand is aiming to administer one shot of a coronavirus vaccine to 70per cent of its population by September, its health minister said on Wednesday, as it seeks to provide protection for more people faster amid its deadliest outbreak so far.

Bags of rice and beans arrived in a tough neighborhood in San Pedro Sula, Honduras' second-largest city, government aid for poor residents struggling during a coronavirus lockdown in April 2020.

BANGKOK: Thailand began vaccinating Buddhist monks against COVID-19 this week, hoping to build up their protection to enable them to safely perform their spiritual duties. About 500 monks were inoculated in the capital, Bangkok, on Tuesday (May 18) ...

Every day after he wraps up the online classes he teaches at a Bengaluru college, Akshay Mandlik puts on his mask, gloves and overalls and heads out to help bury the COVID dead.

Born and raised in the bustling megacity of Jakarta, Indonesia's densely populated, traffic-choked capital, environmentalist Khalisah Khalid has long anguished over the city’s toxic air.

TOKYO: The young widow of an ageing Japanese real estate mogul was charged on Wednesday (May 19) with murdering the self-described "Don Juan" just months into their marriage, local media said. Kosuke Nozaki, who boasted in his autobiography of spen...

China is preparing to launch a rocket carrying supplies for its new space station just days after landing a rover on Mars, as it hustles ahead with its extraterrestrial ambitions.

KUALA LUMPUR: The Selangor state government has made an initial booking of 2.5 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine to be sold to employers looking to hasten vaccination for their employees.  State Public Health, Unity, Women and Family Development C...

A man who tweeted insults at a Japanese reality TV star after her suicide was fined $12,000 on Wednesday after his comments had sparked concern over cyberbullying.

The Israeli embassy in Beijing has accused China's state broadcaster of "blatant anti-Semitism" in a report on US policy during the ongoing deadly violence in the Palestinian Territories and Israel.

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia reported a record high of 6,075 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday (May 19), as the country continues to battle a third wave of infections. This is the first time Malaysia’s new daily COVID-19 caseload has breached the 6,000 ...

TOKYO: The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Wednesday (May 19) reassured an anxious Japan that the Tokyo Olympics will be safe for athletes as well as the host community amid mounting opposition to the Games and fears it will fuel a spike in...

YANGON: People displaced by an upsurge of fighting in Myanmar's Chin State voiced concerns over shelter and supplies as more flee the conflict that has sprung up between the army and insurgents opposed to the junta that seized power in February. Th...

BEIJING: Engineers were inspecting a skyscraper in southern China on Wednesday (May 19), a day after it triggered widespread panic when it suddenly began shaking, as people took to social media to ask if shoddy construction may have been to blame. T...

SINGAPORE: Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) has expressed its concerns to India's High Commissioner over comments made by Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal about a purported COVID-19 variant found in Singapore. In a press statement o...

NEW DELHI: India on Wednesday (May 19) reported a record 4,529 coronavirus deaths in a single day even as the number of new cases in its devastating new wave fell. The daily pandemic death toll has been rising in recent days as cases spread into rur...

TAIPEI: Taiwan raised its COVID-19 alert level for the whole island on Wednesday (May 19) as domestic cases continued to rise, with another 267 new cases. The capital Taipei is already under a higher alert level, meaning restrictions on gatherings a...

She was already beyond child-bearing age, but Qelbinur Sedik said that Chinese authorities still forcibly sterilised her, part of what she describes as a systematic campaign to suppress births of Uyghurs and other minorities in the tense Xinjiang re...

Board for China-built port in Sri Lanka needs public assent, says Supreme Court

BEIJING: China accused the United States on Wednesday (May 19) of threatening the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait after a US warship again sailed through the sensitive waterway that separates Taiwan from its giant neighbour. The US Navy's ...

NEW DELHI: The world's largest vaccine maker said on Tuesday (May 18) it hopes to resume delivering COVID-19 jabs to COVAX and other countries by the end of this year, after India restricted exports to combat a massive rise in infections at home. Th...

