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Oslo’s ban on a missile system for Malaysian warships may lead to further bottlenecks in the country’s crucial naval modernisation project due to a scramble for a replacement and hamper its capability to counter vessels encroaching on its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea, according to analysts. The Malaysian navy has spent more than a decade waiting for its new littoral combat ships ...
A Philippine senator and son of a former president could soon face arrest after an anti-corruption body charged him on Thursday with receiving illicit payouts in an infrastructure scandal that has slowed economic growth and hammered consumer and investor confidence. The Office of the Ombudsman said Senator Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada has been indicted for plunder and violating anti-corruption laws ...
A Philippine senator and son of a former president could soon face arrest after an anti-corruption body charged him on Thursday with receiving illicit payouts in an infrastructure scandal that has slowed economic growth and hammered consumer and investor confidence. The Office of the Ombudsman said Senator Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada has been indicted for plunder and violating anti-corruption laws ...
A Hong Kong court has sentenced a former university professor to 20 weeks in jail after he accepted a HK$40,000 (US$5,110) bribe and offered two colleagues red packets to help an unqualified student gain admission to a postgraduate programme, with the judge condemning his actions for tarnishing the city’s reputation. Liu Hongbin was sentenced on Thursday for abusing his authority as chair professo...
A Hong Kong court has sentenced a former university professor to 20 weeks in jail after he accepted a HK$40,000 (US$5,109) bribe and offered two colleagues red packets to help an unqualified student gain admission to a postgraduate programme, with the judge condemning his actions for tarnishing the city’s reputation. Liu Hongbin was sentenced on Thursday for abusing his authority as chair professo...
A Hong Kong court on Thursday jailed a former university professor for 20 weeks after he accepted a HK$40,000 (US$5,109) bribe and offered red packets to two colleagues to help an unqualified student gain admission to a postgraduate programme, saying his actions had tarnished the city’s reputation. Liu Hongbin was sentenced for abusing his authority as chair professor at the Hong Kong University o...
A fire ripped through a dormitory in a girls’ boarding school in central Kenya on Thursday, killing at least 16 pupils, a government official said, in the latest such incident to afflict the East African nation. Education Minister Julius Ogamba said 79 others were injured at the Utumishi Girls School, which has more than 800 pupils in the Gilgil area of central Kenya. Ogamba said authorities would...
At least 16 students died in an overnight fire that started in the dormitories of a girls’ boarding school in Kenya, a government official said, in the latest such incident to rock the East African nation. Education Minister Julius Ogamba said on Thursday that 79 others were injured at the Utumishi Girls School, which has more than 800 students in the Gilgil area of central Kenya. The cause has no...
The European Union’s executive arm is set to back a tougher line against Chinese imports at a key meeting on Friday as a flood of low-cost competition undermines local industries. Potential measures include requiring companies in key sectors to have at least three suppliers from two or more countries in a bid to pare reliance on China, the South China Morning Post reported. Industry commissioner S...
As the global AI race increasingly relies on resilient power systems, China is urging domestic enterprises to launch pilot projects that integrate the cutting-edge technology into the energy sector. To support the plan, Beijing has released an official list of application scenarios ranging from smart grids to autonomous coal mines. Energy enterprises would be able to partner with artificial intell...
Beijing has accused Manila of “selective and discriminatory” law enforcement against Chinese nationals, and demanded on Wednesday that it brief Beijing on every case within four days, after Philippine authorities made a series of arrests and detentions involving Chinese citizens. In a statement, China’s embassy in the Philippines said it had “immediately lodged solemn representations with Philippi...
Beijing has accused Manila of “selective and discriminatory” law enforcement against Chinese nationals, and demanded on Wednesday that it brief Beijing on every case within four days, after Philippine authorities made a series of arrests and detentions involving Chinese citizens. In a statement, China’s embassy in the Philippines said it had “immediately lodged solemn representations with Philippi...
A beautician who doxxed and blackmailed a married finance director after having a brief affair with him has been sentenced to four years and four months in prison, with the Hong Kong judge condemning her exposure of the affair online and demand for HK$2.6 million (US$332,000) in payouts as “despicable”. Deputy District Judge Ivy Chui Yee-mei on Monday handed down the sentence to Li Yanlin, who was...
A beautician who doxxed and blackmailed a married finance director after having a brief affair with him has been sentenced to 52 months in prison, with the Hong Kong judge condemning her exposure of the affair online and demand for HK$2.6 million (US$332,000) in payouts as “despicable”. Deputy District Judge Ivy Chui Yee-mei on Monday handed down the sentence to Li Yanlin, who was earlier found gu...
We have selected seven Lifestyle stories from the past seven days that resonated with our readers. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. The dark story of Consort Wan, 17 years older than the emperor who loved her Wan Zhen’er became a beloved consort of Emperor Chenghua against all conventions, but records indicate a pernicious side to her tale. 2. The sto...
