2 h. ago 3 arrested after Hong Kong car chase uncovers drugs, weapons

Hong Kong police have arrested three men, aged between 19 and 20, after a car chase in Tsim Sha Tsui, with officers discovering drugs and weapons inside the vehicle. The force said the private car driver had refused to cooperate with traffic enforcement and control division officers when stopped at Hillwood Road, adding that he fled towards Nathan Road and crashed into a taxi at Shun Yee Street while driving in the opposite direction. “After a verbal warning for people inside the vehicle to...

Events

2 h. ago Sack of bones, Duterte drug war add to growing Philippine cock fighters mystery

Three sacks weighted with sandbags recovered from the depths of a Philippine volcanic crater lake have added a dramatic new twist to the chilling case of at least 34 missing cock fighters, bolstering claims by a whistle-blower that the killings were orchestrated by a gambling tycoon with powerful political and police connections. The first sack, pulled from the murky waters of Taal Lake on Thursday, contained charred bones, according to the Department of Justice. Forensic tests have yet to...

Events

3 h. ago Economy main focus at Hong Kong leader John Lee’s meetings with advisers

Hong Kong’s leader held meetings with his advisers, including a mainland Chinese economist and two tech experts from a Hangzhou start-up known as “Six Little Dragons”, ahead of his annual policy blueprint to gauge views on how to maintain the city’s status amid growing geopolitical tensions. The John Lee Ka-chiu-led lunch meetings took place between Wednesday and Friday, marking the first official gathering of the Chief Executive’s Council of Advisers, following the appointments of Han Bicheng,...

Politics

4 h. ago Naked dancing, ‘holy baths’: Malaysian police investigate Muslim family motivational event

Malaysian police are investigating a complaint about deviant activities such as naked dancing and “holy cleansing baths” being performed during a family motivational event. Police said the report was filed at the end of February over an incident that was held at a convention centre in Shah Alam, a predominantly Malay-Muslim enclave about 30km (19 miles) from the capital of Kuala Lumpur, last September. “We have called in the wife of the complainant as well as other participants of the event for...

Events

9 h. ago Hong Kong’s first Sikh policeman in decades says family legacy inspired him

Hong Kong’s first Sikh policeman in decades plans to continue his family’s legacy of service, following in the footsteps of his great-grandfather, who recruited officers of the faith during the colonial era. Palvinderjit Singh, 27, who was born in Hong Kong, was among new graduates who became constables and probationary inspectors on Saturday. “As I grew up, I heard a lot of stories about my great-grandfather. He was responsible for recruiting the initial batch of Sikh police recruits, so I...

Events

21 h. ago China’s cotton topping robot promises full automated production of Xinjiang crop

China has unveiled the world’s first laser topping robot, overcoming a major hurdle in cotton’s laborious cultivation cycle to achieve the quest for fully mechanised cotton production, according to its developer. Cotton topping involves removing the plant’s top bud to redirect nutrients towards lateral branches, boosting boll formation and yield – a process that has long been plagued by inefficiency, inaccuracy and crop damage. The laser topping robot was jointly developed by Xinjiang University...

Politics

22 h. ago Barking up wrong tree? Indonesian police’s robot use criticised for wrong focus

A hi-tech display of humanoid robots and robotic dogs by Indonesian police has drawn criticism for their desire to project a tech-savvy image and not focusing on tackling broader problems, ranging from a “culture of impunity” to reform inertia. At the national police’s 79th anniversary parade on July 1 in Jakarta, the force unveiled 25 new machines – including RoboCop-style robots, robot tanks and robodogs – in the presence of Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto. Their spokesman, Inspector...

Events

24 h. ago 81 arrested in Hong Kong crackdown on illegal use of electric bikes, scooters

Hong Kong police have arrested 81 people in a crackdown on the illegal use of electric mobility devices such as scooters and bicycles. Senior Inspector Greenson Cheung Chin-hung said on Friday that officers made the arrests in Tai Po, Sheung Shui, Tuen Mun, Castle Peak, Yuen Long, Tin Shui Wai and Lok Ma Chau between July 7 and 10. The 62 men and 19 women arrested were aged between 20 and 79. “The arrestees were suspected of driving unregistered vehicles, driving without a valid licence, using a...

