China, Russia stress strategic ties with North Korea in anniversary messages to Kim

Kim also received congratulatory messages from leaders of several other countries.

Japan’s Nagoya to receive disaster relief after heavy rain; leaks reported at Asian Games venues

Authorities urged residents in some areas to seek safety as roads, railway tracks were inundated.

Meta continues to run ads promoting child sexual abuse material in India - report

The report follows a BBC Eye investigation that found Instagram running paid ads promoting such material in India.

‘Stolen valor’: Trump’s 9/11 story draws scorn as fabrication

While Republicans express “offense” at plans for New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to attend September 11 remembrances this week due to his Muslim faith, US President Donald Trump provoked outrage on Tuesday when he told what seems to be a fabricated story about his heroism

South Korea says Hormuz talks with France concern contribution options, not troop deployment

Discussions focused on how South Korea could contribute to international efforts concerning maritime security in the strait.

Beyond Beijing and Shanghai: Why more foreign tourists are venturing into rural China

With improved infrastructure and accessibility, China’s countryside is becoming a popular choice among foreign travellers after a slower pace of travel.

US resumes immigrant visa processing for Hungary, Poland as pause remains elsewhere

WASHINGTON, Sept 8 - President Donald Trump's administration resumed processing immigrant visa applications from Hungary and Poland last week while maintaining a temporary pause on immigrant visa appointments elsewhere, four people familiar with the matter said.

UK, France, Canada move to ban imports from Israeli settlements

The United Kingdom, France, and Canada joined forces on Tuesday to ban imports of goods and some services from illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, where settlers and soldiers are assailing, displacing and killing Palestinians at an unprecedented rate with the

Tung Chee-hwa, Hong Kong's first leader under Chinese rule, dies at 89

HONG KONG, Sept 8 - \"For the first time in history, we, the people of Hong Kong, will be master of our own destiny.\" On July 1, 1997, Tung Chee-hwa delivered his first speech as chief executive of the territory, following its handover from the United Kingdom to China.

Solomon Islands domestic political squabbles could frustrate diplomatic engagement

No confidence motion withdrawn, but experts say volatility could undermine PM Wale’s pivot to Canberra, Washington.

Hong Kong’s first chief executive Tung Chee Hwa dies, aged 89

Tung was a long-time friend of Singapore’s founding father Lee Kuan Yew.

Journalists missing in Indonesia after volcano mission

Eight people, including five journalists, set out on a speedboat to cover the eruption of Mount Anak Krakatau.

Maldives' Muizzu asks UK PM Burnham to reopen talks over Chagos Islands sovereignty

LONDON, Sept 8 - Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu has written to British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, asking him to reopen talks over the sovereignty of the Chagos Islands, a spokesperson said on Tuesday in a statement.

China's Xi tells UK's Burnham they have more common interests than differences

BEIJING, Sept 8 - Chinese President Xi Jinping struck a positive tone in a phone call with Britain's new Prime Minister Andy Burnham on Tuesday, saying that Beijing and London share greater common interests than differences.

3 Nepalese arrested for killing of Nepalese student in south-western Japan

She was found dead in August in a river in the Tenjin district of Fukuoka.

China’s Xi tells UK’s Burnham they have more common interests than differences

Their Sept 8 call was the first publicly known conversation between the two leaders.

South Korea sends team to assess situation in Strait of Hormuz

Sept 8 - South Korea has sent an inspection team to assess the security situation in the Strait of Hormuz but no decision has been taken on sending troops, the defence ministry said on Tuesday.

South Korea dispatches team to assess Strait of Hormuz conditions

South Korea said it had sent a fact-finding team to assess the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, but stressed that no decision had been made about potential troop deployment to the strategic waterway.

Cluster bomb casualties near record, driven by war in Ukraine

GENEVA, Sept 8 - Cluster munitions killed or wounded at least 1,063 people in 2025 — most of them in Ukraine — in the third-highest annual toll on record, according to a report released ahead of a conference reviewing a treaty banning the weapons.

Candidates to succeed Japan’s Suica smartcard penguin mascot unveiled

The new mascot will be either a squirrel, a rabbit and an orange creature carrying a crossbody bag with a mole on it.

Nepal disaster death toll rises as rescuers scour tunnels

Rescue work continued in Nepal for a 14th day after the glacial and mountain collapse near the China-Nepal border swept away roads, bridges and homes.

'Flying Doctor' helicopter crashes in Malaysia, authorities say

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 8 - A \"flying doctor service\" helicopter carrying five people, including medical staff, crashed in Malaysia on Tuesday near an airport on Borneo island, authorities said.

Nepal glacier saw exceptional heat before collapse that caused deadly floods: Researcher

Experts remain cautious, however, about the precise role played by the heatwave.

