KUALA LUMPUR: Private hospitals in Malaysia are getting ready to play a bigger role in combatting COVID-19, following the enactment of an emergency ordinance to mobilise resources of the private healthcare sector. Hospitals involved are currently c...

The BBC came under fire from Chinese official and social media on Friday (Feb 5) in an escalating diplomatic dispute, a day after Britain's media regulator revoked the TV licence of Chinese state media outlet CGTN.

Twenty-four activists appeared in a Hong Kong court on Friday on charges related to a June 4 vigil last year marking the anniversary of China's military crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in and around Beijing's Tiananmen Square in 1989.

JAKARTA: Indonesian President Joko Widodo received the nation's first coronavirus vaccine live on television last month, but despite the fanfare, his ambitious inoculation campaign is already facing glitches from refrigeration, distrust and disinform...

WASHINGTON: The United States (US) has expressed its concern over the military coup in Myanmar to Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) ambassadors in Washington, the White House said in a statement on Thursday (Feb 4). US national security...

SINGAPORE: Police issued a warning on Friday (Feb 5) against plans to hold protests in Singapore in relation to the ongoing political situation in Myanmar, reminding the public that organising or participating in a public assembly without a police ...

Turkey Uighurs fear sellout to China in exchange for vaccine

Pfizer Inc has withdrawn an application for emergency-use authorization of its COVID-19 vaccine in India that it has developed with Germany's BioNTech, the company told Reuters on Friday.

JAKARTA: Indonesia and Malaysia are committed to working together to combat international discrimination against palm oil, the countries' leaders said in Jakarta on Friday (Feb 5). In a press conference after a four-eye meeting with Malaysia’s P...

South Korea and COVID-19 vaccine maker Moderna Inc are in discussions over a US$200 million investment by the U.S. drugmaker in the country to build a factory, as it seeks to expand in Asia.

TOKYO: Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike said on Friday (Feb 5) the Olympic Games were facing a "major issue" after the head of the organising committee made sexist remarks and as criticism of his comments showed no sign of abating. Yoshiro Mori, 83, set ...

JAKARTA: Indonesia's gross domestic product fell slightly more than expected in the fourth quarter and suffered its first full-year contraction in over two decades in 2020 as Southeast Asia's largest economy grappled with the COVID-19 pandemic. GDP ...

Japanese drinks giant Kirin Holdings said on Friday it was scrapping its beer alliance with a top Myanmar conglomerate whose owners have been identified by the United Nations as members of the military, which overthrew the elected government this wee...

YANGON: The Myanmar military's shutdown of Facebook access following the ouster of the democratically elected Aung San Suu Kyi caps years of tension between the social media company and the most powerful institution in a nation where Facebook is use...

China reported 20 new COVID-19 cases on the mainland on Feb. 4, official data showed on Friday, down from 30 a day earlier.

TAIPEI: Taiwan on Friday (Feb 5) blamed Chinese "bullying" for Guyana's decision to revoke a deal for the island to open a representative office in the South American country, saying it had tried without success to get Guyana to change its mind. Tai...

CHONBURI, Thailand: With tails wagging to a chorus of barks and yelps, more than two dozen dogs attached to wheels that support their disabled hind legs scramble along a rocky path, taking their daily exercise. Mostly victims of accidents, the 27 do...

YANGON: Another leading figure in Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy party, Win Htein, told Reuters on Friday (Feb 5) that he had been arrested in the aftermath of this week's coup even as the UN Security Council called for detainees ...

The UN Security Council on Thursday voiced "deep concern" over the military coup in Myanmar, and called in a statement for the "release of all detainees" including Aung San Suu Kyi.

We need to spend whatever it takes on wartime-style mobilisation to make, distribute and inject vaccines, says the Financial Times’ Simon Kuper.

ASEAN was previously criticised for failing to effectively address Myanmar’s Rohingya crisis. Its track record on engaging Myanmar in past decades, however, suggests a stronger role for the multilateral grouping this time around following the coup ...

NGANJUK, East Java: After returning home to Indonesia, former domestic helper Parti Liyani said she hopes her acquittal can inspire other migrant workers who are facing legal problems to never give up if they are innocent. Ms Parti, who worked for ...

The United Nations Security Council called for the release of Myanmar's leader Aung San Suu Kyi and others detained by the military and voiced concern over the state of emergency, but stopped short of condemning this week's coup.

YANGON: Denied their chance to take their parliament seats after a coup in Myanmar this week, a group of lawmakers held their own house session on Thursday (Feb 4) in a show of defiance towards the return of military rule. About a dozen elected le...

NEW DELHI: More than a quarter of Indian children aged between 10 and 17 may have already contracted COVID-19, according to a government serological survey released on Thursday (Feb 4), higher than the 21.5 per cent of the overall population found to...

