80 m. ago Videos show Israeli settlers attacking Palestinian olive harvesters in West Bank

Israeli settlers descended on Palestinian olive harvesters and activists this week in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, beating them with clubs in an attack Palestinian health officials said sent at least one woman to the hospital with serious injuries. The attack on Sunday in the town of Turmus Ayya, which was captured in videos obtained by Associated Press, came as Palestinians say settler violence in the region is worsening. The United Nations and rights groups have raised the alarm as harvest...

Politics

4 h. ago Singapore hospital counters woman’s illegal restraint, forced injection claims

Tan Tock Seng Hospital in Singapore on Tuesday defended the actions of a clinical team that attended to one of its patients after the woman claimed that she was mistreated at the hospital. “We are aware of recent online posts by a patient alleging that her treatment at our hospital was insensitive and inappropriate. We take the allegations seriously,” the hospital said in a social media post. “Our clinical team’s actions were guided by our foremost duty to ensure the safety and well-being of the...

Events

7 h. ago North Korea prepares for Apec – with a ballistic missile launch

With the Apec summit in South Korea just days away, the nuclear-armed North fired a ballistic missile on Wednesday in an apparent bid to remind the world of its growing arsenal. The launch, occurring against the backdrop of deepening military ties between North Korea and Russia, has reignited fears of escalating provocations and their implications for global stability. Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff reported that the missile, presumed to be a Hwasong-11da-4.5, was launched from North Hwanghae...

Events

23 h. ago ‘Stealth husband’: Japan PM Takaichi’s spouse shuns the spotlight

Taku Yamamoto, husband of Japan’s first female Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, said he hopes to support his wife as a “stealth husband”, adding, “Unlike in the West, it is better for the partner to stay out of the spotlight here.” A former fellow Liberal Democratic Party member in the House of Representatives, Yamamoto said he was initially “drawn to the contrast” between Takaichi’s tough exterior and her femininity. The couple, who married in 2004, divorced in 2017 over political differences but...

Events

24 h. ago Chinese woman charged in Paris gold theft from Natural History Museum

A Chinese woman has been arrested and charged over the theft of gold from the Natural History Museum in Paris, in one of several recent high-profile break-ins targeting French cultural institutions, a prosecutor said on Tuesday. The theft – by what the museum’s director at the time said was an “extremely professional team” – took place on September 16, about a month before an audacious jewellery heist at the world-famous Louvre Museum on Sunday. A 24-year-old Chinese woman was arrested in...

Culture

28 h. ago Evangelista’s wealth under fire, Singaporeans flock to Johor: 7 Asia highlights

We have selected seven stories from the SCMP’s coverage of Asia over the past week that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. US call centre bill threatens Philippines’ US$30 billion outsourcing boom As dusk settles over Angeles City, Justin Cunanan prepares for another long night. While the rest of the Philippines sleeps, he joins millions of his compatriots powering a global industry that is...

Events

30 h. ago Beijing Pulls Plug on Ant Group, JD.com Stablecoin Initiatives

Beijing Pulls Plug on Ant Group, JD.com Stablecoin Initiatives  blockhead.co

Politics

31 h. ago Hong Kong court gives ‘Mr Ho’ suspended jail sentence for insecticide attack

An elderly Hong Kong man, known on the internet as “Mr Ho” after a whirlwind romance with a much younger mainland Chinese woman, has received a suspended jail sentence for an insecticide attack on a passer-by who taunted him about controversies arising from his marriage. Tuen Mun Court on Tuesday suspended Ho Huen’s two-month jail sentence for two years after rejecting the defence’s suggestion to settle the case by imposing a fine. The court also ordered the 77-year-old retiree to pay the...

Events

32 h. ago Chinese Tech Titans Retreat From Hong Kong Stablecoin Launch After Beijing Warning | Bitcoinist.com

Chinese Tech Titans Retreat From Hong Kong Stablecoin Launch After Beijing Warning | Bitcoinist.com  Bitcoinist.com

Events

33 h. ago Chinese mum dies saving baby from South Korea fire caused by woman’s pest hunt

A woman in her 30s died after saving her two-month-old baby from a fire accidentally started by a neighbour attempting to kill a cockroach using a lighter and spray in Osan, South Korea’s Gyeonggi province, police said on Monday. According to Osan police station, the fire broke out around 5.35am on Monday in a mixed-use building where a woman in her 20s, identified only by her surname A, lived on the second floor. She tried to catch a cockroach by spraying flammable mist and igniting it with a...