Kremlin says Russia will not consider Tokyo's request to dismantle new World War Two memorial

MOSCOW, Sept 8 - The Kremlin said on Tuesday that Russia will not consider Japan's request to dismantle a new World War Two memorial in the far eastern city of Khabarovsk.

Thailand arrests 12 South Koreans in scam centre bust

Around 40 suspects accused of call centre scams have been arrested in Thailand since 2015.

Scoot retimes flights between Singapore and Indonesia, increases capacity on some flights

The retimed flights affect the Jakarta and Kertajati routes.

Five dead after helicopter crashes in northern Sarawak

Four Malaysian health ministry personnel and one pilot were on board the helicopter.

China hands former Shanxi governor suspended death sentence over corruption

BEIJING, Sept 8 - A Chinese court on Tuesday handed Jin Xiangjun, former governor of the coal-producing province of Shanxi, a death sentence with a two-year reprieve over corruption, and found that he illegally accepted over 148 million yuan ($22.05 million).

Cheaper CAR-T therapy drawing global cancer patients to China

At 25, Michael Walters had already endured unsuccessful lymphoma treatments in New Zealand. A Melbourne hospital quoted up to US$600,000 for CAR-T therapy. He paid less than half that in Shanghai and learned on August 18 that his cancer was in complete remission. CAR-T, or

China’s Uzbekistan jet sale tests Russia’s grip on Central Asia

Uzbekistan has confirmed that it operates Chinese J-10CE fighter jets — turning months of speculation into a significant development for Central Asia’s defense market. The purchase does more than modernize Tashkent’s aging combat fleet. It marks China’s entry into one of the

Thailand presses Israeli ambassador over badly behaved tourists

There have been accounts of friction between Israelis visiting Thailand and local communities.

Highest paid world leader to get salary increase of $1 million

Singapore's prime minister Lawrence Wong will see his annual pay rise to 3.6 million Singapore dollars ($2.8m; £2.1m).

Convict or fete? The world is splitting on Myanmar’s generals

Two Myanmars appeared on the world stage this month. In Geneva, the United Nations’ human rights chief, its Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar, and the European Union told the Human Rights Council of a country whose civilians are bombed, tortured, conscripted and

China landslides leave six dead, nine missing

The landslides followed days of torrential rains brought by Typhoon Saudel.

Japanese prosecutors seek $1,600 fine over assault for Dewi Sukarno, wife of former Indonesian president

Dewi Sukarno is former Indonesian president Sukarno's widow.

Nepal rescue focused on workers trapped in three tunnels

At least 11 hydropower projects were engulfed when a glacier collapsed into a river on the Nepal-China border on Aug 26, burying the entrances to the tunnels of these projects under debris and mud and cutting off those trapped inside.

Nepalis mark a year since deadly protests that toppled government

The unrest caused the deaths of 76 people and the downfall of the administration of K.P. Sharma Oli.

Malaysian data centres guzzle more power as temperatures soar

Malaysia plans to retire the last of its coal-fired power plants by 2044.

Indonesia suspends nearly 2,000 free meal kitchens for breaching sanitation rules

Jakarta airports reopen after Anak Krakatau ash disruption

Flights are gradually resuming after Anak Krakatau’s volcanic ash disrupted air travel across Indonesia.

‘The ber months’: Christmas arrives early in the Philippines

The “ber months” – September, October, November, December – kick off a months-long countdown to the holiday.

Philippines’ Pacquiao takes up fight against poverty in Marcos Cabinet

The boxing legend was appointed head of the government’s anti-poverty agency.

Philippines' Pacquiao takes up fight against poverty in Marcos cabinet

MANILA, Sept 8 - Boxing great Manny Pacquiao spent decades throwing punches in the boxing ring. From Tuesday, the Filipino sports icon will direct his fight at a more enduring opponent: poverty.

UMNO now backs contender to Negeri Sembilan throne in twist to royal saga

The ongoing state palace crisis has ramifications for Malaysia’s constitutional monarchy.

Is Indonesia’s largest Muslim group getting too close to power?

The 35th Congress of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) — one of Indonesia’s largest and most influential mass Muslim organizations — has drawn to a consequential close. KH Abdul Hakim Mahfudz, affectionately known as Gus Kikin, was appointed Executive Council (PBNU) chairman for the

Congo extends state control over mining with bid to lock down geological data

DAKAR, Sept 8 - Democratic Republic of Congo plans to tighten control over geological data that guides billions of dollars in mining exploration, potentially extending state influence over the development of future mineral discoveries.

Sri Lanka bars tourists from heart of drought-hit park as El Nino looms

YALA, Sri Lanka, Sept 8 - Mugger crocodiles bask along the edge of the shrinking reservoir, waiting like everything else in Sri Lanka's drought-hit Yala National Park for the green tankers that come every day to pump in water.