2 h. ago Viral bullying clips, mass murder threat sound alarm in Japan over school violence

Recent viral clips in Japan of bullying, including one which later led to a mass murder revenge threat, have sparked concerns in the country about school violence. The latest case centres on an email message sent to the board of education in Oita city, in Kyushu, at 11pm on January 11 warning of an imminent attack. “On Thursday, January 15, I will intrude into the junior high school where the bullying video spread, together with several accomplices, and carry out a mass killing of students and...

Events

5 h. ago US strike in Syria kills leader tied to Isis ambush that left 3 Americans dead

A third round of retaliatory strikes by the US in Syria resulted in the death of an al-Qaeda-affiliated leader, who officials say had a direct tie to the Islamic State member responsible for last month’s ambush that killed two US soldiers and one American civilian interpreter in the country. US Central Command announced that the strike in northwest Syria on Friday killed Bilal Hasan al-Jasim, who they claim was “an experienced terrorist leader who plotted attacks and was directly connected” to...

Events

12 h. ago Indonesian plane with 11 people missing, search and rescue under way

A regional passenger aircraft carrying 11 people lost contact with ground control on Saturday while approaching a mountainous region between Indonesia’s main island of Java and Sulawesi island, officials said. A search and rescue operation is under way. The turboprop ATR 42-500 operated by Indonesia Air Transport was on the way from Yogyakarta to the capital city of South Sulawesi when it vanished from radar, said Endah Purnama Sari, a spokesperson for the transportation ministry. The plane was...

Events

15 h. ago Iran’s leader says ‘thousands’ killed in protests, Trump a ‘criminal’

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday said “several thousand people” died in this month’s anti-government demonstrations, his first acknowledgment of the deadly scale of the unrest. Some of those were killed “brutally and inhumanely”, Khamenei said without offering details in a public meeting broadcast on state TV. He accused the US and Israel of aiding the killings and said the Islamic Republic had evidence to support the claim. Iran did not intend to push the country towards...

Events

16 h. ago Murder suspect who fled to mainland China handed over to Hong Kong police

A murder suspect who fled across the border late last month after allegedly killing his girlfriend in a public housing flat has been handed over to Hong Kong police following his capture by mainland Chinese law enforcers. The Hong Kong identity card holder, 28, was wanted in the city in connection with the murder of a woman, 35, whose body was hidden in the storage compartment of a bed in his Ngau Tau Kok flat. He was arrested by Hong Kong police on Friday and is expected to be charged with...

Events

26 h. ago Musk’s xAI sued over Grok deepfakes – this time, by mother of his child

The mother of one of Elon Musk’s children is suing his AI company, saying its Grok chatbot allowed users to generate sexually exploitative deepfake images of her that have caused her humiliation and emotional distress. Ashley St Clair, 27, who describes herself as a writer and political strategist, alleged in a lawsuit filed on Thursday in New York City against xAI that the images have included a photo of her fully dressed at age 14 that was altered to show her in a bikini, and others showing...

Politics

27 h. ago Man found guilty of involuntary manslaughter of San Francisco Thai grandfather

A man has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the death of an older Thai man whose 2021 killing in San Francisco helped spark a national movement against anti-Asian-American violence. A jury did not find Antoine Watson, 24, guilty of murder when it returned a verdict on Thursday for the January 2021 attack on Vicha Ratanapakdee, 84. Jurors found Watson guilty on the lesser charges of involuntary manslaughter and assault. The office of San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins...

Politics

28 h. ago Over 100 dead in torrential rains and floods across southern Africa

Army helicopters rescued people stranded on rooftops and hundreds of tourists and workers were evacuated from one of the world’s biggest game reserves, as torrential rains and flooding in three countries in southern Africa killed more than 100 people, authorities said on Friday. The death toll across South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe is an accumulation after weeks of heavy rains. Weather services issued warnings that more rain was on the way, possibly bringing more destructive...

Events

37 h. ago UK teen who praised Southport murderer jailed for possessing al

A British teenager who praised the killer of three young girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance event and said he planned to bomb British rock band Oasis’ reunion concert was sentenced to detention on Friday for possession of an al-Qaeda manual. McKenzie Morgan, 18, was arrested at his home in Wales after sending messages on the social media platform Snapchat in which he praised Axel Rudakubana, who murdered three girls and stabbed 10 others in July 2024, prosecutor Corinne Bramwell...

Events

38 h. ago Uganda election: Bobi Wine under house arrest amid violence claims, Museveni nears 5th term

Uganda’s opposition said its leader Bobi Wine was under house arrest on Friday, after an election that also saw a member of parliament accuse security forces of killing 10 people at his home. President Yoweri Museveni, 81, is seeking to extend his 40-year rule of the east African country and has been accused of “brutal repression” of the opposition. Uganda’s Electoral Commission said on Friday that Museveni was on 75.4 per cent to Wine’s 20.7 with close to 60 per cent of votes counted. Final...

