Asia

Low risk of deadly Nipah virus spreading from India, World Health Organization reassures

Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam are among the Asian locations that tightened airport screening checks this week to guard against such a spread after India confirmed infections.

AIRPORT HEALTH authorities in protective masks prepare a thermal imager at Soekarno Hatta International Airport, following the implementation of health screening for arriving passengers, after India confirmed two cases of the Nipah virus, in Tangerang near Jakarta, Indonesia, January 30, 2026.
South Korea's former first lady Kim Keon Hee, wife of impeached former president Yoon Suk Yeol, arrives at a court to attend a hearing to review her arrest warrant requested by special prosecutors at the Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea August 12, 2025.

South Korean court sentences ex-first lady Kim Keon Hee to jail for bribery by Unification Church

 Chinese Central Military Commission (CMC) Vice Chairman Zhang Youxia arrives for a group photo session before the opening ceremony of the Western Pacific Naval Symposium in Qingdao, Shandong province, China April 22, 2024.

Top Chinese military official under investigation for leaking nuclear secrets to US - WSJ

The location of the minute hand on its Doomsday Clock has been revealed, indicating what world developments mean for the perceived likelihood of nuclear catastrophe, during a town-hall in Washington, DC, US, January 23, 2026.

Atomic scientists set 'Doomsday Clock' closer to midnight than ever


A 12,000-year-old cold case: is this earliest murder recorded in Southeast Asia?

"TBH1 lived for several months after the injury occurred," the researchers wrote, adding that without effective treatment the fracture likely led to infection and death within weeks or months.

The reconstructed skull of a man who died 12,000 years ago in what is now Vietnam.

South Korea tells China it wants to normalize ties, Yonhap reports

A high-level South Korean delegation, led by Park Byeong-seug, hopes to repair strained relations with China, as President Lee Jae Myung sends a letter to Xi Jinping.

An illustration of Chinese, South Korean flags, diplomats shaking hands.

Pakistan fireworks warehouse blast kills four, injures more than 30

The impact of the blast was strong enough to shatter glass in neighboring shops, peppering people in the street with shards of glass.

A person walks outside a fireworks warehouse as smoke rises after an explosion, in Karachi, Pakistan August 21, 2025.

Chikungunya virus outbreak in China infects at least 7,700, local authorities crack down

Spread by the bite of infected Aedes mosquitoes, global infections of the disease number at least 240,000 this year.

This photograph shows a mosquito trap as part of the fight against the Chikungunya pandemic by mosquitoes in Saint-Benoit on the French overseas island of La Reunion on April 22, 2025

South Korea's military shrinks amid massive drop in population

The dramatic decline in the pool of available males for military service is also causing a shortfall in the number of officers and could result in operational difficulty if it continues.

South Korean army K1E1 tanks cross a pontoon bridge during a US-South Korea joint river-crossing exercise which is a part of the annual Freedom Shield joint military training, near the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas in Yeoncheon, South Korea, March 20, 2025

The future of online gambling in Asia-Pacific: Trends and regulations

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Trump eyes bringing Azerbaijan, Central Asian nations into Abraham Accords, sources say

As part of the Abraham Accords, inked in 2020 and 2021 during Trump's first term in office, four Muslim-majority countries agreed to normalize diplomatic relations with Israel after US mediation.

 Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US President Donald Trump, Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani, and UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed wave, after an Abraham Accords signing ceremony at the White House in 2020.

Thai, Cambodian leaders agree to ceasefire after five days of battle

The Southeast Asian neighbors waged their deadliest conflict in more than a decade accuse each other of starting the fighting last week.

Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim reacts as Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Manet and Thailand's acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai shake hands following a press conference, on the day of mediation talks on the Thailand–Cambodia border conflict, in Putrajaya, Malaysia July 28, 2025.

At least six killed in shooting incident in Bangkok

Four security guards at the Or To Ko market, which sells agricultural produce and local food, were killed by the gunman.

Police officers work near the covered body of a gunman at the crime scene after a shooting incident at a market, where people were killed, including the gunman who took his own life, in Bangkok, Thailand, July 28, 2025.

Thai-Cambodian fighting extends into third day despite ceasefire calls

More than 130,000 people have been displaced in the worst fighting between the Southeast Asian neighbors in 13 years.

People rest inside a temporary shelter in Srisaket province, after Thailand and Cambodia exchanged heavy artillery fire for a second day on Friday as border fighting intensified and spread, while Cambodia's leader said Thailand had agreed to a Malaysian ceasefire proposal but then backed down.