World News
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At least 53 dead after tropical storm Megi hit the Philippines
At least 53 people have died in landslides and floods after tropical storm Megi hit the Philippines last weekend. Rescue crews are still looking for survivors in the aftermath and the death toll is expected to climb as the rescuers discover more bodies and move into more remote areas. The storm caused landslides and floods which buried people alive and…
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Oklahoma woman searches for Thai mother, nearly 50 years after US family adopts her
An American woman is searching for her Thai mother, who is believed to live in the Isaan province of Ubon Ratchathani. She says her father was an American soldier who met her mother when he was based in Thailand during the Vietnam War. In March of this year 49 year old Kristy Sinsara Hudsud, an American singer and songwriter, started…
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Businesses blame high ‘entry fees’ for deterring travellers at Thai-Malaysia border
The reopening of the Thai-Malaysian border this month raised the hopes of local business owners around the border areas, who thought it would boost the economy in southern Thailand, and the northern states of Malaysia as well. However, things seem to be moving more slowly than expected, with merchants blaming the 5,000-7,000 baht “entry fees” as being too expensive for…
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Russian tourism staff claims interest in Thailand travel has spiked for Russians
More Russians are reportedly interested in venturing down to Thailand. After Russia announced earlier this week it would lift Covid-19 restrictions on flights to 52 countries, starting April 9, some Russian tourism staff claim there was a massive increase in Thailand search inquiries by Russians. Searches for tickets to Thailand reportedly went up by 20%, according to one popular vacation…
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South Korea is the most expensive country to raise kids
South Korea is the most expensive country in the world to raise children from birth to age 18, according to research from Jefferies Financial Group. On the list of 14 countries Jefferies researched, South Korea is followed by China, then Italy. Jefferies’s analysts reported some differences between Asian and Western cultures that might be a factor in South Korea and…
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Pakistan’s Imran Khan ousted from PM position
Following a parliamentary vote of no confidence last week, Pakistan’s PM Imran Khan has been ousted. The vote came after Pakistan’s opposition parties accused Khan of economic mismanagement, as well as poor governance. The country’s Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that a decision to block the no confidence vote was unconstitutional. Now, Khan claims that opposition to him is backed…
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Post-Omicron, Asian economies accelerate into recovery mode
Across most of South East and Eastern Asia, Covid is now on a sharp retreat, some 2 – 3 months after similar surges and drops in the US, UK and Europe. Except for 3 countries, Japan, China and Thailand, where the daily numbers, fuelled by Omicron variants, are still climbing. These same 3 countries have been among the most risk-averse…
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Will Smith has been ‘slapped’ a 10 year ban from attending the Oscars
Will Smith has been banned from attending the Academy Awards for the next 10 years, following his spontaneous slapping of comedian host Chris Rock on stage during this year’s Oscars. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences announced its decision in a statement yesterday in Beverly Hills, California… “The Board has decided, for a period of 10 years from…
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Missile attack on train station kills 52 Ukrainians, Russia denies involvement
Six weeks after Russia first invaded Ukraine, a missile struck a train station in the Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk yesterday, killing 52 people. Russia denies being behind the attack, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the bombing had been reported in Russia before the missiles had even landed. Zelensky said the attack showed “evil with no limits”. Zelensky called for…
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2 more missing divers found off Malaysia, 3 out of 4 now found
Two more of the four divers who went missing off southeastern Malaysia this week have been found safe today. The first of the divers found, a 35 year old Norwegian woman, was rescued on Thursday. The two divers found today are 18 year old Alexia Molina, from France, and 46 year old Adrian Chesters, from the UK. Malaysian fishermen spotted…
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Smuggled sketches show horrific conditions inside notorious Insein Prison in Myanmar
Radio Free Asia have released a series of sketches penned by inmates of a Burmese prison in Yangon, the largest city in Myanmar, and smuggled out of the prison by brave, released detainees. Thousands of mostly political prisoners have been sent there since last year’s coup. The following from Radio Free Asia… “Sketches smuggled out of Myanmar’s notorious Insein Prison…
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Phuket Soi Dog volunteer to brave Himalayas to raise money for foundation
A volunteer from Soi Dog Foundation in Phuket plans to brave a trek through the rugged Himalayan mountains to raise money for the foundation. The volunteer, 51 year old Yanisa, wants to reach the summit of the 6,419-metre Mount Chulu West with her husband in 21 days. Yanisa and her husband, 65 year old Rohun, will start from Kathmandu in…
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Boeing 757-200 crash lands and splits in two at Costa Rica airport
Boeing’s series of bad media, whether directly at fault or not, continues after a DHL Boeing 757-200 cargo aircraft crash landed and split into two, losing its tail end at Costa Rica’s Juan Santamaria international airport yesterday. The crew managed to escape the yellow DHL cargo plane and came out of the incident unharmed. The aircraft was bound for Guatemala…
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Asia News Today | New North Korean test on the way & META blocks Filipino election account
Human Rights Watch has accused Australia’s ambassador to Myanmar of “lending credibility” to Myanmar’s military government. HRW’s criticism came after the ambassador met with the Burmese military chief and Myanmar’s state-owned media outlets on Wednesday to discuss “cooperation” in various sectors.HRW Myanmar researcher Manny Maung says the meeting has hurt global efforts to hold the chief accountable for human rights…
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US arrests 3 Thais, yakuza chief for planning to supply missiles to Burmese rebels
US authorities revealed yesterday that they have arrested three Thai men and a Japanese yakuza organised crime leader in New York City on April 4 – 5. The men are accused of trafficking heroin and methamphetamine, as well as attempting to acquire surface-to-air missiles for rebel groups in Myanmar and Sri Lanka. Takeshi Ebizawa, Sompak Raksaranee, Somphop Sigsiri and Suksan…
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Malaysian Airlines 737 plunges mid-air, passengers ‘float’ in their seats
Malaysia Airlines has responded to questions over an ‘incident’ with one of their Boeing 737 aircraft last Sunday, commenting that “the plane performed an air turn back due to technical issues with the aircraft, compounded by bad weather en route”. Those “issues” caused MH2664, flying from Kuala Lumpur International Airport to Sabah on the eastern island of Borneo, to plunge…
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One of four missing divers found safe off Malaysia
One of four divers that went missing on Wednesday off southeastern Malaysia was found safe yesterday. The woman, Kristine Grodem, is a diving instructor, and says she lost sight of the other divers after the group drifted far from their boat due to strong underwater currents, according to a Malaysian maritime director. The director said Grodem was airlifted to safety…
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What do Thais of different ages think of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine?