Events

34 h. ago Outrage in China as reports surface of human teeth found in sausages, dim sum

Multiple instances of diners discovering human teeth in food have reignited food safety concerns in China. On October 13, a woman reported finding a row of three artificial human teeth in a sausage she bought for her child in northeastern China’s Jilin province. She bought the grilled sausage from an outdoor stall. Initially, the vendor denied that the teeth were present when the sausage was sold but later apologised after local market supervision authorities became involved. On the same day,...

Politics

34 h. ago How Hong Kong pair landed in Myanmar scam farm ‘living a life worse than death’

Having lived in safe Hong Kong all her life, Nancy never imagined that an overseas job would lead to forced labour in a scam farm, a harrowing experience that lasted for half a year before she could be reunited with her family. “I was living a life worse than death, surviving purely by willpower,” said Nancy, who is in her twenties. Like thousands of others lured to Southeast Asian scam farms, Nancy was hoping to make some quick money when a “friend” referred her for a job making cross-border...

Events

35 h. ago US man who faked death and fled to UK gets at least 5 years for rape

An American who faked his own death and fled to Scotland to evade justice was sentenced Monday to five-years-to-life in prison for raping his ex-girlfriend 17 years ago. Nicholas Rossi, 38, who potentially could spend the rest of his days behind bars, went to great lengths to conceal his identity and flee after committing the rape in the western state of Utah in 2008, authorities said. State Judge Barry Lawrence pointed to this as an “aggravating factor” as he handed down the sentence in a Salt...

Events

43 h. ago Stabilizer or spoiler? The China factor in the North Korea nuclear dilemma

Stabilizer or spoiler? The China factor in the North Korea nuclear dilemma  Brookings

Events

44 h. ago Argentina formalises US$20 billion lifeline from Trump as Milei faces poll test

Argentina on Monday formalised a currency swap agreement with the United States for up to US$20 billion aimed “at contributing to Argentina’s economic stability,” the South American country’s central bank said. The deal is part of huge financial support from the administration of Donald Trump, a strong backer of Argentine President Javier Milei, who is under pressure ahead of midterm elections on October 26. The peso has been fluctuating wildly ahead of the vote, disrupting the savings and...

Politics

44 h. ago Hong Kong woman, 81, loses HK$5 million to romance scammer posing as PLA officer

An 81-year-old woman in Hong Kong has lost more than HK$5 million after falling victim to an elaborate online romance scam involving a fraudster who posed as a People’s Liberation Army (PLA) officer from mainland China. In a post on its CyberDefender social media page on Monday, police said the woman received a WhatsApp message from a man who claimed to be a PLA officer and invited her to visit a military camp. They quickly built an online romantic relationship through frequent affectionate...

Economics

45 h. ago 3D printing trailblazer Chua Chee Kai relocates to China from Singapore hub

Singaporean 3D printing pioneer Chua Chee Kai has joined Wuhan University of Science and Technology (WUST) as a full-time distinguished professor, receiving his appointment in a ceremony on October 10, according to the university’s website. For decades, Chua led major 3D printing research initiatives in Singapore, helping to turn the country into a global hub for additive manufacturing technologies used in aerospace, biomedical and electronic applications. In his remarks at the ceremony, Chua...

Politics

45 h. ago China doubles GenAI users, PLA ship near disputed shoal: 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 reports 4.8% quarterly GDP growth, moving closer to annual target China’s economy grew 4.8 per cent year on year in the third quarter of 2025, keeping the country largely on track to achieve its full-year target, but analysts said further policy support is still needed to maintain this stable trajectory and improve domestic demand. 2. China’s...

Politics

47 h. ago Hong Kong Moves Forward with Stablecoins While Beijing Signals Concern

Hong Kong Moves Forward with Stablecoins While Beijing Signals Concern  Finance Magnates

Events

49 h. ago What is ‘offering sacrifices to empty coffin’ ritual in Taiwan; why burn figurine

In a Taiwanese folk custom, when two family members die within the same year, straw figurines and duck blood are employed in a special ritual that involves burning an empty paper coffin, aimed at preventing a third death within the family. This traditional practice, known as “Sacrificing to an Empty Coffin”, or ji kong guan in Chinese, is usually conducted during the funeral of the second deceased. Grounded in the folk belief that “bad luck comes in threes,” the ritual seeks to ward off...

Events