Hong Kong customs has confiscated HK$125 million (US$16 million) worth of ketamine concealed inside more than 160 spools of yarn shipped to the city from Pakistan in the largest maritime smuggling case of its kind in nearly a decade.The shipment, whi...

Canadian businessman Michael Spavor, convicted of espionage in August, was a “key informant” for countryman Michael Kovrig and provided photographs of military equipment to him, China’s nationalistic tabloid Global Times said on Thursday.The...

Hong Kong confirmed zero Covid-19 infections for the first time in over a month on Thursday, a day after the city’s leader revealed that a suspended quarantine-free travel scheme allowing residents to return home from mainland China would soon resu...

Being double-jabbed almost halves the likelihood of long Covid in adults who get coronavirus, a new study has suggested.Researchers at King's College London also said that being admitted to hospital with the virus was 73 per cent less likely, and the...

Chinese authorities summoned 11 ride-hailing companies, including T3 Chuxing, Meituan Dache, Caocao Chuxing and Didi Chuxing, to order them to stop their “vicious competition” amid an ongoing cybersecurity investigation into industry leader Didi ...

Singapore said on Thursday that it would allow special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) to go public on its bourse starting Friday, as the city state hopes to become the go-to market in Asia for what has been one of the hottest fundraising trend...

A Hong Kong student faces up to seven years behind bars after being found guilty of rioting and attempted possession of firearms on Thursday for snatching a police officer’s shotgun during a protest two years ago.Chan Chun-hin, 18, faces a likely j...

Exactly 23 years ago in 1998, Malaysian politics entered a new age when Anwar Ibrahim, who was then deputy prime minister, was sacked by Mahathir Mohamad and subsequently imprisoned.Anwar, charismatic and with Islamic and intellectual credibility, tr...

European Union foreign ministers will hold their first high-level talks on China since a flurry of tit-for-tat sanctions in March on Friday, with Beijing’s recent diplomatic row with Lithuania over Taiwan expected to be high on the agenda.China wil...

More than 100 Hongkongers, mostly elderly residents who have yet to receive their digital consumption vouchers queued outside a government office in Mong Kok on Thursday, despite the deadline for registration having been extended until September 15.C...

New Yorkers were inundated by flash flooding and heavy rains Thursday as Storm Ida wrought further havoc on the northeast United States, forcing airport closures and state of emergency declarations in their state and neighbouring New Jersey.Ida slamm...

The rough removal of a woman from a train in Xian, and a statement from the local metro that seemed to muddle the truth, sparked fury in China on Tuesday.The viral video from the capital of Shaanxi province in northwest China showed a woman arguing w...

The University of Hong Kong has lifted an entry ban on 18 student union council leaders previously forbidden from setting foot on campus after the body passed a motion mourning the “sacrifice” of a man who stabbed a police officer in July.An HKU ...

Fivelements Habitat, which provides yoga sessions, spa treatments and plant-based cuisine, is shutting its Times Square wellness centre in Causeway Bay after two years of operation, as it failed to reach an agreement with landlord Wharf Reic on the t...

Faced with new global demographic, inflation and deglobalisation challenges that even “Japan has never really faced”, China should take swift actions to counter their possible negative effects, a senior economist and author has urged. A lack of ...

Afghan television anchor Beheshta Arghand gathered her breath and adjusted her headscarf to look more like a traditional close-fitting hijab when a Taliban official showed up, uninvited, in her studio, asking to be interviewed.It was only two days af...

US climate envoy John Kerry’s visit to China is expected to go beyond discussions about global warming, with Beijing making it clear it expects a broader discussion on the overall relations between the two countries.Kerry held talks with vice-premi...

Bamboo poles, beer crates, ladders and broken chairs: everyday objects form makeshift barricades on Hanoi’s streets as authorities try to slow the spread of coronavirus.Vietnam’s capital has been in lockdown for more than a month but with daily c...

The Taliban has surrounded the only remaining province resisting its rule, a senior leader said, calling on rebels to negotiate a settlement with the group.Since the fall of Kabul on August 15, mountainous Panjsher has been the only province to hold ...

Cathay Pacific has begun disciplinary proceedings against dozens of flight attendants and pilots who have refused to get a Covid-19 jab, making good on its promise to review the employment of those still unvaccinated by an August 31 deadline.Between ...

US antitrust officials are preparing a second monopoly lawsuit against Alphabet Inc’s Google over the company’s digital advertising business, according to a person familiar with the matter, stepping up the government’s claims that Google is abu...

The International Paralympic Committee has defended a decision to disqualify a Malaysian shot putter for turning up late, leading to him being stripped of a gold medal, as anger erupted in his homeland.Muhammad Ziyad Zolkefli was allowed to compete i...

This story is published in a content partnership with POLITICO. It was originally reported by Lara Seligman, Andrew Desiderio and Erin Banco on politico.com on September 1, 2021.As the Biden administration scrambled to conduct a massive evacuation ef...

A Japanese Self-Defence Forces supply ship has replenished an American coastguard patrol vessel at sea for the first time during joint training, Japan said on Tuesday, in what Chinese observers described as closer collaboration to counter China.Japan...

