Sri Lanka fuel shortage set to ease; police clash with protesters
Sri Lanka’s central bank has secured foreign exchange to pay for fuel and cooking gas shipments that will ease crippling shortages, its governor said on Thursday, but police fired ...
Covid-wracked N. Korea may greet Biden with ‘imminent’ missile test
Despite battling a wave of suspected COVID-19 infections, North Korea appears to be preparing to test an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) ahead of U.S. President Joe Biden’s first ...
N.Korean leader Kim slams officials’ ‘immaturity’ in response to Covid outbreak
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un slammed his country’s response to its first confirmed COVID-19 outbreak as immature, accusing government officials of inadequacies and inertia as fever cases swept ...
Russia jumps to 4th position as oil supplier to India
Russia became the fourth-largest oil supplier to India in April, with volumes set to rise further in coming months as low prices spur demand from the world’s No. 3 oil ...
Taliban dissolve Afghanistan’s Human Rights Commission, other key bodies
Taliban authorities in Afghanistan dissolved five key departments of the former US-backed government, including the country’s Human Rights Commission, deeming them unnecessary in the face of a financial crunch, ...
Sri Lanka down to last day of petrol, PM tells crisis-hit nation
Sri Lanka’s new prime minister said on Monday the crisis-hit nation was down to its last day of petrol, as the country’s power minister told citizens not to ...
Poor workers bear the brunt of India’s record heatwave
For construction worker Yogendra Tundre, life at a building site on the outskirts of the Indian capital New Delhi is hard enough. This year, record high temperatures are making it ...
Shanghai aims to reopen more Covid-shut businesses, Beijing battles on
Shanghai will gradually begin reopening businesses such as shopping malls and hair salons in China’s financial and manufacturing hub from Monday after weeks in strict COVID-19 lockdown, while Beijing ...
N.Korea reports more deaths, says taking ‘swift measures’ against Covid outbreak
North Korea said on Sunday a total of 42 people had died as the country began its fourth day under a nationwide lockdown aimed at stopping the impoverished country’s first ...
Shanghai hunkers down for final Covid battle, N.Korea in ‘great turmoil’
Shanghai was tightening its COVID-19 lockdown for what it hoped would be the final week of its battle with the virus before it could gradually begin to ease restrictions, while ...
Building fire kills 27 in New Delhi, police arrest company owners
Police in New Delhi arrested two people suspected of flouting fire safety regulations on Saturday after at least 27 people died in a blaze at a building housing a manufacturing unit ...
G7 backs more aid, weapons to Ukraine in show of unity against Russia
Foreign ministers from the G7 group of rich nations backed giving more aid and weapons to Ukraine as they met on Friday in what Germany called a “powerful sign of ...
Some Qatar hotels won’t accept same-sex couples despite promises
Three hotels in Qatar will refuse to accommodate same-sex couples when people travel to the Gulf country for the World Cup this year despite FIFA’s assurances they will be ...
How N.Korea’s COVID-19 outbreak could ignite a major health crisis
North Korea’s admission that it is battling an “explosive” COVID-19 outbreak has raised concerns that the virus could devastate a country with an under-resourced health system, limited testing capabilities, ...
N. Korea reports Covid outbreak, orders lockdown in ‘gravest emergency’
North Korea reported its first COVID-19 outbreak on Thursday, calling it the “gravest national emergency” and ordering a national lockdown, with state media saying an Omicron variant had been detected ...
N.Korea orders lockdown after confirming Covid-19 outbreak for first time
North Korea confirmed its first COVID-19 outbreak on Thursday, calling it the “gravest national emergency” and ordering a national lockdown, with state media reporting an Omicron variant had been detected ...
EU seeks bigger role in Asia’s ‘theatre of tensions’, agrees with Japan on Russia cooperation
European Union leaders said on Thursday that the EU wants to become a bigger actor in Asia, which they termed a “theatre of tensions”, warning of an increasingly assertive China ...
Afghan women pushing back against Taliban orders to cover up
Many women in the Afghan capital are delaying a return to fully covering their faces in public in defiance of orders from Islamist Taliban rulers, others are staying at home ...
WHO chief says China’s zero-Covid policy not ‘sustainable’
The head of the World Health Organization said on Tuesday China’s zero-tolerance COVID-19 policy is not sustainable given what is now known of the virus, in rare public comments ...
Protests break out as Philippines election returns a Marcos to presidency
The Philippines woke to a new but familiar political landscape on Tuesday, after an election triumph by Ferdinand Marcos Jr. paved the way for a once-unimaginable return to the country’...
UN Security Council due to meet Wednesday on North Korea, say diplomats
The UN Security Council is due to meet on Wednesday at the request of the United States to discuss North Korea’s latest missile launches, diplomats said, as Washington pushes ...
Sri Lanka prime minister resigns, curfew imposed after clashes (Updated)
Sri Lanka’s prime minister resigned on Monday to make way for a unity government that would try to find a way out of the country’s worst economic crisis ...
Marcos, son of strongman, poised for Philippines election triumph
Ferdinand Marcos Jr was headed for a stunning victory in the Philippines’ presidential election on Monday with double the votes of his nearest rival, putting the son of the notorious ...
Philippines’ Marcos, Robredo set for rousing final rallies
Philippines presidential candidates geared up for final rallies on Saturday to galvanise support and win over undecided voters, two days from an election plagued by misinformation campaigns and the rekindling ...