BANGKOK: Some of the world’s oldest and most significant rock art, created by ancient civilisations in South Sulawesi, is being destroyed at an alarming rate due to the impacts of climate change. Research by experts at Australia’s Griffith Univ...

BANGKOK: Thais who do not want to wait for the COVID-19 vaccine distribution from their government have opted for a new option to get it overseas.  The growing demand for vaccination amid a new wave of outbreaks in the country has given rise to tou...

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia reported a record daily number of COVID-19 fatalities on Tuesday (May 18) with 47 deaths, bringing the national death toll since the start of the pandemic to 1,994. The country’s two previous records for daily COVID-19 fat...

Hong Kong's plans to let non-locally trained doctors practise in the city to tackle a shortfall of medical staff in the public sector moved forward on Tuesday, with the bill to be read in the legislature on June 2.

TOKYO: An elderly Japanese man has anonymously donated his life's savings - in cash - to a city outside of Tokyo, an unexpected financial windfall as the economy reels from the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. The man, who did not identify hims...

One of China's tallest skyscrapers was evacuated Tuesday after it began to shake, sending panicked shoppers scampering to safety in the southern city of Shenzhen.

Japan's ruling lawmakers on Tuesday dropped a controversial push to change rules on handling asylum seekers and deportations after opposition pressure over the death of a Sri Lankan woman.

KUALA LUMPUR: Well-known Malaysian celebrity and entrepreneur Noor Neelofa Mohd Noor has allegedly broken the movement control order (MCO) rule barring Hari Raya visits last week. The celebrity, popularly known as Neelofa, was said to have violated...

High traces of Viagra and other drugs used to treat erectile dysfunction were found in Seoul's wastewaters, and their presence in the urban area is expected to increase, South Korean researchers say.

AHMEDABAD, India: India's total COVID-19 caseload surged past 25 million on Tuesday (May 18) as a powerful cyclone complicated the health crisis in one of the states where the disease is spreading most quickly. COVID-19 tests were administered to 20...

SEOUL: Pressure is mounting on South Korean President Moon Jae-in to pardon Samsung heir Lee Jae-yong, who is back in prison after his conviction in a massive corruption scandal, even though business has rarely looked better at South Korea’s larges...

MUMBAI: The Indian Navy mounted a massive air and sea rescue mission on Tuesday (May 18) for 81 missing oil workers and crew whose barge sank in heavy seas following a powerful cyclone that tore up the west coast of the country a day earlier. The v...

HONG KONG: Hong Kong's government suspended operations at its representative office in Taiwan on Tuesday (May 18), in a sign of escalating diplomatic tension between the global financial hub and the democratically-ruled island that Beijing claims. ...

Hong Kong's newly appointed Catholic bishop on Tuesday (May 18) said he would need to tread carefully with Beijing as it cracks down on dissent - but vowed to plead with authorities to defend religious freedoms.

TOKYO: A top medical organisation has thrown its weight behind calls to cancel the Tokyo Olympics, saying that hospitals are already overwhelmed as the country battles a spike in COVID-19 infections less than three months from the start of the Games...

MAHUVA, India: At least 21 people were dead and 96 were missing on Tuesday (May 18) after a monster cyclone slammed into western India, compounding the misery for millions of others who are enduring a devastating COVID-19 surge. Hundreds of thousan...

YANGON: More than 800 people have been killed by Myanmar's security forces since a wave of protests broke out across the country after the military seized power in a coup in February, an activist group said. Myanmar has been in turmoil since the ar...

HONG KONG: Hong Kong's leader said that freezing the assets of democracy activist Jimmy Lai, including his majority stake in media publisher Next Digital, would hopefully reinforce the Asian financial hub's status by ensuring national security. Carr...

SHANGHAI: China reported 22 new COVID-19 cases on Monday (May 17), down from 25 a day earlier, the country's national health authority said on Tuesday. The National Health Commission, in a statement, said four of the new cases were local infections ...

TAIPEI: Taiwan reported 240 cases of domestically transmitted cases of COVID-19 and two more deaths on Tuesday (May 18), as it shifted all classes online to tackle a spike in coronavirus cases.  Taiwan has reported almost 1,000 new domestic infect...