Thousands of Sri Lankan Tamils defied bans to stage protests as the Sinhala-majority government celebrated its independence day with a military parade.

CYBERJAYA, Malaysia: Diners in Malaysia can now enjoy restaurant meals from the safety and comfort of their vehicles after an eatery started a drive-in service for people eager to eat out during a COVID-19 lockdown. The Southeast Asian nation is in ...

SINGAPORE: Grab on Thursday (Feb 4) announced the launch of a COVID-19 vaccination programme, and an aim of having all employees, drivers and delivery partners inoculated against the disease by the end of next year. Grab's goal of reaching "fully-va...

BEIJING: World Health Organization (WHO) inspectors had "very frank" discussions with Chinese scientists about the source of the COVID-19 pandemic, including theories it leaked from a laboratory, the head of the probe in Wuhan told AFP on Thursday (F...

LONDON: The United Kingdom's broadcast regulator Ofcom on Thursday (Feb 4) revoked the licence of Chinese news network CGTN after it concluded that the Chinese Communist Party had ultimate editorial responsibility for the channel. "Our investigati...

OTTAWA: Canada said on Thursday (Feb 4) that Hong Kong graduates of Canadian universities could apply for a new category of three-year work permit next week and expressed fresh concern about China's clampdown on the former British territory. The ann...

A member of the World Health Organization-led team searching for clues to the origins of COVID-19 in the central Chinese city of Wuhan said work was needed to try to trace genetic elements of the virus in bat caves.

KUALA LUMPUR: Chinese New Year celebrations are only allowed among family members from the same household this year, said Malaysian Senior Minister for Security Ismail Sabri Yaakob.  "Family reunion dinners are allowed at their residences only amo...

Bangladesh's Beximco Pharmaceuticals said on Thursday (Feb 4) that the Serum Institute of India (SII) had delayed the first supplies of a COVID-19 vaccine for private sale, instead prioritising government immunisation campaigns.

Thailand will import the first doses of AstraZeneca's vaccine from Asia after Europe enforced export controls, the country's health minister said on Thursday.

North Korea is expected to receive nearly two million doses of the AstraZeneca-Oxford COVID-19 vaccine by the first half of this year, said agencies leading the COVAX vaccine-sharing programme.

At least 77 protesters, including a former minister, were arrested in Kathmandu on Thursday, police said, as a nationwide strike was staged over the dissolution of Nepal's parliament.

KUALA LUMPUR: Industries and individuals in Malaysia have been urged to comply strictly with the COVID-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs) as a reciprocal gesture to the government's decision of allowing most businesses to remain operational duri...

Foreign investors flocked to Myanmar as it began its democratic transition a decade ago, but this week's military coup is likely to accelerate a trend of Western withdrawal - and China's expansion.

A US warship sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Thursday, the American navy said, in the first such voyage since the inauguration of President Joe Biden.

A Japanese government ministry said on Thursday it was checking if any law had been broken after a magazine reported that Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga's eldest son and fellow executives at a satellite broadcaster had wined and dined senior ministry ...

A group of anti-China activists campaigning for human rights in Tibet and support for ethnic Uighurs called on Thursday for a boycott of the 2022 winter Olympics in Beijing, saying the Games would embolden China's government in its crackdowns.

CAN THO, Vietnam: By day, Le Yen Quyen works as a pharmacist at her local health clinic in Vietnam's Mekong Delta. At night, she dances under the head of a lion on perilously high metal poles, practising her moves ahead of Lunar New Year festivities...

The countdown to the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics hit the one-year mark on Thursday (Feb 4), with preparations overshadowed by the COVID-19 pandemic and concerns over alleged human rights abuses, including a mass incarceration in Xinjiang.

MANILA: An ammonia leak from an ice plant in the Philippine capital region left two dead and more than 90 others injured or sickened while hundreds of residents fled to safety, an official said on Thursday (Feb 4). Navotas City Mayor Toby Tiangco sa...

1 tweet from Rihanna on farmer protests gets India incensed

A mammoth effort by Australian firefighters saved homes from an out-of-control bushfire near Perth overnight, authorities said Thursday, but warned strong winds and rough terrain posed an ongoing challenge.

SINGAPORE: Operations have mostly resumed for Singapore businesses in Myanmar, recovering from temporary disruptions earlier in the week after a military coup in the country. But many declined comment on their outlook for the long term, citing uncer...

South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun on Thursday ordered a revamp of social distancing guidelines in a bid to win greater public support for efforts to stop local transmission of the new coronavirus.

Taiwan has set up a trade office in Guyana, officials announced on Thursday, a step the United States called a "milestone" as the island tries to push back against China's campaign to keep it isolated.

HONG KONG: Canada, Britain and the United States have expressed alarm after Ottawa revealed authorities in Hong Kong forced a dual citizen to choose one nationality, enforcing what they said was a little-used regulation for the first time in decades....

