4 h. ago Japan’s Takaichi resurrects frozen dispute over islands lost to Russia

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s pledge to revive visits by former residents to the Russia-controlled islands off Japan’s far north has reignited debate over whether humanitarian exchanges can survive the deep freeze in Tokyo–Moscow relations. Analysts say the political climate has turned far more hostile since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, leaving “no chance” of such visits resuming while Japan supports Kyiv and Moscow deepens its strategic alignment with Beijing. Takaichi made the...

Politics

5 h. ago Asia in Turmoil as Air China, Singapore Airlines, Emirates, and More Delay 937 Flights with 110 Cancellations, Stranding Passengers in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing, and Singapore

Asia in Turmoil as Air China, Singapore Airlines, Emirates, and More Delay 937 Flights with 110 Cancellations, Stranding Passengers in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing, and Singapore  Travel And Tour World

Politics

5 h. ago How will the Tai Po fire affect voters in Hong Kong’s Legco election?

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Get faster notifications on the latest updates by downloading our app. Hongkongers head to polling stations to elect their new representatives in the legislature on Sunday amid a sombre atmosphere, with the city dealing with the aftermath of the catastrophic fire in Tai Po that claimed at least 159 lives. Before the deadly blaze broke out at Wang Fuk Court on...

Politics

5 h. ago Cast your ballots in Hong Kong’s Legco election ‘for reform’, John Lee urges

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Get faster notifications on the latest updates by downloading our app. Hongkongers head to polling stations to elect their new representatives in the legislature on Sunday amid a sombre atmosphere, with the city dealing with the aftermath of the catastrophic fire in Tai Po that claimed at least 159 lives. Before the deadly blaze broke out at Wang Fuk Court on...

Politics

5 h. ago Hong Kong’s Legco election turnout reaches 12.99% shortly after midday

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Get faster notifications on the latest updates by downloading our app. Hongkongers head to polling stations to elect their new representatives in the legislature on Sunday amid a sombre atmosphere, with the city dealing with the aftermath of the catastrophic fire in Tai Po that claimed at least 159 lives. Before the deadly blaze broke out at Wang Fuk Court on...

Politics

5 h. ago 33 children killed in drone attack by Sudan paramilitaries, doctors say

A drone attack by the Sudanese paramilitary forces hit a kindergarten in south-central Sudan, killing 50 people, including 33 children, a doctors’ group said. Paramedics on the scene in the town of Kalogi in South Kordofan state were targeted in “a second unexpected attack”, Sudan Doctors’ Network said in a statement late on Friday. Emergency Lawyers, a rights group tracking violence against civilians in Sudan reported in a statement Saturday the second strike on paramedics treating survivors in...

Events

7 h. ago Travel Halted in China as Passengers across Beijing, Chengdu, Nanjing, Wenzhou and more Faces 20 Cancellations and over 100 Delays by Air China, All You Need to Know

Travel Halted in China as Passengers across Beijing, Chengdu, Nanjing, Wenzhou and more Faces 20 Cancellations and over 100 Delays by Air China, All You Need to Know  Travel And Tour World

Politics

13 h. ago Venezuela’s Machado defies warning, vows to attend Nobel Peace Prize ceremony

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has vowed to go to Norway to pick up her Nobel Peace Prize, defying a warning from Caracas that she would be a fugitive if she did so. The head of the Nobel Institute, Kristian Berg Harpviken, on Saturday said that Machado – who lives in hiding in her country – promised him she would make the ceremony, set to take place in Oslo on Wednesday. “I was in contact with Machado last night [Friday] and she confirms that she will be in Oslo for the...

Events

15 h. ago Second consecutive home snow victory for Su as Brookes wins big in Beijing

Second consecutive home snow victory for Su as Brookes wins big in Beijing  FIS

Politics

15 h. ago ‘Don’t say we didn’t warn you’: Beijing summons journalists in Hong Kong after fire

‘Don’t say we didn’t warn you’: Beijing summons journalists in Hong Kong after fire  The Guardian

Events

15 h. ago The great slowdown: Germany at a standstill as ‘China shock’ hits

It is not unusual for Berlin to be cloaked in a blanket of grey on the brink of winter. What hangs over the city this year, however, feels heavier. This new shade of gloom cuts through conversations about everything. Germany’s coalition government is just six months old, but already some are wondering how long it can last. The economy is no larger now than it was five years ago and is being pummelled by a heady brew of structural problems and external threats. The German foreign minister warned...

