Photos show luxury boat with 50m pool and water slides near Kim Jong Un's summer retreat

Satellite images give clues about how Kim spends his holidays - something far out of reach for most North Koreans.

19 dead, 25 hurt in stampede at India religious gathering

Deadly crowd incidents are a frequent occurrence at Indian mass events, such as religious festivals, due to poor management and safety lapses.

Festival crush in Indian city of Kolkata kills at least 17, local media say

At least 17 dead in crush at Hindu festival event in India

Many more have been injured at an event in the Indian city of Kolkata to mark a Hindu festival.

India says pilot action cause of 2023 Learjet crash in Mumbai

The accident had left eight people, including the crew, seriously injured.

High debt, growing strains put focus on need for new development approaches

BANGKOK, Oct 17 - High debt levels, rising debt-service costs and a sharp drop in official development assistance are forcing developing countries and institutions that help them to rethink development and look for new sources of funding, including from the private sector.

At least 10 killed in fire at Bangladesh beach resort

DHAKA, Oct 17 - At least 10 people were killed and several others injured in a fire on Saturday at a resort near Inani Beach in Cox's Bazar, a popular tourist destination in southeastern Bangladesh, officials said.

Missing records cloud whether ousted Japanese farm minister pressed for road cuts

He was forced to resign by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi earlier this week.

India's 'cockroach' movement founder released a day after detention

Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the Cockroach Janta Party, rose to prominence this year when a weeks-long sit-in contributed to India's education minister resigning.

Trump protects Putin from Graham-Blumenthal bill

The single most predictable action of the Trump second presidency happened just a few hours ago. Trump signed an executive order that exempted Russia from all of the key possible sanctions that could have been placed on it by the Graham-Blumenthal bill. Here is a link to the

Pope Leo will leave hospital, return to Vatican on Oct 17: Holy See

The pope had part of his right lung removed on Tuesday (Oct 13) because of a cancerous tumour.

Sri Lanka suffers nationwide electricity blackout

The country was without grid power for more than two hours on Saturday (Oct 17), with no clear timeline for when electricity would be restored.

Sri Lanka suffers six-hour nationwide blackout

The country was without grid power from around noon until dusk.

More than 1.5 million flock to see Busan’s famous shark

Bukang-i the shark has remained in an artificial canal for a month.

PM Wong to visit Qatar, UAE in first trip to Middle East since taking office

The visits will provide an opportunity for Singapore to exchange views on recent developments in the region and strengthen cooperation with both countries in areas of mutual interest, such as in energy security and economic resilience, said the PMO.

Japan bullet train fares for some routes to go up from July 2027

With the increase, the fare between Tokyo and Shin-Osaka will rise by ¥700 (S$5) to ¥15,420.

IMF members call for more support amid war shocks, 'advanced intelligence' risks

BANGKOK, Oct 17 - International Monetary Fund member countries called for increasing support to countries that are facing short-term financing challenges caused by negative spillovers from wars and high energy prices, and said economic risks remain tilted to the downside.

Malaysia Airlines to resume flights to Saudi Arabia

The Malaysian carrier will resume scheduled flight operations to and from Jeddah and Madinah on Oct 18.

Japan retracts mistaken magnitude 9.9 quake alert

The alert set off loud emergency alerts on millions of mobile phones in Japan. Japan's weather agency clarified later that a 6.9-magnitude quake occurred near Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula at a depth of 160 kilometres (100 miles).

Delegates walked out of IMF steering committee meeting when Russian official spoke, sources say

BANGKOK, Oct 17 - Many delegates to the International Monetary Fund's steering committee walked out of a meeting on Saturday when Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov addressed the group in Russian, three sources familiar with the matter said.

Delegates walked out of IMF steering committee meeting in Bangkok when Russian official spoke: Sources

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 has roiled the International Monetary and Financial Committee.

China, Russia quietly moving toward a new Arctic axis

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s advisor Nikolai Patrushev’s recent visit to China points to something more consequential than another round of Russia-China strategic rhetoric: Moscow is trying to turn maritime cooperation with Beijing into infrastructure, technology and

Firefighters, villagers unite as wildfires threaten Sumatran elephant habitat

Access to water remains one of the biggest obstacles to containing the fires.

Can a cockroach movement reverse India’s democratic decline?

More than 25,000 police officers were deployed across New Delhi recently to prevent demonstrations led by India’s new youth-led political movement, the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP). Government authorities had denied the CJP permission to protest on public-order grounds. The

Malaysian ex-minister Nik Nazmi suspended from Bersama party activities after alleged khalwat case

Nik Nazmi said he was with a woman at a Petaling Jaya residence, where they were discussing a project.

Japan says it is hosting record number of foreigners

Growing anti-immigration sentiment in Japan has prompted Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to push for stricter regulations.

Three sentenced to 158 years in Mexico for murder of Australian, US surfers

MEXICO CITY, Oct 16 - A Mexican judge on Friday sentenced three men to 158 years and nine months in prison each for the killings of two Australian brothers and their American friend during a 2024 surf trip to the state of Baja California, a judicial official said.

'Two bad options': Hundreds protest in Bangkok, decrying IMF austerity demand

Protest organisers called on institutions like the International Monetary Fund to focus on climate financing and tax reforms that aid poorer citizens, rather than demand governments cut subsidies and social spending.

Australia confirms first H5N1 bird flu case on sub-Antarctic Macquarie Island

SYDNEY, Oct 17 - Australia on Saturday confirmed its first case of H5N1 bird flu on the sub-Antarctic Macquarie Island, with the deadly virus found in the remote territory's vulnerable elephant seal population.

Japan PM Takaichi sends offering to war-linked Yasukuni Shrine in autumn rite

The Shinto shrine has long been a source of diplomatic friction with China and South Korea.

India’s ‘cockroach’ movement founder released a day after detention

He will be called before a special executive magistrate on Oct 17, local broadcasters said.

Thai PM Anutin plays saxophone at IMF-World Bank reception, promotes Thai culture

Anutin’s saxophone performance followed his speech and drew applause and cheers from the audience.

Smoke from Kalimantan fires reaches Jakarta skies

Jakarta’s air quality was rated unhealthy on the afternoon of Oct 16, with an AQI of 152.

Trump waives many Russia-related sanctions, tariffs before they were to take effect under new law

WASHINGTON, Oct 16 - US President Donald Trump said on Friday that he is waiving many sanctions, restrictions and duties days before they were to take effect under a bill that he signed into law last month.

Bangladesh’s battle to contain measles outbreak a ‘real warning’ to other nations, experts say

The Bangladesh outbreak comes as vaccine hesitancy is rising, particularly in wealthier nations.

Bangladesh is battling measles. It's a 'real warning' to other nations

SYLHET, Bangladesh, Oct 17 - Bangladesh is battling to contain the world’s worst measles outbreak, a crisis exacerbated by weak data, inadequate outreach and vaccination gaps that experts say offers a warning to other nations about the deadly risk of falling immunisation rates.

Burial of Mahathir’s wife Hasmah brings into focus Malaysia’s forgotten national cemetery

Pusara Negara was planned as a grand cemetery, but the outcome was far more modest.

A thousand slogans echoed here - but it could be the end for iconic Delhi protest site

Jantar Mantar, an 18th Century site almost synonymous with demonstrations in Delhi, has been denotified as a protest site.