Hong Kong police have seized modified speedboats and outboard engines worth HK$25 million (US$3.2 million) believed to be used by smugglers and for illegally ferrying passengers across the border, authorities said on Sunday.Johnson Chong Shing-yat, a...

Elderly and vulnerable people in Britain have been urged by the government to get their Covid-19 booster jabs as part of a “national mission” to help avoid a return to coronavirus restrictions over Christmas.So far almost 10 million people in the...

Next month’s referendums in Taiwan are rapidly turning into a test of public confidence in the government of President Tsai Ing-wen, with the results expected to spill over into next year’s local government elections, observers said.Taiwan’s el...

A US$1 billion fortune left behind by a 19th century Muslim shipping magnate who built a guest house for pilgrims to Mecca is being fought over by two feuding families in India.The money has been lying in a Saudi Arabian coffer for decades due to the...

The People’s Liberation Army sent 16 aircraft into Taiwan’s air defence zone on Saturday, Taipei said Sunday, a fresh high since the last wave of daily warplane sorties in early October.Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defence said 16 PLA aircraft...

China is on track to cut tariffs when an Asia-Pacific trade deal comes into force at the start of next year, according to the Ministry of Commerce.The ministry said on Saturday that the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement wou...

The climate phenomenon known as La Niña brought early snow amid plunging temperatures across northern China on the weekend as the country struggles with the worst energy crisis in a decade.Large parts of the country, including Beijing, Tianjin, Hebe...

Hongkongers will have the opportunity to use their winter wardrobes this week, with a cold front forecast to cross the Guangdong coast bringing a drop in temperatures.While temperatures soared to 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit) on Sunday, ...

North Korea has conducted artillery firing exercises to bolster its defence capability, state media reported on Sunday, its latest weapons test as Pyongyang continues to pressure Washington and Seoul to abandon what it calls their hostile policy towa...

Hong Kong’s unvaccinated civil servants could soon face weekly Covid-19 testing, while their inoculated colleagues might be offered incentives to take a booster jab, a high-ranking official revealed on Sunday while calling for the private sector to...

Tajikistan, a small landlocked Central Asian country, said last month that China would provide US$8.5 million to build a base close to the country’s border with Afghanistan, but no Chinese troops will be posted there.It was the latest sign that Bei...

Hong Kong will run a smaller deficit than expected this financial year because of increased income from land sales, but it will not translate into major spending increases, the city’s finance chief said on Sunday.Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po...

The crowd deaths at a music festival in the US city of Houston over the weekend added even more names to the long list of people who have been crushed at a major event.Tragedies like the one on Friday night at the Astroworld Music Festival have been ...

Trade growth in China has proved resilient, with exports rising more than expected in October, according to data released on Sunday.But downside risks were rising amid a resurgence in Covid-19 cases and computer chip shortages, analysts said.China’...

Hong Kong’s speed fiends use scouts to check for the presence of police during illegal overnight car races, the Post has learned, after two motorists died and five others were injured in a horrific crash along Bride’s Pool Road in Tai Po last Sun...

Mohammad Naciri, the leader of UN Women in Asia-Pacific, has called on member states to put the rights of women and girls at the centre of bilateral discussions with authorities in Afghanistan.In an exclusive interview with This Week in Asia, Naciri ...

A few thousand lucky Hongkongers will be allowed to join the countdown to the new year in person for the first time since 2018 next month, with the new West Kowloon arts hub set to play host to a HK$17 million celebration featuring Canto-pop sensatio...

Cyrel Bajen was 16 years old when Typhoon Haiyan, one of the most powerful tropical cyclones ever recorded, put parts of his hometown in the Philippines under six metres (20 feet) of water.But he can remember that tragic day in 2013 well. The storm h...

Iraq’s Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi survived an assassination attempt with armed drones that targeted his residence early on Sunday – a major escalation amid tensions sparked by the refusal of Iran-backed militias to accept last month’s pa...

Construction mechanic Yau, 65, and his wife spent Thursday afternoon at a Mong Kok shop looking for a smartphone with the Hong Kong government’s “Leave Home Safe” contact-tracing application installed.They settled on a second-hand model going f...

On Monday, top officials of China’s Communist Party will consider and likely adopt a “historical resolution” at the Central Committee’s most important meeting ahead of next year’s national congress.The “Resolution of the CCP Central Commi...

Struck with grief, tens of thousands of fans gathered Saturday to pay tribute to Marilia Mendonca, one of Brazil’s most popular singers who was killed a day earlier in an aeroplane crash at age 26.The Latin Grammy winner and four other passengers, ...

The arrival of 45 tonnes of Afghan pine nuts at Shanghai’s international airport on Monday signalled China’s first steps towards resuming trade with Afghanistan, despite its apparent reluctance to formally recognise the interim Taliban government...

A stampede of fans surging toward the stage during rap star Travis Scott’s Astroworld music festival in Houston killed at least eight people ranging in age from 14 to 27, officials said on Saturday.Sylvester Turner, Houston’s mayor, said on Satur...

Former British Prime Minister John Major on Saturday attacked fellow Conservative Boris Johnson’s handling of a corruption row, saying the government’s behaviour was arrogant, broke the law and was “politically corrupt”.Johnson was forced to ...