Events

16 h. ago Hong Kong police arrest 2 over possession of suspected dangerous drugs

Hong Kong police have arrested a man and a woman for alleged possession of dangerous drugs after seizing suspected etomidate and methamphetamine from them. Officers from the force’s Kowloon West region noticed a suspicious pair at about 1am on Saturday while conducting an anti-crime patrol on Un Chau Street in Cheung Sha Wan and stopped them for questioning. Officers seized five e-cigarette cartridges suspected of containing etomidate and four packets of suspected methamphetamine weighing about...

Events

16 h. ago Beijing warns foreign media in Hong Kong over crossing ‘red lines’ during meeting

Beijing’s national security office in Hong Kong has met representatives from foreign media outlets in the city and warned them against crossing “red lines”, following reports it said smeared the government’s fire relief efforts and attacked the Legislative Council election. According to sources, foreign media outlets that were requested to attend the meeting included Agence France-Presse, the Financial Times, The New York Times and Associated Press. Bloomberg News reported it also attended. The...

Events

16 h. ago Gaza truce incomplete without ‘full withdrawal’ by Israel: Qatar PM

The nearly two-month-old ceasefire in the Gaza Strip will not be complete until Israeli troops withdraw from the Palestinian territory under a peace plan backed by Washington and the United Nations, mediator Qatar’s prime minister has said. “Now we are at the critical moment ... A ceasefire cannot be completed unless there is a full withdrawal of the Israeli forces, [and] there is stability back in Gaza,” Qatari prime minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said on Saturday. Sheikh...

Politics

17 h. ago Hong Kong fire aftermath: how victims are dealing with the psychological toll

More than a week after an inferno ravaged Wang Fuk Court, in Hong Kong’s Tai Po, claiming at least 159 lives, one mother remains in fear and agony that her daughter could be among the victims. The woman, surnamed Ng, said on Saturday that she feared she had lost her daughter after two bodies, pending DNA tests, were found in a rented flat in the estate. “My daughter’s cousin also lived there, but she had class that day and was not home,” said Ng, before breaking into tears. “She just graduated a...

Events

17 h. ago The German top diplomat had canceled his visit to China at the last minute, in the second attempt he is expected to travel to Beijing.

The German top diplomat had canceled his visit to China at the last minute, in the second attempt he is expected to travel to Beijing.  Gazeta Express

Politics

18 h. ago China sends seasoned ‘American hand’ to serve as top envoy to Philippines

Jing Quan, formerly the second-in-command at the Chinese embassy in Washington, arrived in Manila on Saturday to assume his post as Beijing’s top envoy to the Philippines, pledging to both defend national interests and stabilise bilateral ties. “As the ambassador, I will firmly safeguard China’s national interests and dignity, while also serving as a bridge to ensure China-Philippines relations stabilise rather than deteriorate, and that our peoples draw closer instead of drifting apart,” Jing...

Politics

18 h. ago China sends seasoned ‘America hand’ to serve as top envoy to Philippines

Jing Quan, formerly the second-in-command at the Chinese embassy in Washington, arrived in Manila on Saturday to assume his post as Beijing’s top envoy to the Philippines, pledging to both defend national interests and stabilise bilateral ties. “As the ambassador, I will firmly safeguard China’s national interests and dignity, while also serving as a bridge to ensure China-Philippines relations stabilise rather than deteriorate, and that our peoples draw closer instead of drifting apart,” Jing...

Politics

18 h. ago Beijing Sees Rising International Tourist Arrivals in 2025 with Streamlined Immigration Processes, Here’s All You Need to Know

Beijing Sees Rising International Tourist Arrivals in 2025 with Streamlined Immigration Processes, Here’s All You Need to Know  Travel And Tour World

Society

19 h. ago India caps airfares as IndiGo crisis hits 5th day, stranding hundreds

India capped airfares on Saturday as hundreds of passengers gathered outside Bengaluru and Mumbai airports after IndiGo cancelled 385 flights on the fifth day of a crisis at the country’s biggest airline that has crippled air travel. IndiGo has cancelled thousands of flights this week due to a shortage of pilots after it failed to plan adequately for new rules limiting pilots’ work hours. The government responded on Friday, announcing special relief for the carrier and the operation of...

Events