Asia

Malaysian floods caused $1.4 bn in losses: government

  KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AFP) — Devastating floods that hit Malaysia in recent weeks caused about $1.4 billion in losses, with widespread damage to homes, businesses and factories, the country’s statistics department said on Friday. Heavy monsoon rains triggered the country’s worst flooding in years from mid-December to early January, with about 50 people killed and 125,000 forced from their homes. The disaster caused losses amounting to 6.1 billion ringgit ($1.45 billion), the government’s statistics […]

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Six rockets target Baghdad airport, damaging plane: security source

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AFP) — Six rockets were fired at the Iraqi capital’s airport at dawn on Friday, causing damage but no casualties, two security sources said. The rockets landed on Baghdad airport’s runways or parking areas, one of the sources said. “One civilian plane has been hit and damaged,” the source said. © Agence France-Presse

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Gunman arrested in Japan after taking doctor hostage, shooting nurse: reports

TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — A Japanese man has been arrested for the attempted murder of a doctor he took hostage overnight, reports said Friday. The suspect also shot a nurse, who is severely injured, as he confined the doctor, who is feared dead after the attack, according to public broadcaster NHK. NHK said the 44-year-old doctor was in cardiorespiratory arrest — an expression often used in Japan before a death is confirmed — when he […]

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North Korea confirms missile tests as Kim inspects ‘important’ munitions factory

by Cat BARTON / Kang Jin-kyu SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korea test-fired two different weapons systems this week, state media said Friday, while highlighting Kim Jong Un’s inspection of an “important” munitions factory. Pyongyang has conducted six weapons tests in January, including firing hypersonic missiles, doubling down on Kim’s call to build “military muscle” with one of the most intense single-month barrages on record while ignoring US offers of talks. The official Korean […]

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Hong Kong outbreak exposes flaws in 21-day quarantine policy

by Holmes CHAN HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Hong Kong’s U-turn on its mandatory three-week quarantine for arrivals follows growing scrutiny of the strict policy after a coronavirus outbreak was traced to a woman infected during her hotel stay. Like mainland China, Hong Kong is one of the few places left in the world still pursuing a zero-Covid strategy that has largely kept the virus at bay but left the finance hub internationally isolated. On […]

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Rare snowfall carpets Jerusalem

JERUSALEM, Undefined (AFP) — Snow carpeted Jerusalem on Thursday as a rare wintry storm swept across Israel and the Palestinian territories as well as the wider Middle East. The cold snap, which has already caused major disruption in Athens and Istanbul, saw heavy snowfall in areas better known for their summer heat. In the alleyways of Jerusalem’s walled Old City, children pelted each other with slushy snowballs after the first flakes fell. By morning, snow […]

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China warns US over Ukraine, ‘interfering’ in Winter Olympics

BEIJING, China (AFP) – China’s top diplomat spoke with his US counterpart on Thursday, warning Washington to “stop interfering” in the Winter Olympics and stressing that Russia’s security concerns in Europe should be “taken seriously”. Beijing hopes to turn next week’s Games into a soft power triumph. But the lead-up has been clouded by a US-led diplomatic boycott over China’s human rights record, particularly towards its Uyghur Muslim minority in the Xinjiang region. “The most […]

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North Korea fires unidentified ‘projectile’, South says

SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korea fired an “unidentified projectile” early Thursday, South Korea’s military said, the nuclear-armed country’s sixth weapons test this year. “North Korea fired an unidentified projectile into the East Sea,” Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said, referring to the Sea of Japan. The last time North Korea tested this many weapons in a month was in 2019, after high-profile negotiations between leader Kim Jong Un and then-US president Donald Trump […]

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Russia warns against ‘destructive’ sanctions on Putin

by Jonathan BROWN MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Russia hit back Wednesday at US threats of direct sanctions against President Vladimir Putin, saying moves against the Russian leader would be ineffective and hurt efforts to lower tensions over Ukraine. Officials from France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine were set for talks in Paris on Wednesday in the latest bid to ease a crisis sparked by fears that Moscow is preparing an invasion of its pro-Western neighbour. The […]

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At least 19 dead after clash, fire at club in Indonesia’s West Papua

  SORONG, Indonesia (AFP) — At least 19 people were killed in a clash at a nightclub in the town of Sorong in Indonesia’s West Papua province, police said Tuesday, with most dying after the venue caught fire. One victim was stabbed and 18 more died in the blaze at the Double O nightclub, officials said. “The clash broke out last night (Monday) at 11 pm. It was a prolonged conflict from a clash on […]

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‘Nightmare’: Workers, students decry Japan virus entry ban

by Etienne Balmer and Katie Forster TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Yanita Antoko has been waiting for over a year in Indonesia to join her husband in Japan. She has her papers and has closed her business selling homemade spice mixes, but remains shut out. The 30-year-old is one of more than 370,000 people left in limbo by Japan’s coronavirus border rules, which bar almost all new arrivals and are the strictest in the G7. Even […]

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At least 18 dead after clash, fire at club in Indonesia’s West Papua

SORONG, Indonesia (AFP) — At least 18 people were killed during clashes between two groups at a night club in the town of Sorong in Indonesia’s West Papua province, police said Tuesday, with most dying after the venue caught fire. “The clash broke out last night (Monday) at 11 pm. It was a prolonged conflict from a clash on Saturday,” Sorong police chief Ary Nyoto Setiawan said in a statement. One victim was stabbed and […]

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