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Former nursing student jailed for stealing from hospital patients and colleagues
SCMP •

Former nursing student jailed for stealing from hospital patients and colleagues

A former nursing student at a leading private hospital in Hong Kong has been jailed for two years and four months for stealing cash, credit cards and a phone from patients and colleagues, causing losses of at least HK$59,000. Leung Ho-fung, 29, was sentenced at the District Court on Wednesday after pleading guilty to 11 counts of theft. He admitted stealing an iPhone, HK$6,500 (US$828) in cash and...

Israel marks 3 years since October 7 attack that sparked war in Gaza
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Israel marks 3 years since October 7 attack that sparked war in Gaza

Israel marked the third anniversary of Hamas’ October 7 attack on Wednesday with silent tributes, new strikes on Gaza and intense political debate, weeks before elections in which the country’s deadliest day will be front and centre. At the site of the Nova music festival, where Hamas militants in trucks and paragliders opened fire around dawn on October 7, 2023, family members bowed their heads i...

Last chance saloon: EU presses China for a sign to prove trade talks can work
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Last chance saloon: EU presses China for a sign to prove trade talks can work

The European Union’s top trade mandarins depart for Beijing on Wednesday for two days of intensive negotiations but expectations in Brussels are measured as to what the talks will deliver. Maros Sefcovic, the EU’s trade chief, will meet his Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao on Thursday and Friday – three months after their last encounter in Brussels, when the Europeans set an October deadline for si...

US firm ArriVent’s plunge shows risks facing China’s biotech expansion into global markets
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US firm ArriVent’s plunge shows risks facing China’s biotech expansion into global markets

US firm ArriVent BioPharma’s shares plummeted after a late-stage trial failure involving a cancer drug licensed from China, a setback that analysts said highlighted the challenges facing Chinese biotech companies expanding overseas. New York-listed ArriVent closed down nearly 47 per cent on Tuesday after reporting that its cancer treatment firmonertinib failed to meet its main goal in a phase 3 tr...

Climate change and farming gave rise to ‘genetically distinct’ Beijing swan goose: study

Climate change and farming gave rise to ‘genetically distinct’ Beijing swan goose: study

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Climate change and agricultural development have brought a new goose population to China with unique migratory patterns, a study has found. In an article on the Chinese Academy of Sciences website, researchers from the CAS Institute of Zoology said they had discovered a “genetically distinct” population of swan geese that emerged in Beijing over the past century. They said the timing of their arri...

Viral trapped shark in South Korea brings tourism, retail windfall to Busan

Viral trapped shark in South Korea brings tourism, retail windfall to Busan

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A marooned three-metre-long (nine feet) shark in South Korea has drawn more than a million visitors to the coastal city of Busan, boosting local retail sales and triggering a trademark war, as authorities rush to stop opportunistic vendors from cashing in on the viral phenomenon. The shark, nicknamed “Bukangi” in reference to the park where it has become trapped, has become an internet darling and...

Hong Kong police arrest parents of 10-year-old girl made to carry bags of beer

Hong Kong police arrest parents of 10-year-old girl made to carry bags of beer

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Hong Kong police have arrested the parents of a 10-year-old girl after a viral video showed her carrying heavy bags of beer and being berated by her father as he confronted bystanders concerned about her welfare. Police said they received a report at about 10.30pm on Tuesday that a girl in a school uniform was seen carrying two bags containing numerous cans of beer to a building at Fu Tai Estate i...

Hong Kong police investigate case of girl, 10, made to carry bags of beer

Hong Kong police investigate case of girl, 10, made to carry bags of beer

SCMP •

Hong Kong police are investigating the case of a 10-year-old girl who was made to carry bags of beer after videos were posted online showing her being berated by a man amid a confrontation with bystanders concerned about her wellbeing. Police said they received a report at about 10.30pm on Tuesday of a girl in school uniform being made to carry two bags containing numerous beer cans to a building ...

521kg of meth seized from Laos private jet bound for Manila, not Malaysia: police

521kg of meth seized from Laos private jet bound for Manila, not Malaysia: police

SCMP •

The 521kg (1,148lbs) of suspected methamphetamine seized by Laotian authorities from a private jet was not sourced from Malaysia, with the drugs believed to have originated in Laos and been destined for Manila, the Philippines. Bukit Aman Narcotics Crime Investigation Department (NCID) director Hussein Omar Khan said police were informed by Laotian authorities on Tuesday that the cross-border smug...