BANGKOK: Thailand reported on Tuesday (May 18) 35 new COVID-19 deaths, a record daily number that included the country's youngest victim up to now, a two-month-old baby, as authorities struggle to contain a third wave of infections. The Southeast A...

NEW YORK: A 193-member United Nations General Assembly vote on Tuesday (May 18) on a draft resolution calling "for an immediate suspension of the direct and indirect supply, sale or transfer of all weapons and munitions" to Myanmar has been postpone...

The slow progress of COVID-19 vaccination in Indonesia boils down to limited global vaccine supply, the unpreparedness of the national health system and vaccine hesitancy, says a lecturer.

The US Treasury slapped sanctions on 16 senior Myanmar officials and family members Monday, citing their support for the government's "violent and lethal attacks" against the country's pro-democracy movement.

HONG KONG: Hong Kong will tighten travel and quarantine requirements for several countries, including Singapore, Malaysia and Japan, starting from Friday (May 21). The three countries, along with Argentina, Italy, Kenya and the Netherlands, have bee...

KUALA LUMPUR: The situation at the COVID-19 quarantine centre in Serdang, Selangor, is increasingly challenging with the rise in admission of Category 3 patients, said the Selangor Health Department in response to complaints of poor conditions.  C...

JAKARTA: The Indonesian government is preparing for a spike in COVID-19 cases after an annual exodus of thousands of people to their hometowns for Idul Fitri and tourists sites being packed with visitors over the past few days, said Health Ministe...

AHMEDABAD: Nearly 150,000 people were moved from their homes in the Indian state of Gujarat to safety on Monday (May 17) and authorities closed ports and a main airport as the most intense cyclone in more than two decades roared up the west coast. C...

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's health ministry on Monday (May 17) said it may push for a total lockdown of the country's most industrialised state if current coronavirus curbs are unable to rein in a spike in new cases. The government banned social activi...

As Thailand struggles to deal with its worst wave of COVID-19 infections, staff in the intensive care unit of Bangkok's King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital are fearful of what may lie ahead.

SINGAPORE: The launch of the Singapore-Hong Kong air travel bubble, originally planned for May 26, will be deferred for the second time. The deferment comes amid a recent increase in unlinked COVID-19 community cases in Singapore. The country is "...

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian senior minister Azmin Ali is among those being probed for health protocol violations over the Hari Raya period, as the authorities acted swiftly on reports of breaches during the latest Movement Control Order (MCO).  The po...

NEW DELHI: India on Monday (May 17) reported a further decline in new COVID-19 cases though daily deaths remained above 4,000 and experts warned that the count was unreliable due to a lack of testing in rural areas, where the virus is spreading fast....

TAIPEI: A surge of coronavirus infections in Taiwan, one of the world's COVID-19 mitigation success stories, has left it scrambling to get vaccines as its stock of 300,000 doses starts running out with only about 1 per cent of its 23 million people v...

HOLLYWOOD, Florida: Myanmar's Miss Universe contestant, Thuzar Wint Lwin, used the pageant on Sunday (May 16) to urge the world to speak out against the military junta, whose security forces have killed hundreds of opponents since it seized power in...

BEIJING: China's State Council announced new laws halting the teaching of foreign curriculums in schools from kindergarten to grade nine (K-9) and prohibiting the ownership or control of any private K-9 schools by foreign entities. The laws, which ...

BEIJING: China's factories slowed their output growth in April and retail sales significantly missed expectations as officials warned of new problems affecting the recovery in the world's second-largest economy. While China's exporters are enjoying ...

Real estate investment in China rose 21.6 per cent in the first four months of 2021 from a year earlier, cooling from a 25.6 per cent gain seen in the first three months, official data showed on Monday (May 17).

HONG KONG: Hong Kong's largest pro-democracy media group announced it was halting share trading on Monday (May 17), two days after authorities froze the assets of its jailed owner Jimmy Lai under a new national security law. Next Digital, which pub...