Events

39 h. ago As families shrink, our primary relationship is increasingly with ourselves

More than 2,300 years ago, Aristotle mused in Politics that to live alone, a man must be a god or a beast, or words to that effect. I wonder what he would have thought of the popularity of China’s “Are You Dead?” app. For Aristotle, we are social animals, thriving in the “polis” in the company of family, friends and fellow citizens. The average mother had at least five children. Many homes housed three, even four, generations. Family life was noisy and crowded, full of companionship, contest and...

Politics

41 h. ago China suffered $35B losses in natural disasters that killed 763 in 2025

China suffered $35B losses in natural disasters that killed 763 in 2025  Anadolu Ajansı

Events

45 h. ago South Korea’s Yoon gets 5 years in prison for obstructing justice during martial law bid

A South Korean judge sentenced former president Yoon Suk-yeol on Friday to five years in prison for obstructing justice and other charges linked to his disastrous martial law declaration and its chaotic aftermath. It is the first in a series of verdicts for the disgraced ex-leader, whose brief suspension of civilian rule in South Korea on December 3, 2024, prompted massive protests and a showdown in parliament. Now ousted from power, Yoon faces multiple trials for actions taken during that...

Events

45 h. ago South Korea’s Yoon sentenced to 5 years in prison over martial law charges

Impeached former South Korean president Yoon Seok-yeol was sentenced on Friday to five years in prison after being found guilty of resisting arrest and other offences linked to his botched martial law declaration in 2024. The ruling marks the first conviction among eight criminal trials Yoon is facing, including a case in which prosecutors demanded he be sentenced to death for his role as the “ringleader” of an insurrection in imposing the ill-fated decree that plunged the country into political...

Events

46 h. ago Man shot dead by Hong Kong police had ‘history of mental illness, drug abuse’

A man shot dead by police after taking a woman hostage while brandishing a knife at a Hong Kong shopping centre on Thursday had a history of mental illness and drug abuse, and missed a medical consultation last week, the Post has learned. The information emerged as security chief Chris Tang Ping-keung defended police over the “difficult decision to shoot” the 34-year-old man in Tuen Mun, while a relative of the deceased said officers could have aimed for his limbs to avoid killing him. After...

Events

47 h. ago Asia week ahead: Rate decisions in China, Japan, Indonesia and key data from China, Taiwan, and South Korea

Asia week ahead: Rate decisions in China, Japan, Indonesia and key data from China, Taiwan, and South Korea  ING THINK economic and financial analysis | ING Think

Politics

48 h. ago Philippines’ Cebu residents cry foul over mounting garbage, health risks

A deadly garbage avalanche in central Philippines last week, which killed 19 and led to more than 20 missing, has prompted outrage from civic and green groups over poor enforcement of environmental laws for contributing to the disaster. On January 8, a mountain of debris collapsed at a 15-hectare landfill in the village of Binaliw, Cebu City, where over 100 sanitation workers were on site. Officials say the tragedy may have been partly caused by recent earthquakes and heavy rains affecting soil...

Events

50 h. ago Horrified Malaysian mother disowns daughter after mutilation threats by ‘vile’ loan sharks

The constant threat of genital mutilation of her daughter and son-in-law by loan sharks was so harrowing that a woman in Malaysia has resorted to disowning her own flesh and blood. “The loan sharks are vile. They threatened to sever the private parts of my daughter and her husband,” said the 60-year-old housewife who only wanted to be known as Heng. “A loan shark also sent me gory photos of people with severed genitals, claiming he had carried out the acts himself. It was so upsetting that I...

Events

63 h. ago Hong Kong police shoot and kill man wielding meat cleaver in Tuen Mun

Hong Kong police have shot and killed a man who brandished a meat cleaver at a shopping centre in Tuen Mun. The tragedy unfolded around 7pm on Thursday near Tuen Mun Town Hall on Tuen Wui Road. A video taken by a passer-by shows a man in a white tracksuit carrying a 20cm knife entering the Tuen Mun Town Plaza mall. One of three police officers at the scene is seen shooting the man, who is holding a woman, with a pepper spray gun. Another officer fires two shots. A source said police received a...

Events

63 h. ago Hong Kong police shoot and kill man wielding 30cm knife in Tuen Mun

Hong Kong police have shot and killed a man who brandished a 30cm knife at a shopping centre in Tuen Mun, with the force saying the officers involved had no choice but to open fire to save a passer-by. The tragedy unfolded around 7pm on Thursday near Tuen Mun Town Hall on Tuen Wui Road. Police said the 34-year-old man killed was a Hong Kong identity card holder. They said preliminary information from his family pointed to a history of mental illness, although authorities were still seeking to...

Events