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Beijing, China | AFP | A provincial capital in southwest China has dimmed outdoor advertisements, subway lighting and building signs to save energy, official announcements said, as the area battles a power crunch triggered by record-high temperatures. The mercury has soared beyond 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) in Sichuan province this week, fueling massive demand for air conditioning and drying up reservoirs in a region reliant on dams for most of its electricity. Factories including […]
Hong Kong, China | AFP | Hong Kong law enforcement on Thursday announced a task force to track down and help trafficked residents ensnared by so-called “boiler room” scams in Southeast Asia that have become a growing scourge. In recent months, victims have reported being lured to countries such as Myanmar, Cambodia, Thailand and Laos on false promises of romance or high-paying jobs, and then held against their will and forced to work, sometimes for […]
Seoul, South Korea | AFP | The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Friday rejected Seoul’s offer of economic assistance in return for denuclearisation steps, calling it the “height of absurdity”. The statement follows South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol this week putting forward an “audacious” aid plan that would include food, energy and infrastructure help in return for the North abandoning its nuclear weapons programme. Analysts previously said the chances of Pyongyang […]
Jakarta, Indonesia | AFP | Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping will attend the upcoming Group of 20 summit, the leader of host nation Indonesia said in an interview published Friday. The pair’s attendance would set the stage for showdown talks with US President Joe Biden at a time when Washington is at odds with both of the rival powers, particularly over crises in Ukraine and Taiwan. It has been unclear […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — Sixteen people have been killed and dozens are missing in flash flooding in northwest China after a sudden downpour triggered mudslides and caused a river to change course, state media reported Thursday. The floods occurred in a mountainous region of Datong county in Qinghai province, affecting more than 6,200 people from six villages, state broadcaster CCTV said. “As of noon on the 18th, 16 people have been killed and 36 […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — More than five million people in southwest China were facing rolling power cuts Wednesday as a heatwave creates an electricity supply crunch that has forced factories to stop work. Temperatures across Sichuan province have surpassed 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) in recent days, causing demand for air conditioning to spike. The region also relies heavily on dams to generate its electricity but the heat has caused reservoirs to dry up, […]
Tokyo, Japan | AFP | A board member for the Tokyo Olympics was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of taking bribes, prosecutors said, along with three other men connected to the scandal. Haruyuki Takahashi allegedly received $380,000 from high-street business suit retailer Aoki Holdings, an official partner of last year’s pandemic-delayed 2020 Games. The 78-year-old was arrested along with Aoki chairman Hironori Aoki, 83, and two other executives from the retailer, according to Tokyo Prosecutors Office documents […]
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korea fired two cruise missiles Wednesday, Seoul’s defence ministry said, ending a month-long lull in Pyongyang’s record-breaking spate of weapons tests this year. “Early this morning, we detected that North Korea fired two cruise missiles into the West Sea from Onchon, South Pyongan province,” a ministry official told AFP. “The US and South Korean military authorities are analysing detailed specifications such as flight distance.” North Korea has not tested […]
Russian president accuses US of trying to prolong conflict in Ukraine, fueling potential for conflict in Asia MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday accused Washington of seeking to prolong the conflict in Ukraine and of fuelling conflicts elsewhere in the world, including with the visit of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan. “The situation in Ukraine shows that the US is trying to prolong this conflict. And they act […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — Chinese lithium hub Sichuan province will ration electricity supply to factories until Saturday, state media reported, as a heatwave sends power demands soaring and dries up reservoirs. Temperatures in the province — home to nearly 84 million people — have hovered above 40-42 degrees Celsius (104-108 degrees Fahrenheit) since last week, according to data from China’s Meteorological Administration, increasing the demand for air conditioning. The region relies on dams to […]
YEREVAN, Armenia (AFP) — The death toll from an explosion at a bustling market in the Armenian capital Yerevan rose to 16, Armenia’s emergency situations ministry said on Tuesday. Sunday’s blast at the Surmalu wholesale market also injured 60 people after it caused a fire and the collapse of a building. “Sixteen bodies were found during search and rescue efforts,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that 18 people were still missing. Officials said […]
by Amber Wang Agence France-Presse KINMEN, Taiwan (AFP) — Visiting Taiwan’s tiny Kinmen Islands last week, Joseph Lin practiced standing up on his paddleboard, drifting across from the Chinese city of Xiamen, where days earlier fighter jets had screamed overhead. The Taiwanese islets, just two miles from China’s coast, have become a popular tourist destination, and Beijing’s massive military drills this month failed to deter domestic visitors from jetting closer to their saber-rattling neighbor. Lin, […]