Tens of thousands of protesters braved rain and wind in Glasgow Saturday to take part in worldwide demonstrations against what campaigners say is a failure of crunch UN climate talks to act fast enough to tame global warming.Dozens of events are plan...

Mexicans who need to cross the US land border for work or school are scrambling to get approved Covid-19 vaccines ahead of new rules set to go into effect next week, 20 months after the United States shut crossings for non-essential trips.The rules s...

Thousands of Georgians rallied Saturday for the jailed opposition leader and ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili as fears grew for his health because of a hunger strike lasting several weeks.Waving Georgian flags and chanting Saakashvili’s name, prote...

A knife attack on a high-speed train in Germany left three people severely wounded, the Bavarian Red Cross said Saturday. Police said a man has been arrested in connection with the morning attack.The train, one of Germany’s high-speed ICE trains, w...

The US said on Saturday it had ordered all of its non-essential diplomats and their families to leave Ethiopia, as Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed urged people to make sacrifices to fend off rebels threatening to advance on the capital.Nine rebel groups sa...

Prince Charles will attend ceremonies in Barbados later this month as the Caribbean island officially becomes a republic, dropping his mother Queen Elizabeth as head of state, his office said Friday.The former British colony became independent in 196...

Mallorca police arrested 12 passengers and were seeking 12 more on Saturday who fled a plane during an emergency landing in an “unprecedented” incident possibly linked to illegal immigration, officials said.The unauthorised exodus followed a pass...

Senior American policymakers should try to build personal relationships with their Chinese counterparts to manage frictions between the two countries, a US think tank has urged.“The single common trait of every issue that has been managed effective...

China will maintain its zero-tolerance policy towards Covid-19, the health authorities said on Saturday, defending its control measures as “in line with science.”The Chinese government’s approach contrasts with those of many countries that have...

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi insisted China is taking “real action” to tackle climate change following criticism from the United States.US President Joe Biden lashed out at Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin for their failure to attend the COP26 ...

A powerful vetting committee set up in Hong Kong to screen election candidates for national security risks will announce its findings for Legislative Council hopefuls on or before November 26, the panel’s chairman has revealed.Chief Secretary John ...

Archaeologists have uncovered a room at a villa just outside Pompeii containing beds and other objects that shed light on the living conditions of slaves in the ancient Roman city buried by a volcanic eruption.The room, in an excellent state of prese...

Hong Kong police arrested a couple for attempted murder after they had planned to kill themselves and their two young children at home in Cheung Sha Wan on Saturday afternoon.The two boys, aged two and six, remained in stable condition after they wer...

What if a simple pill could help heal from Covid-19?US pharmaceutical giants Merck and Pfizer have announced encouraging results for oral drugs, while an antidepressant has also shown promise in what could open up a new chapter in the fight against t...

Chinese drug maker Sinovac’s Covid-19 vaccine is safe for children and babies as young as six months old based on the latest data, according to company officials, who hope next-generation shots being developed may offer more protection against the ...

Traffic in Hong Kong’s upscale district The Peak was unusually congested on Saturday, after an underground water pipe burst and caused a landslide.According to police, a water pipe hidden underneath Peak Road, near the section of Coombe Road, burst...

A weekend sale of tiny flats in Hong Kong’s New Territories got off to a brisk start, auguring well for the proposed Northern Metropolis residential enclave near the city’s northern border with Shenzhen.CK Asset Holdings sold all 200 apartments t...

At least 99 people were killed and more than 100 injured in the capital of Sierra Leone late on Friday when a fuel tanker exploded following a collision, local authorities said.Fuel still appeared to be leaking from the wrecked tanker on Saturday mor...

When Alpha Condé was overthrown in a military coup in the West African nation of Guinea in September, China was quick to respond.In a brief and direct statement, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said “China opposes coup attempts to s...

Steven Spielberg has sold his superyacht, Seven Seas, after listing it earlier this year for US$158 million. The new registered owner of the yacht is Zekelman Investments, according to data provider VesselsValue, an entity linked to Canadian steel b...

Across China, poorly planned ghost towns filled with unsold homes or faux-historic architecture – part of an initiative meant to boost tourism and local revenue – are facing elimination as Beijing puts them under the microscope.The move is in lin...

At least eight people were killed and many were injured in a crush when fans surged toward the stage during the opening night of the Astroworld music festival on Friday in Houston, officials said.Houston fire chief Samuel Peña confirmed the casualty...

Hong Kong will be able to build 16,000 transitional homes by mid-2023, the city’s housing chief has revealed, accounting for 80 per cent of such flats the government has promised to provide.Secretary for Transport and Housing Frank Chan Fan deliver...

Hong Kong government vaccine experts have said they do not rule out the possibility of a fourth Covid-19 jab for residents, with the city rolling out third shots under its booster programme next week.The idea, raised by Professor David Hui Shu-cheong...

It’s a city of more than 5 million motorbikes, but Hanoi on Saturday opened its first ever urban railway line as authorities try to cut traffic and pollution that have long dogged the Vietnamese capital.After years of delays and a near-doubling of ...