Thais of different ages appear to have a wide range of opinions on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Young Thais are more likely to support Ukraine against Russia’s invasion than older generations, according to some academics. A professor of international relations at Thammasat University, Kitti Prasirtsuk, told the Guardian that the way young Thais think of their own government has impacted their…
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Asia News Today | A Malaysian Boeing 737 ‘dives’ in a terrifying mid-air incident
Another mid-air incident in Asia after a Malaysia Airlines flight from KL to Sabah on Borneo dipped its nose and dropped suddenly, allegedly flying erratically before turning back to Sabah. The incident happened on Sunday but has only come to light after passengers posted their stories on social media. The airline says that Flight MH2664 from KLIA turned back due…
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Thailand promotes tourism packages to attract 1 million Southeast Asian tourists
As countries throughout the Asia-Pacific region ease their pandemic-era travel restrictions and reopen their borders, Thailand aims to take advantage of the resumed international flights. By the end of the year, Thailand hopes to attract some 1.75 million international tourists via short-haul flights, with more than a million coming from Southeast Asian counties alone. To reach their international tourism target,…
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Asia predicted to barrel along in 2022 with 5.2 percent growth
Growth in Asia is expected to keep largely on track this year, whilst coping with a few dips because of current events, until at least next year. The prediction comes as most countries in the region ease into their post-pandemic economic strategies, despite fallout coming from the war in Ukraine following Russia’s invasion, and world inflation. This assessment from the…
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Asia News Today | Growth in Asia expected to be on track in 2022
Police raided a house in the northern province of Chiang Rai yesterday to find 71 Burmese migrants hiding inside. A Thai man who was also inside the house told police he was hired to pick up the migrants who had illegally crossed over the border from Myanmar and transport them to the house. The migrants told police they were heading…
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Boeing’s China syndrome, big problems for the US aircraft manufacturer
China Eastern Airlines has grounded its fleet of Boeing 737-800s – some 108 planes in the China Eastern fleet along with another 117 planes it flies with subsidiary airlines. That’s a lot of planes, in either the first or second largest aviation market in the world, depending how you measure it. Number of passengers on airlines worldwide in 2020, by…
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Asia News Today | South Korea Committed To Re-opening Plans
China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi is urging the Philippine government to steer clear of external “disturbances” to its China policy and work to prevent tension arising from their South China Sea dispute The issue of China’s claims over the island’s in the South China Sea has become one of the issues in the run-up to the Philippine presidential election next…
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Thailand seeks Asean extradition convention to battle cybercrime in Southeast Asia
Thailand is seeking to ink a new regional extradition pact with 10 other Southeast Asian countries in a united effort to combat transnational crimes by 2024. Senior officials discussed the matter during a seminar about how to combat cybercrime at the Office of the Attorney General’s 129th anniversary meeting, the Bangkok Post reported. Thailand has seen an uptick in recent…
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Asia’s weird Covid twilight zone – VIDEO
Tens of millions of people in China are under lockdown, including in the largest city Shanghai. Thailand’s infection numbers continue to creep up, already much higher than at their peak last year. Hong Kong morgues are overwhelmed and patients being turned away from hospitals. In South Korea health authorities are reporting the most cases per capita in the world. Vietnam…
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Phuket’s Soi Dog Foundation to give US$250,000 to Ukrainian pets
Phuket’s Soi Dog Foundation plans to give a grant of US$250,ooo to a clinic in Poland for Ukrainian pets whose owners fled Russia’s invasion. The money will also help a Polish animal society give immediate care to pets in desperate need right now. An estimated 40,000 dogs and cats have come with their owners to Poland since the invasion began…
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Strange cold spell in Thailand caused by high pressure system from China
An abnormally strong high-pressure system from China caused a cold spell in Thailand today, according to the Thai Meteorological Department. The high-pressure system is now covering most of Northern Thailand, where temperatures were 18-23 degrees Celsius this morning, meaning they had dropped by two to four degrees. Highs in the North are expected to peak today at 26-28 degrees Celsius.…
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Bum Gun vs Toilet Paper, which is better for your butt?
Life’s important questions… Is there a God, Honda vs Toyota, bum-guns (aka. arse-blasters) vs toilet paper. It’s a cultural shock either way. If you’re an Asian travelling to the west you may be left pondering what happened to the water gun, usually found casually hanging on the wall next to the toilet. Or if you’re a westerner heading to Asia,…
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Pope Francis says Ukraine visit is “on the table”
Pope Francis was recently invited to Ukraine by the country’s president Volodymyr Zelensky. When asked if he was considering visiting, Francis told a reporter today, “Yes, it’s on the table”. Although Francis has not mentioned the word “Russia” explicitly, since the invasion of Ukraine, he has condemned “unjustified aggression” and “atrocities”. Other Ukrainian officials that invited Pope Francis include an…
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