Tag: Malaysia

Indonesia moves rejected Rohingya refugees stranded on beach

By Chaideer Mahyuddin with Marchio Gorbiano in Jakarta SABANG, Indonesia, Nov 22, 2023 (AFP) – More than 200 Rohingya refugees were relocated from the beaches of a remote Indonesian island Wednesday after weeks adrift on a wooden boat, as authorities rejected locals’ efforts to push the members of the persecuted Myanmar minority back to sea. The latest arrivals brought to more than 1,000 the number of desperate and exhausted Rohingya who have landed on the […]

Malaysian killer freed from Australian immigration detention: lawyer

SYDNEY, Nov 13, 2023 (AFP) – A Malaysian former bodyguard convicted in the 2006 murder of a Mongolian translator has been released after eight years in Australian immigration detention, his lawyer said Monday. Sirul Azhar Umar fled Malaysia after being sentenced to hang for the gruesome slaying of Altantuya Shaariibuu, who worked as an interpreter on a $2 billion French submarine deal that was mired in allegations of corruption. Sirul has long insisted the killing […]

Malaysia blames Indonesian fires for haze, poor air quality

  KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 30, 2023 (AFP) – Hundreds of forest fires in Indonesia have caused haze to reach areas of Malaysia where it has worsened air quality, Kuala Lumpur’s top environment official has said. Outbreaks of smog-belching forest fires in 2019 caused Malaysia to say it would pressure Indonesia to combat the annual problem, which is often caused by blazes lit to clear agricultural land. Malaysia’s Department of Environment director-general Wan Abdul Latiff Wan […]

Malaysia rejects new Chinese map over South China Sea claims

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 30, 2023 (AFP) – Kuala Lumpur rejected Wednesday a new Chinese map that claims waters off Malaysia’s coast in the South China Sea, in the latest war of words between the Asian allies over Beijing’s assertiveness in the waterway. China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea — through which trillions of dollars in trade pass annually — despite an international court ruling that Beijing’s entitlement has no legal basis. […]

Ten killed in light plane crash near Malaysian capital

A light plane crashed into a four-lane road near Malaysia’s capital on Thursday, killing eight people on board and two motorists on the ground, the local police chief said. The plane exploded into a fireball on impact, with thick black smoke seen rising from the site, video clips from the scene showed. “For now, I can say at least 10 people were killed in the plane crash. Two passing motorists — one in a car […]

Australian charged with making fake bomb threat on plane

SYDNEY, Aug 14, 2023 (AFP) – An Australian man was charged Tuesday with making a fake bomb threat on a flight to Malaysia, terrifying passengers and causing havoc in the country’s airspace. The Malaysia Airlines flight from Sydney to Kuala Lumpur was forced to turn back Monday afternoon when the agitated man started claiming he had “explosives” in his backpack, police said. Police said the 45-year-old, who was arrested after the plane returned to Sydney, […]

Malaysians vote in six state elections seen as referendum on Anwar

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 12, 2023 (AFP) – Malaysians in six states went to the polls Saturday to vote for state assembly members in elections widely seen as a barometer of support for Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s unity government. While the elections are unlikely to immediately affect Anwar’s current two-thirds majority in parliament, analysts said his hold on power could weaken if his Pakatan Harapan coalition suffers a setback, especially among Malay Muslim voters in the […]

Chinese FM Wang Yi to embark on Southeast Asia tour

BEIJING, Aug 9, 2023 (AFP) – China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi will visit Singapore, Malaysia and Cambodia this week, Beijing said on Wednesday as it seeks to build ties in the region. Wang, who returned to the post last month after the unexplained disappearance of predecessor Qin Gang, will travel to the three countries from Thursday to Sunday, the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement. “China hopes to strengthen strategic communication with the three […]

Malaysia searches Chinese ship suspected of looting WWII wrecks

KUALA LUMPUR, May 30, 2023 (AFP) — Malaysia’s coastguard said Tuesday that authorities were questioning the crew of a Chinese vessel detained on suspicion of looting two British World War II shipwrecks. Officers discovered unexploded cannon shells upon boarding the Chinese-registered vessel, which was detained for illegal anchorage over the weekend, said Nurul Hizam Zakaria, Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency chief in Johor state. “Our investigation is now directed to where these cannon shells originated from. […]

Indonesia’s Widodo says limited progress on Myanmar peace plan

LABUAN BAJO, Indonesia, May 11, 2023 (AFP) – Southeast Asian nations have made “no significant progress” on implementing a peace plan aimed at ending bloodshed in Myanmar, Indonesian President Joko Widodo said Thursday, on the final day of a summit. Escalating violence in junta-ruled Myanmar has dominated the three-day meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) regional bloc on the Indonesian island of Flores. ASEAN, which has spearheaded diplomatic efforts to resolve the […]

Three crew missing after oil tanker fire off Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AFP) — Malaysian rescuers on Tuesday were searching for three missing crew members from an oil tanker that caught fire off the country’s southern coast. Thick, black smoke engulfed the Gabon-flagged ship when the fire broke out on Monday during its journey from China to Singapore, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) said in a statement. Singaporean authorities identified the ship as the MT Pablo. The fire was extinguished and the vessel […]

Malaysia ready to negotiate with China on South China Sea: PM

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | AFP | Monday 4/3/2023 Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said Monday that Malaysia was prepared to negotiate the South China Sea dispute with Beijing to safeguard the country’s energy exploration efforts. China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea — a strategic waterway through which trillions of dollars in trade pass annually — despite an international court ruling that Beijing’s assertion has no legal basis. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and […]