Asia news

• The human and financial cost of the Indian Ocean tsunami – interactive

  25-12-2014 22:30
  
  On 26 December 2004, an undersea earthquake off the coast of Indonesia sent a wall of water surging across the Indian Ocean. When the water hit land, thousands of people were killed and vast damage was caused to buildings, roads and farmland. See how the waves spread, and discover the massive human and financial cost to the countries involved Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Xi has a plan for retaliating against Trump’s gamesmanship

  05-01-2025 03:00
  
  China is marshalling its forces for long-term competition against an America that it believes is divided and in decline
  
  Read more

• Tech groups to pay premium for energy for Malaysia data centres, says minister

  05-01-2025 02:00
  
  Investment in ‘oil of the 21st century’ will support country’s development of renewable power
  
  Read more

• Fire at food market in northern China kills eight people and injures 15

  04-01-2025 15:52
  
  Cause of fire in city of Zhangjiakou in Hebei province is under investigationAt least eight people have died and 15 are injured after a fire broke out at a food market in northern China, according to state media.The fire at the Liguang market in the city of Zhangjiakou broke out at midday on Saturday and had been mostly extinguished two hours later, the Xinhua news agency reported, citing a government official in Qiaoxi district where the market is located. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• World’s oldest person, Tomiko Itooka, dies in Japan aged 116

  04-01-2025 13:08
  
  Itooka, who died at a care home in Ashiya, enjoyed bananas and had a reputation for a ‘sprightly spirit’Tomiko Itooka, a Japanese woman who was the world’s oldest person according to Guinness World Records, has died at the age of 116.Yoshitsugu Nagata, an official in charge of elderly policies, said Itooka died on 29 December at a care home in Ashiya, Hyogo prefecture, in central Japan. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Myanmar junta to free about 6,000 prisoners in annual amnesty, including 180 foreigners

  04-01-2025 07:32
  
  It was not clear whether Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been held virtually incommunicado since 2021 coup, would be among those releasedMyanmar’s military government will release about 6,000 prisoners and has reduced other inmates’ sentences as part of a mass amnesty on Saturday marking the 77th anniversary of independence from Britain.There was no sign that the prisoner release would include Aung San Suu Kyi, 79, who has been held virtually incommunicado by the military since it seized p
  
  Read more

• Man charged over alleged rape of Virgin Australia crew member in Fiji

  04-01-2025 07:12
  
  Airline staff were celebrating New Year’s Eve in Nadi when the alleged incident occurredGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA man has been charged with the alleged rape and sexual assault of a Virgin Australia crew member in Fiji in the early hours of New Year’s Day.The man “will be produced in court on Monday”, after having been taken into custody on Wednesday, acting police commissioner Juki Fong Chew said in an email that confirmed a report by AB
  
  Read more

• Why Japan is the perfect place to turn 50

  04-01-2025 06:00
  
  A significant birthday feels less so in a country that has become a global pioneer of ageing — for better and for worse
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• The contradictions of Xi Jinping

  04-01-2025 06:00
  
  Two incisive studies of the Chinese president reveal a complex figure who is all too aware of the capricious nature of power
  
  Read more

• A toddler, a student, a family of nine: who were the victims of Jeju Air flight 7C2216?

  04-01-2025 01:00
  
  The 179 people who died were aged between three and 78 and came from South Korea and ThailandThe 181 people who boarded Jeju Air flight 7C2216 in Bangkok on Sunday were no different from the millions who fly on commercial aircraft every day: children on their first trip abroad, colleagues celebrating promotion, holidaymakers returning from package tours – all looking forward to being reunited with family and friends in South Korea.Now, though, they will for ever be associated with the wors
  
  Read more

• Tulip Siddiq was given London flat by developer with links to ousted Bangladeshi government

  03-01-2025 16:35
  
  UK City minister still owns King’s Cross property she was handed in 2004
  
  Read more

• Philippine president removes deputy from security council after alleged plot to kill him

  03-01-2025 15:58
  
  Vice-president Sara Duterte is facing an investigation over her alleged threat to kill Ferdinand Marcos Jr The Philippine president, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, has removed his vice-president, Sara Duterte, from the national security council (NSC) a month after she allegedly plotted to kill him, according to an executive order released on Friday.The order, signed on Monday by Lucas Bersamin, a lawyer and the Philippines’ executive secretary, removed Duterte and all former presidents from the coun
  
  Read more

• Thai prime minister declares £324m in assets including 217 designer handbags

  03-01-2025 14:11
  
  Paetongtarn Shinawatra made required wealth declaration to national anti-corruption commissionThailand’s prime minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, has declared £324m in assets including a collection of 217 designer handbags and 75 luxury watches in submissions on her wealth to a government body.Paetongtarn, daughter of the billionaire ex-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, took office in September, the fourth member of the powerful family to lead Thailand. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Dozens rescued after large blaze at commercial building in South Korea – video

  03-01-2025 14:00
  
  A large fire has engulfed an eight-storey building in the city of Seongnam. Video footage taken at the scene shows flames enveloping the lower floors of the building. There have been no confirmed casualties, YTN television reported. Seongnam is South Korea's 10th largest city with a population of about a million Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Five green finance questions for 2025

  03-01-2025 13:01
  
  The new year will bring tough challenges for investors in the energy transition
  
  Read more

• South Korean investigators halted as impeached president defies arrest warrant – video

  03-01-2025 13:00
  
  South Korea’s political crisis deepened on Friday when investigators were forced to abandon an attempt to arrest the impeached president, Yoon Suk Yeol, after a tense standoff with his security forces. Hours after they entered the presidential compound in Seoul, anti-corruption officials said they were halted in their attempt to execute a warrant to detain Yoon over allegations that his martial law declaration in December amounted to an insurrection. The warrant for Yoon's detention will e
  