TOKYO: Tokyo Olympics chief Yoshiro Mori on Thursday (Feb 4) apologised for making sexist remarks about women, saying he retracted the comments and would not resign, despite calls for him to step down on social media. The hashtag "Mori, please resig...

SEOUL: South Korea's President Moon Jae-in pledged on Thursday (Feb 4) to upgrade the country's alliance with the United States in a phone call with President Joe Biden, Seoul's presidential office said. The call comes as Moon, who had offered to be...

The United States should extend the May 1 deadline for pulling all its troops from Afghanistan, and make force cuts contingent on progress in peace talks as well as by the Taliban in reducing violence and containing al Qaeda, a bipartisan report to C...

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Wednesday he would do everything in his power to pressure Myanmar and "make sure that this coup fails."

WASHINGTON: The United States is "deeply disturbed" by reports of systematic rape and sexual abuse against women in internment camps for ethnic Uighurs and other Muslims in China's Xinjiang region and there must be serious consequences for atrocities...

Myanmar's state-owned internet provider was blocking access to Facebook-owned services early on Thursday (Feb 4), the network monitoring group NetBlocks said, days after the country's military leaders seized power in a coup.

The Chinese tech giant has been dominating the retail market since 2014 so the recent move against it shows some regulatory weaknesses, says this author.

Tencent looks set to grow to a US$1 trillion market capitalisation given its diversified revenue sources, its strong growth strategy premised on e-sports and live-streaming, says IMD Business School’s Mark Greeven.

The US on Wednesday (Feb 3) called on Myanmar's military to free Aung San Suu Kyi, as the ousted leader was charged after being detained in a coup, while calls for civil disobedience opposing the putsch gathered pace.

The world's longest internet shutdown -- affecting more than a million people for 19 months in one of Myanmar's ethnic conflict zones -- has come to an end, according to a mobile operator based in the region.

JAKARTA: Indonesia on Wednesday (Feb 3) rolled out COVID-19 breath test detectors at train stations. The detectors, known as GeNose, was developed by the University of Gadjah Mada (UGM), which says it detects the reaction between the coronavirus and...

TOKYO: Four ministers from Japan and Britain voiced serious concern on Wednesday (Feb 3) about the situation in the East and South China seas and opposed any unilateral attempts to change the status quo, in a apparent reference to China's maritime ex...

JAKARTA: As deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic mount in Indonesia, the capital's graveyards are expanding to keep up. Struggling since last March to get the coronavirus under control in the world's fourth most populous nation, Indonesia has now surpa...

BEIJING: Ten panda cubs made their public debut in China's leading panda reserve on Wednesday (Feb 3) morning to mark the coming Chinese New Year. One appeared shy and covered its face with both paws when it saw the crowd, while another went rogue a...

Supporters of protesting Indian farmers scuffle with police

BEIJING: China on Wednesday (Feb 3) announced a plan to provide 10 million coronavirus vaccine doses to developing nations through the global COVAX initiative. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said China is responding to a request from the ...

India has written to Twitter warning it to comply with orders to block accounts and content related to a protest by farmers, a technology ministry source said on Wednesday.

TOKYO: Japan passed a new law strengthening enforcement of its virus restrictions on Wednesday (Feb 3), allowing authorities to fine bars and restaurants that defy closure requests. People can also be fined up to 500,000 yen (US$4,800) if they test...

SEOUL: The United States should flexibly enforce sanctions aimed at curbing Pyongyang's nuclear programmes to revive denuclearisation talks, South Korea's point man on North Korea said on Wednesday (Feb 3). North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and former...

BANGKOK: Thailand's resort island of Phuket is planning private coronavirus vaccinations for 250,000 residents in the hope the government will allow it to fully reopen to foreign tourists by October and save its battered economy, industry officials s...

YANGON: Calls for a civil disobedience campaign in Myanmar gathered pace on Wednesday (Feb 3) as the United States formally declared the military's takeover a coup and vowed further penalties for the generals behind the putsch. Myanmar plunged back ...

YANGON: Myanmar police have filed charges against ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi for allegedly illegally importing communications equipment and she will be detained until Feb 15, according to a police document seen by Reuters on Wednesday (Feb 3). M...

BEIJING: China's foreign ministry on Wednesday (Feb 3) rejected the suggestion that it supported or gave tacit consent to Monday's military coup in neighbouring Myanmar. In response to a question at a daily briefing, foreign ministry spokesman Wang ...

KUALA LUMPUR: Former Negeri Sembilan chief minister Mohd Isa Abdul Samad was convicted of nine charges of corruption on Wednesday (Feb 3) and sentenced to 54 years’ jail. He was also fined RM15.45 million for offences committed between July 2014 ...