Events

24 h. ago 3 in Hong Kong remanded in custody for allegedly seeking secession

A 15-year-old boy and two others have been remanded in custody for allegedly conspiring to seek Hong Kong’s independence through a Taiwan-based political organisation in breach of the national security law. National security police on Friday levelled a charge of conspiring to commit secession under the Beijing-imposed law, a day after announcing their arrests and their alleged roles in the Hong Kong Democratic Independence Union. The 15-year-old Secondary Three student, who cannot be named for...

Politics

24 h. ago Could Hong Kong add preventive checks to its voluntary health insurance system?

Hong Kong authorities will review the city’s Voluntary Health Insurance Scheme this year and study expanding it to cover some preventive screenings, the acting health minister has said. Acting Secretary for Health Libby Lee Ha-yun’s remarks on Friday referred to a policy that was introduced by authorities in 2019 to establish standards and improve market transparency for individual indemnity hospital insurance products. Through the scheme, authorities hoped to enhance the protection level of...

Politics

24 h. ago Can the Starmer Administration Straddle the U.S. and China Concurrently?

Can the Starmer Administration Straddle the U.S. and China Concurrently?  China-US Focus

Politics

25 h. ago China's GDP growth set to slow, raising pressure on policymakers: Reuters poll

China's GDP growth set to slow, raising pressure on policymakers: Reuters poll  Yahoo

Events

26 h. ago Security, trade in focus as Australia PM Albanese heads to China By Reuters

Security, trade in focus as Australia PM Albanese heads to China By Reuters  Investing.com

Events

26 h. ago Security, trade in focus as Australia PM Albanese heads to China

Security, trade in focus as Australia PM Albanese heads to China  Reuters

Events

31 h. ago 2 Americans rescued from Japan’s Mount Fuji prompt more calls for tougher rules

Two Americans have had to be rescued from Japan’s Mount Fuji in separate incidents before the official climbing season began on Thursday, prompting renewed calls for tougher penalties on rule-breaking hikers who endanger themselves and drain local resources. The deployment of Shizuoka prefecture’s mountain rescue teams twice in two days to rescue the pair has again triggered criticism of people who insist on trying to ascend the 3,776-metre peak outside the season without adequate preparation...

Events

34 h. ago Robot maker AgiBot seeks stake in Shanghai firm in potential back

Tencent Holdings-backed AgiBot plans to acquire a controlling stake in a Shanghai-listed company for roughly 2 billion yuan (US$279 million), sparking speculation that the humanoid robot maker could pursue a back-door listing less than three years after it was founded. Agibot, the start-up also known as Zhiyuan Robotics, has offered to buy at least 63.62 per cent of Swancor Advanced Materials through affiliates Shanghai Zhiyuan Hengyue Technology Partnership and Shanghai Zhiyuan Xinchuang...

Politics

36 h. ago Handing Selfies to Beijing: The West’s Leaky Data Pipeline to China

Handing Selfies to Beijing: The West’s Leaky Data Pipeline to China  Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA)

Politics

41 h. ago Hong Kong police vow to pursue fugitive singer Tommy Yuen ‘to the end’

Hong Kong police have said they will pursue Cantopop singer Tommy Yuen Man-on “to the end” after he failed to appear in court to face a shoplifting charge. The force on Thursday condemned Yuen’s “shameful act” of fleeing Hong Kong to avoid facing justice, calling it a blatant challenge to the rule of law. “All offenders should not have delusions that they can escape justice by fleeing Hong Kong,” a police spokesman said. He said police would pursue fugitives to the end unless they surrendered...

Events

42 h. ago Friday Funny: Robot Soccer Match in Beijing Stumbles Toward Future Glory

Friday Funny: Robot Soccer Match in Beijing Stumbles Toward Future Glory  Design News

Events

44 h. ago China set to up Iran support, cyborg bee is unveiled: SCMP daily highlights

Catch up on some of SCMP’s biggest China stories of the day. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. China likely to strengthen backing for Iran as it looks to secure interests Beijing is likely to step up support for Tehran as it tries to secure its strategic interests in the Middle East, analysts say, amid concerns over how the recent Iran-Israel war will reverberate across the resource-rich region. 2. ‘Whatever they do is wrong’: Chinese exporters...

Politics