  Read more

• Arrest standoff shows defiance of impeached South Korean president

  03-01-2025 12:14
  Yoon Suk Yeoul has vowed to ‘fight to the end’ as he resists attempts to hold him accountable amid political crisisSouth Korean anti-corruption officials attempting to arrest the country’s suspended president, Yoon Suk Yeol, must know by now what he meant by his repeated vows to “fight to the end”.In the month since his calamitous declaration of martial law, Yoon, along with most of his party, his legal team and, crucially, his security detail, have resisted at ever
  
  Read more

• Investigators suspend attempt to arrest South Korean president Yoon after standoff with security service – as it happened

  03-01-2025 12:09
  
  Anti-corruption officials say they faced human wall of 200 presidential personnel at his official residenceInvestigators abandon attempt to arrest South Korean presidentInsurrection is one of the few criminal charges from which a South Korean president does not have immunity.Yoon’s lawyers have said the arrest warrant was illegal and invalid because the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials did not have the authority under South Korean law to request a warrant. Continu
  
  Read more

• Weather tracker: Cold air over warm waters brings heavy snow to Japan

  03-01-2025 10:41
  
  Prefectures in north hit by falls of up to 30cm in a day as similar weather pattern affects parts of north AmericaHeavy snow fell across northern Japan on Thursday, with the prefectures of Hokkaido, Aomori, Yamagata and Niigata particularly affected. Accumulations of 20-30cm over a 24-hour period were recorded across the affected areas, with local totals of more than 30cm near Aomori City.The snowfall was a result of heavy showers generated by a cold airmass moving in from the north-west across
  
  Read more

• Biden expected to block $15bn takeover of US Steel

  03-01-2025 09:01
  
  President set to kill Nippon Steel’s bid in one of his final acts in office
  
  Read more

• Bodies of British woman and South African fiance found in Vietnam tourist villa

  03-01-2025 08:38
  No evidence of physical trauma on Greta Marie Otteson and Arno Els Quinton, who were found in separate rooms The bodies of a British woman and her fiance have been discovered in separate rooms at a tourist villa in Vietnam, police said.The victims were named locally as Greta Marie Otteson, a 33-year-old Briton, and Arno Els Quinton, a 36-year-old South African, who were staying at the complex in Hội An in the central Quang Nam province. Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• S Korean officials abandon bid to arrest impeached president after stand-off

  03-01-2025 07:45
  Yoon Suk Yeol faces probe into alleged treason and abuse of power over failed attempt to impose martial law
  
  Read more

• Investigators abandon attempt to arrest South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol

  03-01-2025 06:38
  
  Officials entered the presidential compound to find themselves blocked by troops under the control of the presidential security serviceSouth Korea investigators barred from entering Yoon residence – latest updatesSouth Korea’s political crisis took a dramatic turn on Friday when investigators were forced to abandon an attempt to arrest the impeached president, Yoon Suk Yeol, after a tense standoff with his security forces.Hours after they entered the presidential compound in Seoul, a
  
  Read more

• South Korean officials abandon bid to arrest impeached president after stand-off

  03-01-2025 06:08
  
  Yoon Suk Yeol faces probe into alleged treason and abuse of power over failed attempt to impose martial law
  
  Read more

• A new Monroe doctrine is unlikely to work for the US in South America

  03-01-2025 06:00
  
  Washington’s leverage over countries in the region is waning as China’s influence grows
  
  Read more

• Investigators suspend attempt to arrest South Korean president Yoon after standoff with security service – latest updates

  03-01-2025 05:55
  
  Anti-corruption officials are executing an arrest warrant against Yoon Suk Yeol over his attempt to impose martial law in DecemberInvestigators arrive at home of South Korean president to arrest himInsurrection is one of the few criminal charges from which a South Korean president does not have immunity.Yoon’s lawyers have said the arrest warrant was illegal and invalid because the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials did not have the authority under South Korean law
  
  Read more

• Why supporters of South Korea’s impeached president Yoon Suk Yeol are flying US flags

  03-01-2025 05:40
  
  The prominence of the US flag at conservative rallies reflects a complex intersection of religion, politics and identity that defines South Korea’s far-right movementLive updates: investigators attempt to arrest YoonFull report: standoff at presidential residenceAs investigators attempted to arrest president Yoon Suk Yeol on Friday morning, his supporters gathered outside the presidential residence waving two national flags: the South Korean Taegukgi alongside the American Stars and Stripe
  
  Read more

• Magic monkey tale inspires China’s gaming industry to seek blockbuster success

  03-01-2025 04:38
  
  As Beijing eases regulations, developers are tooling up to produce big-budget titles with international appeal
  
  Read more

• Investigators attempt to arrest South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol

  03-01-2025 04:13
  Officials entered the presidential compound to find themselves blocked by troops under the control of the presidential security serviceSouth Korea investigators barred from entering Yoon residence – latest updatesSouth Korea’s political crisis took a dramatic turn on Friday when investigators attempting to arrest the impeached president, Yoon Suk Yeol, were involved in a tense standoff with his security forces.The confrontation unfolded on a freezing winter’s day in Seoul, as a
  
  Read more

• Stand-off in South Korea as investigators try to arrest impeached president

  03-01-2025 03:06
  
  Yoon Suk Yeol faces probe into alleged treason and abuse of power over failed martial law gambit
  
  Read more

Follow @UK_Asia_News on Twitter!