TOKYO: More than 80 per cent of Japanese oppose hosting the coronavirus-postponed Olympics this year, a new poll published on Monday (May 17) showed, with just under 10 weeks until the Tokyo Games. The latest survey comes after Japan expanded a COV...

BANGKOK: Thailand reported on Monday (May 17) a daily record of 9,635 new COVID-19 cases, nearly three-quarters of which were prisoners infected in jail clusters, as the country struggles with a third wave of infections. The combined cases bring...

SHANGHAI: China reported 25 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday (May 16), up from 18 cases a day earlier and marking the highest daily increase in more than six weeks, the country's national health authority said on Monday. The National Health Commission, ...

NEW YORK: The United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday (May 18) is set to consider a draft non-binding resolution calling for "an immediate suspension" of the transfer of weapons to the military junta of Myanmar, a UN official said on Sunday. Un...

UNITED NATIONS: China on Sunday (May 16) voiced regret that the United States was blocking a UN Security Council statement on Israeli-Palestinian violence as it urged greater international efforts to stop the bloodshed. "Regrettably, simply because...

A top Indian virologist has resigned from a forum of scientific advisers set up by the government to detect variants of the coronavirus, he told Reuters on Sunday (May 16), weeks after questioning the authorities' handling of the pandemic.

Some Indian states said on Sunday they would extend COVID-19 lockdowns to help contain the pandemic, which has killed more than 270,000 people in the country, as the federal government pledged to bolster vaccine supplies.

At least four people have died in torrential rain and winds as virus-hit India braces for a powerful cyclone, officials said Sunday, with tens of thousands set to be evacuated from their homes.

VATICAN CITY: The people of Myanmar must not despair in the face of evil or allow themselves to be divided, Pope Francis said on Sunday (May 16) at a special Mass for the Myanmar community in Italy. Myanmar's military seized power in a Feb 1 coup, d...

JAKARTA: Seven Indonesians drowned after an overloaded boat capsized because of tourists attempting a selfie in a reservoir on Java island, police said on Sunday (May 16). The accident happened when all 20 passengers suddenly moved to the one side o...

NEW DELHI: India's annual budget in February was lauded by many and raised hopes it would drive a sharp economic revival, but there are now fears that its promise may fall flat as it did not account for a crippling second wave of COVID-19 infections....

YANGON: Six opposition rebels have been killed after days of clashes in Myanmar, an anti-coup defence force made up of civilians said Sunday, as Britain and the United States condemned the military's violence against civilians. Myanmar has been in ...

TAIPEI: Taiwan reported 206 new domestic COVID-19 cases on Sunday (May 16), as the island grapples with an increase in community infections. Authorities appealed to people to avoid panic buying as new curbs on gatherings and movement took effect to ...

BENGALURU: India reported a smaller rise in daily COVID-19 cases for the third straight day on Sunday (May 16), but the number of deaths in 24 hours was higher than 4,000, taking the country's death toll to 270,000. The number of deaths grew by 4,0...

JAKARTA: Indonesia has suspended distribution of a batch of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine to run tests for sterility and toxicity following the death of a 22-year-old man a day after immunisation, the health ministry said on Sunday (May 16). The ba...

PRAYAGRAJ, India: Police are reaching out to villagers in northern India to investigate the recovery of bodies buried in shallow sand graves or washing up on the Ganges River banks, prompting speculation on social media that they were the remains of ...

Taiwan's economic prospects are bright and growth this year will come in as expected as long as the COVID-19 situation can be brought under control quickly, the government said on Sunday, adding that the impact of a recent spike in cases was limited.

Nepal scales back Hindu chariot festival amid virus surge

India police jail 21 Kashmiris amid pro-Palestinian rallies

JAKARTA: Indonesian entrepreneur Dion was examining a new white motorbike that he just took for a test drive.  “It was really good,” he told CNA of his experience riding the China-made electric vehicle (EV) that was being sold at a showroom in...

Compared to their New York counterparts, Shanghai residents pay as much for housing, but work far longer for much less pay. Telecommuting could make all the difference, says this economist.