Daily Asia briefing

The Chinese military aired footage over the weekend of YJ-20 hypersonic anti-ship missile launches, as joint US-Philippines-Japan drills heighten tensions in the disputed South China Sea. China Military Bugle, a social m...

The Baloch Liberation Army claims to have conducted 27 operations in Balochistan, resulting in 42 Pakistani military personnel killed and one captured. Attacks included IED blasts, ambushes, and raids targeting security...

A strong high-pressure system is bringing dry, warm, and sunny conditions to the UK early this week, with temperatures reaching the low 20s Celsius in parts of Wales and southern Britain. However, this settled weather is...

Customers of Ikesu Onsen, a traditional Japanese bathhouse in Tsushima in Aichi prefecture, have had to delay their daily dips due to the Iran war. The sento, or public bathhouse, has been forced to push back its opening...

US law enforcement officials are reassessing security arrangements after ⁠a gunman opened fire near the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, raising questions about ⁠how he was able to get so close to an event...

North Korea and Russia are moving to consolidate their military ties at a time of deepening global instability, with both sides using the Ukraine war as a symbol of their unwavering alliance. Sunday’s unveiling of a memo...

Japan’s first female prime minister is facing a growing backlash from women new to political activism, as alarm spreads over her government’s push to revise the country’s pacifist constitution and expand its role in arms...

Europe’s territorial integrity is a “red line” in Finland’s relations with the United States and other powers, according to Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen. “I can only say that certainly territorial integrity is the red...

Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak has dropped his legal bid to serve the remainder of his corruption sentence under house arrest, closing off a closely watched appeal tied to his 2024 royal pardon. Najib, 72, i...

A large ice chunk is blocking the climbing route to Everest’s summit, risking delays in the summit season at the world’s highest peak, according to officials. A team of highly skilled mountaineers, known in Nepal as “ice...

The ruling administration of Malaysia’s Negeri Sembilan state is at the brink of collapse after a key ally withdrew support on Monday in a spat that has shone the spotlight on increasingly fragile ties within Prime Minis...

Two of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s most formidable political rivals said on Sunday they were joining forces in a bid to oust his coalition government in the coming election expected later this year. The f...

China’s drug maker WuXi AppTec reported record first-quarter revenue, as a robust order backlog and sustained demand from global pharmaceutical companies supported growth. For the three months ended March 31, the Shangha...

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari is on a week-long visit to China with a focus on economics and trade. Zardari arrived in China on Saturday. The Pakistani foreign ministry said he would be visiting Changsha in the ce...

Times of India World is tracking Economy & Trade developments tied to King Charles proceeds with four-day US state visit after White House dinner shooting scare.

A former Hong Kong prison officer has admitted severely wounding an inmate by repeatedly thrusting a stick into the man’s rectum after being sprinkled with baby powder during a game. Tam Lik-chung, an ex-assistant office...

A Texas girls' volleyball team surprised their custodian, Abel Rodriguez, with a car. He often stayed late and waited for rides. The students raised $9,000 in a week. Local businesses helped with the vehicle and costs. R...

Profit growth at China’s industrial firms accelerated to a six-month high in March, as long-suppressed factory-gate prices turned positive amid disruptions from the Iran war. Total profits for China’s major industrial en...

Taiwan has received its final shipment of US-made M1A2T Abrams tanks, completing a long-delayed order aimed at modernising the island’s ageing armoured forces. Considered one of the world’s most powerful tanks, the vehic...

A French teenager has been charged with mischief and public nuisance in Singapore for licking a straw and putting it back in an orange juice vending machine, court documents showed on Monday. Didier Gaspard Owen Maximili...

China has delivered its largest-ever liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier, bringing the number of domestic shipyards capable of designing and building the advanced vessels to five, as the country steps up its challenge to...

At least ⁠14 people ⁠were killed after lightning ⁠strikes hit several parts of Bangladesh, officials said on Monday, as seasonal thunderstorms swept across the country. The deaths were ‌reported from several districts af...

Twenty-two Sri Lankan monks returning from Thailand were arrested on Sunday at the main international airport with 110kg (242lbs) of powerful cannabis, officials said. A Sri Lanka Customs spokesman said the group, return...

Chinese scientists have achieved a breakthrough in “all-iron flow battery” technology that could sharply reduce the cost of storing renewable energy while significantly extending battery lifespan. Lithium costs over 80 t...

Coober Pedy, Australia, is famous for its underground life. The desert heat led residents to build homes, churches, and hotels below ground. This unique adaptation began with opal mining in 1915. Today, it remains the wo...

Hong Kong police have arrested nine men in a crackdown on child pornography linked to a seven-jurisdiction operation in which more than 300 suspects were detained across Asia. Police said on Monday the city had joined a...

Grieving relatives of domestic helpers killed in the Tai Po fire have struggled to break the news to victims’ children while fending off scammers targeting their compensation from Hong Kong authorities, according to a wo...

It is not an exaggeration to say that chilli peppers and spicy food are available on pretty much every street in China. The pungent, heat-infused foodstuff is so ubiquitous people joke that if a person does not indulge,...

Beijing has blocked the proposed purchase by Meta Platforms of artificial intelligence firm Manus, a start-up that is officially registered in Singapore but developed its products in mainland China. The National Developm...

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. An independent committee investigating Hong Kong’s deadly Wang Fuk Court fire wil...

Questions over Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr’s health, amplified by supporters of former president Rodrigo Duterte, have reached the Supreme Court, turning a dispute over presidential fitness into a rare test...

In a tragic and mysterious ancient custom in China, unmarried girls were chosen as brides by a legendary “Cave God” and sent to live in caves, where they would fast to death as a form of sacrifice. The practice, known as...

Malaysian immigration authorities say they have uncovered an Indonesian migrant-smuggling syndicate that moved people from sea crossings to a more elaborate route through Singapore and southern Thailand. The raid, carrie...

In several first-tier Chinese cities, chickens, which were once confined to the dinner table, are finding a new role: cherished household companions. On social media, posts and videos about “pet chickens” have racked up...