Chinese woman snaps up nearly 200 parking spaces to flip to neighbours for profit

Chinese woman snaps up nearly 200 parking spaces to flip to neighbours for profit

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A woman in central China invested 14 million yuan (US$2 million) to acquire 196 parking spaces in a residential community, later selling them at a significant mark-up, which led to furious residents suing her. The lawsuit centred around a residential block, the name of which was not disclosed, located in Changsha, Hunan province. The property project was completed and put on the market in 2018. At...

Malaysia’s Myanmar bet? Repatriations pave way for diplomacy

Malaysia’s Myanmar bet? Repatriations pave way for diplomacy

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Malaysia’s repatriation of Myanmar nationals ahead of a visit to Kuala Lumpur by the war-torn country’s leader appears to mirror efforts by other Asean countries seeking to mend ties with Naypyidaw. Several members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have stepped up engagement with Myanmar at the bilateral level recently, raising questions about whether a gradual normalisation between th...

Hong Kong’s AI city brain must understand how people really speak

Hong Kong’s AI city brain must understand how people really speak

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Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu’s vision of an “AI city brain” is bold and timely. An integrated system linking data across transport, public works, environmental monitoring and emergency response could help Hong Kong manage risks more proactively and coordinate services more effectively. The initiative is highly commendable. It also raises a critical question: can a city brain truly understand a...

US military in Japan’s Okinawa imposes night curfew after marine’s arrest over murder

US military in Japan’s Okinawa imposes night curfew after marine’s arrest over murder

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The US military in Okinawa will impose a curfew from midnight to 5am for a month starting Friday following the arrest of a marine on suspicion of robbing and murdering a local woman, its regional coordinator said on Tuesday. All US military personnel on Okinawa will also observe a 48-hour operational pause from noon on Wednesday, during which there will be “no off-base liberty, including a complet...

China’s DeepZang AI aims to transform Tibetan language tech, promote ethnic unity

China’s DeepZang AI aims to transform Tibetan language tech, promote ethnic unity

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Creators of China’s first Tibetan-language AI model have pledged to speed up upgrades aimed at promoting ethnic integration. Approaches to advancing the large language model, DeepZang, were discussed at a seminar on Monday that brought together representatives from research institutes, universities and enterprises, according to state-run portal Chinanews.com. It said the event held in Hohhot, in C...

Land sales offer only temporary relief for West Kowloon arts hub, experts warn

Land sales offer only temporary relief for West Kowloon arts hub, experts warn

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Hong Kong’s West Kowloon Cultural District is betting on property development to ease its financial pressures amid a widening operating deficit, but experts have warned that land sales will only provide temporary relief and cannot replace a sustainable long-term funding model for the arts hub. The warning comes as the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority prepares to tender a prime residential ...

As bear attacks rise in Japan, fearful residents change daily routines

As bear attacks rise in Japan, fearful residents change daily routines

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Jeff Kingston used to take long walks with his dogs across the hills of Gunma in central Japan. But not this year. He has good reason. Kingston said he has encountered bears in those mountains more than 100 times over the years and been charged by aggressive bears around a dozen times. In 2014, a black bear knocked him down and attacked him across the skull with its claws, leaving a gash that requ...

US, WHO press Moscow over plague after death of Russian lab tech

US, WHO press Moscow over plague after death of Russian lab tech

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US President Donald Trump said Tuesday he would speak very soon with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the reported plague death of a laboratory technician, as Washington and the United Nations called for transparency from Moscow. Russian authorities denied that they were imposing anti-plague measures and played down the reports of an incident at a plague research institute in Siberia’s Irkuts...

Trump says will speak to Putin on plague, after death of Russian lab tech

Trump says will speak to Putin on plague, after death of Russian lab tech

SCMP •

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he would speak very soon with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the reported plague death of a laboratory technician, as Washington pressured Moscow for transparency. Russian authorities denied that they were imposing anti-plague measures and played down the reports of an incident at a plague research institute in Siberia’s Irkutsk region last wee...

Hong Kong’s first-store appeal grows as more Japanese, South Korean and Thai brands arrive

Hong Kong’s first-store appeal grows as more Japanese, South Korean and Thai brands arrive

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Japanese, South Korean and Thai brands have increased their share of new entrants in Hong Kong’s retail property market by 7 percentage points to more than one-third in the first nine months of 2026, while the demand for shops from mainland Chinese brands has slipped, according to Cushman & Wakefield. A slew of new brands helped lift the combined share of Japanese, South Korean and Thai brands to ...

