China has introduced new rules that expand the circumstances under which citizens can be prevented from travelling abroad. The regulations, which took effect on Tuesday, allow authorities to bar some citizens from leaving China for up to three years after they return from overseas. People deemed to have harmed China’s national security or interests while…
The death toll from rain-triggered landslides in southeastern China has risen to 16 after search teams recovered another body in Jiangxi province. The landslides struck Suichuan County after days of heavy rain linked to Typhoon Saudel. State media said the deaths occurred across three towns in the county. Gaoping town recorded the highest number of…
Singapore has approved a major increase in ministers’ salaries, lifting Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s annual package by more than 60%. Singapore’s government is raising the salaries of ministers and other senior office holders, including Wong, the world’s highest-paid political leader. Wong’s annual pay package will rise from about S$2.2 million to S$3.6 million. That represents…
At least six people have died after a five-storey residential building collapsed in Delhi, with more students feared trapped under the rubble. The building, known as Hostel Daze, collapsed around on Sunday in the Satya Niketan neighbourhood of south-west Delhi. Eyewitnesses told local media that between 20 and 40 people may have been inside when…
Japanese avant-garde artist Yayoi Kusama, one of the world’s most recognisable contemporary artists, has died at the age of 97. Kusama’s company confirmed that the artist died at a hospital in Tokyo on August 14, 2026, describing her death as a moment of “profound sorrow.” Throughout her extraordinary career, Kusama worked across visual art, sculpture,…
A New Zealand religious leader has been sentenced to more than 10 years in prison after being convicted over the death of a 70-year-old follower who had travelled from China to live with him and his family. Kaixiao Liu was found guilty of manslaughter and kidnapping after Shulai Wang died in March 2024. Her body…
Authorities in China’s north-eastern Hebei province have opened an investigation after footage emerged showing cabbages allegedly being treated with formaldehyde before being transported for sale. The investigation began after an environmental blogger published a video showing individuals dipping cabbages into a liquid solution before loading the vegetables onto trucks. Officials in Kangbao county said they…
Chinese authorities have arrested a local government official and a businessman accused of sexually assaulting a woman during a business gathering in Hangzhou, with the case triggering widespread anger over alleged abuses of power and China’s drinking-table culture. The woman was allegedly assaulted at a karaoke venue after attending an official company dinner involving executives…
A French father and his two young sons spent more than sixteen hours stranded in the waters off Koh Samui, Thailand. This resulted from rough waves, causing their rented jet ski to capsize and the engine to fail. The family had rented the jet ski for a 45-minute ride on Thursday from one of Thailand’s…
At least four people have died and five others have been injured after record rainfall triggered flooding and landslides in Japan’s Chiba prefecture, east of Tokyo. The torrential rain, described by Japan’s Meteorological Agency as being at an “unprecedented level”, brought parts of Chiba to a standstill. Also cutting electricity to more than 20,000 households…