Chinese authorities praised the decision of Taiwanese actress and model Lin Chi-ling to quit her position as a new board member of the Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA), after her appointment drew backlash. Chen Binhua, a spokesman for Beijing’s Taiwan Affairs Office, said at a press conference on Wednesday that TAICCA had orchestrated and funded films and television productions in recent ye...
Hong Kong plans to establish an international commercial court specialising in adjudicating major cross-border disputes, a move the justice minister says will strengthen the city’s role as a global legal hub under Beijing’s national development plan. The government said on Thursday the Hong Kong International Commercial Court (HKICC) would serve as a dedicated venue for global enterprises to resol...
Hong Kong has established an international commercial court specialising in adjudicating major cross-border disputes, with the justice chief saying it will strengthen the city’s role as a global legal hub under the national plan. The Hong Kong International Commercial Court (HKICC) was launched on Thursday as a dedicated platform for global enterprises to resolve high-value disputes amid a volatil...
South Korean religious groups, universities and public institutions are offering free or affordable accommodation options for BTS fans who have become targets of price gouging ahead of the supergroup’s June concerts in Busan, but supply remains limited, leaving many to stick with their existing plans. Busan is hosting BTS’ June 12 and 13 concerts as part of its “Arirang” world tour. As June 13 is ...
Lawmakers have urged transport authorities to merge Hong Kong’s two cross-boundary ferry piers to optimise capacity and cater to the rising demand from luxury yachts, amid growing alternative transport options for travelling to mainland China. Their comments came on Thursday after the China Ferry Terminal and the Hong Kong-Macau Ferry Terminal recorded a year-on-year drop of 6.5 per cent to 7.74 m...
When a property agent in China went to check a flat leased by a woman who had defaulted on two months’ rent, he discovered she had disappeared leaving the room filled with rubbish and an abandoned dog. A shocking video showing the one-bedroom flat in Nanning, southwestern Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region in a complete mess went viral after the agent, surnamed Tang, shared it on social media on May...
Senators seeking to lock impeached Philippine Vice-President Sara Duterte out of politics for good may face an uphill battle with one of her staunchest supporters calling the movement against her family “insane and wicked”. Senator Imee Marcos, the older sister of President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr, said it was a “tragedy” that her own family had been given a second chance and “instead of grabbing it ...
European Commission leaders are preparing to harden the EU’s economic stance towards China at a pivotal debate on Friday, opening the door to a new wave of trade and industrial measures later this year. Sources indicated that a majority – though not all – of the 27 commissioners, including President Ursula von der Leyen, are supportive of a more robust trade and industrial policy, amid rising fear...
In the next five years, the Earth is overwhelmingly likely to surge again and again past the international climate threshold set as safe and shatter its hottest-year record along the way, according to new United Nations climate projections. The World Meteorological Organization also forecasts an overheating Arctic that warms nearly 1.66 degrees Celsius (3 Fahrenheit) between now and 2030 and a dan...
Hong Kong’s civil servants could receive salary increases of up to 4.12 per cent this year, according to preliminary results from a pay trend survey, subject to final approval by the Executive Council. The findings, based on data from 104 private companies and released on Thursday by the government, indicate pay increases of 4.12 per cent for senior civil servants, 2.64 per cent for middle-ranking...
Hong Kong civil servants could receive a salary rise of up to 4.12 per cent this year, according to preliminary pay trend survey results, subject to final approval by the Executive Council. The survey findings, based on data from 104 private companies and released on Thursday, suggest pay increases of 4.12 per cent for senior civil servants, 2.64 per cent for middle-ranking staff and 1.17 per cent...
Vietnam’s globetrotting leader To Lam began his first trip to Thailand with trade and security talks dominating the agenda, as well as a symbolic visit to the former home of Ho Chi Minh, the founder of modern Vietnam who once lived in the northeast of the kingdom. To Lam, the president and general secretary of the Communist Party, is seen by many as the country’s most powerful leader since the era...
The global energy crisis stemming from the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz has added complexity to already competitive China-India maritime relations. The bottleneck in the Gulf has disrupted the provision of vital supplies of oil, gas and fertilisers to Asia, underscoring the fragility of global supply chains and the significance of trade chokepoints. Amid uncertainty over the Strait of...
Israel’s military on Wednesday declared a new swathe of southern Lebanon as a combat zone and said residents in the area should move north, warning it would act “with great force” against Lebanese armed group Hezbollah in the zone. The military’s statement, posted on X, appeared to signal further escalation after more than 120 strikes on Tuesday hit Lebanon’s south and east, despite a ceasefire a...
The US Justice Department has launched a criminal investigation into E. Jean Carroll, the writer who accused US President Donald Trump of raping her in the mid-1990s, a source familiar with the matter said on Wednesday. The probe is focused on whether Carroll committed perjury in testimony tied to two civil lawsuits that she won against Trump – one tied to her allegations that he sexually abused ...