The legality of a musician’s attempt at a unique album roll-out was questioned by a media report earlier this week, causing online backlash and the rushed release of the rest of the album.In April, Cai Xukun released six out of 11 songs from his fo...

The operator behind Hong Kong’s “cruises to nowhere” is seeking negotiations with the government to lift Covid-19 curbs on capacity after receiving an overwhelming response from the public in its first month of voyages.Kent Zhu Fuming, presiden...

Four Hong Kong universities are among the top 100 institutions worldwide on a list compiled by a prominent publication, marking a record for the city since the rankings were introduced 11 years ago.The results, published by British-based Times Higher...

A lawyer has entered a not guilty plea on behalf of rocker Marilyn Manson, who is accused of approaching a videographer at his 2019 concert in New Hampshire and allegedly spitting and blowing snot on her.Manson, whose legal name is Brian Hugh Warner,...

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding will provide the main online platforms for the inaugural “Greater Bay Area Shopping Festival” from September 2 to 22, marking a major retail promotion for the company ahead of its nationwide Singles�...

Indian authorities cracked down on public movement and imposed a near-total communications blackout on Thursday in disputed Kashmir after the death of Syed Ali Geelani, a top separatist leader who became the emblem of the region’s defiance against ...

The US Supreme Court refused to block a Texas ban on abortion after six weeks of pregnancy, dealing a major blow to abortion rights by leaving in place a state law that prohibits the vast majority of abortions.The decision is a major milestone in the...

A planned revision of guidelines for Australian universities to guard against interference by foreign actors including China has sparked controversy within the tertiary sector, with some academics fearing the arrival of “Red Scare” paranoia on ca...

US President Joe Biden sought to reassure Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that the United States would counter Russian hostility toward his country as the leaders met for the first time at the White House.Biden told Zelensky that the US “rem...

Britney Spears claims she is being extorted by her dad Jamie as he allegedly tries to place “preconditions” on his exit from her “exhausting and terrifying” conservatorship.In a filing on Tuesday, Spears’ new lawyer Mathew Rosengart accused...

The deadly terrorist attacks against the United States on September 11, 2001 prompted an outcry from around the world: “We are all Americans.” But even before the dust had settled around the World Trade Centre, Washington’s policies realigned a...

The Venice Film Festival opened in style on Wednesday with Penelope Cruz the first of many stars to grace the Lido’s red carpet, as cinephiles prepare for a spectacular line-up despite continued coronavirus restrictions.Held on the glitzy, beach-li...

The Pentagon on Wednesday appeared to dismiss Beijing’s new demand that all foreign ships entering the South China Sea must register with Chinese maritime authorities, calling it a “serious threat” to freedom of navigation and trade.“The Unit...

The Taliban have approved Afghanistan’s first cricket Test since their takeover, raising hopes that international matches will continue as usual under the new rule of the Islamists.“We have got approval to send the team to Australia,” the chief...

British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab will head to the region around Afghanistan for talks about the rescue of those left behind in Kabul after the departure of the remaining foreign forces.The Cabinet Minister said he would be leaving for the area ...

Afghanistan’s new Taliban rulers struggled to keep the country functioning on Wednesday after the final withdrawal of US forces, with foreign donors alarmed about an impending humanitarian crisis.Two weeks since the Taliban’s sweep into the capit...

Three Hong Kong spa chains abruptly closed down on Wednesday due to company restructuring, leaving about a dozen employees asking about back wages and at least 140 customers clamouring for refunds.About Beauty, Dr Protalk and Top Comfort, which had a...

China has called for increased vigilance against illicit arms transfers and – in an apparent reference to the US – urged all parties to a global arms trade treaty to stop selling weapons to “non-state actors”.“We support the international c...

As Kabul began a new era of Taliban rule, long queues outside banks and soaring prices in the bazaars underlined the everyday worries now facing its population after the spectacular seizure of the city two weeks ago.For the Taliban, growing economic ...

The US Department of the Treasury said the acquisition of South Korean chip maker Magnachip Semiconductor Corp by a Beijing-based private equity fund poses a national security risk, casting a shadow on the US$1.4 billion deal and other efforts by Chi...

Nagoya Mayor Takashi Kawamura, who has faced a barrage of criticism for suddenly biting an Olympic softball player’s gold medal last month, on Wednesday tested positive for the coronavirus, the local government said.Kawamura, who had apologised for...

China’s tech giants are rushing to answer President Xi Jinping’s call to contribute to the country’s “common prosperity” amid a crackdown on the sector that has left companies reeling and entrepreneurs keeping a low profile.In August, Xi ca...

An English teacher who also volunteers at a Hong Kong church has been arrested on suspicion of drugging seven of his male students, sexually assaulting them and photographing them nude over the past 13 months.Police discovered images of the alleged v...

Singapore now has a third three-star Michelin restaurant, along with five two-stars and 41 one-star establishments, the most accumulated stars the city state has ever been awarded since the guide started ranking here in 2016.Zen, a Nordic restaurant ...

Taiwan’s first shipment of the BioNTech Covid-10 vaccine is expected to arrive on Thursday in a highly anticipated boost to its mass vaccination drive.The 932,000 doses from the German firm left Luxembourg on Wednesday, Chinese state news agency Xi...