TAIPEI: Nearly 11,000 Hong Kongers moved to Taiwan in 2020 - almost double the number of a year earlier - after Beijing imposed a sweeping security law on the city. Taiwan has long attracted Hong Kong people seeking an alternative to their city's fr...

TOKYO: Thousands of Myanmar demonstrators gathered outside Japan's foreign affairs ministry on Wednesday (Feb 3) demanding Tokyo join its allies in taking a harder stance against the military coup in Myanmar. Wearing red and waving printed photos of...

Japanese doctors and nurses fighting the novel coronavirus will not have the time to volunteer to help at the Olympics, a medical association has said, raising another headache for organisers determined to hold the postponed Games.

Two COVID-19 vaccines from Chinese companies including Sinopharm triggered immunity against a highly transmissible coronavirus variant first found in South Africa, but their effect appeared weaker, a small-sample lab study released on Tuesday showed.

People in Myanmar honk horns, bang on pots to protest coup

PARIS: Crickets and the birds that snack on them are not natural allies, but they do have a common enemy, according to a pair of studies published Wednesday (Feb 3) - roadside noise pollution. Vehicle traffic makes it much harder for at least one s...

BEIJING: China has made a formal complaint to Canada over T-shirts ordered by a Canadian Embassy staffer in Beijing that allegedly mocked China’s response to the COVID-19 outbreak, in an apparent mix-up between the city of Wuhan and the hip-hop gro...

Born in California and representing the United States before switching to China, teenager Eileen Gu looks destined to be one of the faces of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics.

World Health Organization inspectors will visit a laboratory in China's Wuhan city on Wednesday that American officials suggested could have been the source of the coronavirus, according to state media.

BEIJING: China reported 25 new mainland COVID-19 cases on Feb 2, down from 30 a day earlier, the country's national health authority said on Wednesday (Feb 3). The National Health Commission said in a statement that 15 of the new cases were locally...

WASHINGTON; The Biden administration indicated on Tuesday (Feb 2) it is in no hurry to engage with China, a strategic rival it has vowed to out-compete, and said it and would do so once it was in "lockstep" with allies and partners. President Joe Bi...

The Indonesian government will prioritise vaccination for health workers, civil servants and citizens aged 18 to 59 years old, a decision not in line with WHO recommendations, say health researchers.

Myanmar’s fragile democracy has been severely undermined by the military’s actions, say political scientists.

The military ouster of Aung San Suu Kyi's government in Myanmar was "inevitable", army chief General Min Aung Hlaing said on Tuesday (Feb 2), as Washington formally designated the takeover as a coup.

Washington formally determined Tuesday that Myanmar's military carried out a coup, legally requiring an end to US assistance to the government.

Facebook said on Tuesday (Feb 2) it had removed a page linked to Myanmar's military-owned TV network after a coup this week by the country's military leaders.

A cacophony of the striking of pans and honking of vehicle horns was heard around Myanmar's biggest city Yangon on Tuesday (Feb 2), in one of the biggest signs of public action to reject a military coup that ousted Aung San Suu Kyi's government.

YANGON: "Dictatorship must fail," read the writing on the back of one Myanmar doctor's hazmat suit in a statement of defiance against Monday's (Feb 1) military coup. Other medics in at least 20 government hospitals rallied to a campaign of civil d...

UNITED NATIONS: The UN Security Council held an emergency meeting on Myanmar on Tuesday (Feb 2) but was unable to agree on a statement about the country's military coup, with diplomats saying negotiations will continue. "China and Russia have asked...

SINGAPORE: A day after the military seized power in Myanmar, Singaporeans living there said there the situation appears to be "calm" despite disruptions to work. Phone lines and mobile data services that had been shut down have been restored, they...

SINGAPORE: Offline messaging app Bridgefy said it was downloaded more than 600,000 times in a few hours in Myanmar, after the country's military seized power on Monday (Feb 1) and temporarily disrupted Internet traffic. The Mexico-based startup, whi...

Indonesia has detained a British woman named on a list of global terror suspects and plans to deport her for visa violations, authorities told AFP on Tuesday (Feb 2).

TOKYO: Japan's government approved a month-long extension of its coronavirus state of emergency on Tuesday (Feb 2), less than six months before the pandemic-postponed Olympic Games open in Tokyo. "We have decided to extend the state of emergency unt...

Japan is set to extend a state of emergency in Tokyo and other regions for another month on Tuesday, seeking to keep the upper hand over a COVID-19 outbreak even as daily case numbers begin to edge down.

TAIPEI: A second Chinese lawyer who represented a Hong Kong activist was stripped of his licence on Tuesday (Feb 2) as Beijing attempts to crush opposition to its tighter control over the territory. Ren Quanniu, who represented one of 12 Hong Kong a...