US citizen arrested in connection to Canada school shooting

US citizen arrested in connection to Canada school shooting

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US authorities arrested ⁠a person in Washington state on Tuesday ⁠who they accuse of providing advice and offering to live-stream a deadly mass shooting carried out earlier this year in Canada. James Cody Bryant, 30, was detained on a charge of conspiracy to murder people in a foreign country in connection to the shooting at ‌Tumbler Ridge, according to the Department of Justice. The charge carrie...

US resident arrested in connection to Canada school shooting

US resident arrested in connection to Canada school shooting

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US authorities arrested ⁠a person in Washington state on Tuesday ⁠who they accuse of providing advice and offering to live-stream a deadly mass shooting carried out earlier this year in Canada. James Cody Bryant, 30, was detained on a charge of conspiracy to murder people in a foreign country in connection to the shooting at ‌Tumbler Ridge, according to the Department of Justice. The charge carrie...

China’s economy to slow as global growth stays solid, US think tank report says

China’s economy to slow as global growth stays solid, US think tank report says

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China’s economic growth is expected to slow further next year as export strength fades and weak domestic demand persists, even as the global economy remains resilient, according to a new outlook from the Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE). The Washington-based think tank projects China’s GDP will grow 4.6 per cent this year and 4.3 per cent in 2027, down from 5 per cent growth i...

Ex-CIA official accused of stealing US$40 million in gold bars pleads guilty

Ex-CIA official accused of stealing US$40 million in gold bars pleads guilty

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A former senior CIA official pleaded guilty on Tuesday in Virginia to a charge that he abused his position and government funds to enrich himself by acquiring Florida real estate and hundreds of gold bars worth over US$40 million, according to court records. David J. Rush fabricated a “highly classified” government programme to justify the acquisition of luxury property in south Florida that he in...

After cordial Xi-Trump summit, could China’s US dollar pivot cause tremors?

After cordial Xi-Trump summit, could China’s US dollar pivot cause tremors?

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As President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump talked tariffs, agricultural quotas and critical minerals at last month’s closely watched summit in Washington, an “elephant in the room” loomed over the discussion: China’s efforts to gradually diversify away from US dollar assets. Beijing has gradually been cutting its holdings of US Treasuries while pushing to expand the yuan’s global use an...

US seeks US$100 million bail each for Chinese-born couple in surrogacy child abuse case

US seeks US$100 million bail each for Chinese-born couple in surrogacy child abuse case

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Los Angeles County prosecutors are seeking bail of US$100 million each for a Chinese-born couple charged on Tuesday with conspiring to abuse young children who were born through surrogacy and raised in their California mansion. Guojun Xuan, 66, and Silvia Zhang, 39, allegedly directed nannies to physically punish the children, watched the beatings through an extensive surveillance system and coach...

Christa Pike conscious and speaking after botched execution in US

Christa Pike conscious and speaking after botched execution in US

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Tennessee death row inmate Christa Pike is awake and speaking at a hospital, her lawyers said Tuesday, six days after the state’s failed attempt to execute her by lethal injection left her unconscious and on a ventilator. Pike, 50, survived two doses of pentobarbital as executioners attempted to put her to death last Wednesday for the 1995 beating and stabbing death of classmate Colleen Slemmer. T...

Christa Pike conscious and speaking after Tennessee failed execution

Christa Pike conscious and speaking after Tennessee failed execution

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Christa Pike, a Tennessee inmate who survived Tennessee’s attempt to execute her, is awake and speaking as she receives treatment at a hospital, her lawyers said on Tuesday. “Against all odds, Christa Pike is conscious, speaking and continues to receive critical medical care. “Despite the severe damage she endured to her arms, she is still handcuffed and shackled to the bed. Her recovery is medica...

Can’t Uygurs drink Starbucks and taste American freedom?

Can’t Uygurs drink Starbucks and taste American freedom?

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“Morally bankrupt”? Was Michigan Republican John Moolenaar talking about himself? Last week, the chairman of the House Select Committee on China demanded that Starbucks “immediately reverse course and close its stores”. The coffee chain’s crime? It opened two stores in Urumqi – the capital of Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region – in the city centre’s Grand Bazaar and its international airport. The wa...

Trump says Iran could ‘take out’ Los Angeles or San Diego, drawing backlash

Trump says Iran could ‘take out’ Los Angeles or San Diego, drawing backlash

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President Donald Trump suggested to a crowd of his supporters in Nebraska that Iran could “take out” a major US city like Los Angeles or San Diego, drawing a swift rebuke from California’s Democratic leaders and some fellow Republicans. Trump, speaking at a political rally in the state’s farm belt on Monday, discussed American wartime economic sacrifices and said he was determined to “see a tremen...