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Debunking the myth of the lonely, isolated Hong Kong...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

Earlier this week I stumbled on a fascinating piece of research led by geography professor Becky Loo at the University of Hong Kong and soon to be published in the Nature Cities journal. Fascinating not just because of its scale – an analysis of 200,000 household travel surveys covering Boston, Chicago, London, Sao Paulo and Hong Kong – but because of its focus on daily mobility and social mixing. Its key finding? That people aged over 66 have more encounters with a broader cross-section of...

Hong Kong to scrap fax messaging between police and...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

Hong Kong’s security chief has pledged to replace emergency fax messaging between police and firefighters with a digital system and to increase phone lines at call centres, after an inquiry into a fatal Tai Po fire revealed that residents had waited up to 15 minutes for call referrals. Secretary for Security Chris Tang Ping-keung’s remarks on Friday at a Legislative Council Finance Committee meeting followed evidence that emerged from an independent committee’s hearing that revealed a

Hong Kong to strengthen police coordination in animal...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

Hong Kong’s conservation officers will step up coordination with police to carry out joint operations to enter private premises when investigating suspected animal abuse, following an ombudsman’s report that found existing procedures ineffective.A lawmaker on Friday also backed strengthening collaboration rather than granting Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) staff the power to enter flats, noting that investigative expertise rests with police. “With cases where there

Vietnamese airline to lease up to 10 C909 jets in...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

Vietnamese budget carrier VietJet Air has agreed to lease as many as 10 Chinese-made C909 regional passenger jets, giving a lift to their manufacturer’s goal of vying with Airbus and Boeing in overseas civil aviation. VietJet said in a statement on Thursday night it had agreed with SPDB Financial Leasing, a subsidiary of Shanghai Pudong Development Bank in China, to finance the aircraft through operating leases. Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (Comac) makes the jets that are the

Malaysian man among 8 dead in Indonesian helicopter...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

Two crew members and six passengers were killed when a private helicopter crashed in dense forest on Indonesia’s Borneo island, the transport ministry said on Friday. The Airbus H130 helicopter, owned by local firm Matthew Air Nusantara, lost contact with air traffic control about five minutes after take-off from an oil plantation in the West Kalimantan province on Thursday morning. It was on its way to another plantation in Kubu Raya district. All eight on board were men and one was a

Elderly man stabbed in the leg by attacker with knife...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

An 80-year-old Hong Kong man was stabbed in the leg near Cosco Tower on Wing Lok Street in Sheung Wan on Friday morning. He sustained injuries to his left elbow and thigh after being attacked by a man wielding a knife. He was sent to Queen Mary Hospital in Pok Fu Lam for treatment. The case was reported to police at 11.17am. Officers investigated at the scene and are searching for the suspect. The motive for the attack is still unknown.

Hong Kong-flagged oil tanker passes through Strait of...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

An oil tanker sailing under the flag of Hong Kong has passed through the Strait of Hormuz and entered the Gulf of Oman in what appears to be a test of the US blockade targeting vessels entering or leaving Iranian ports, according to a maritime data firm. The tanker, AVA 6, departed from a port in the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday, Beijing time. It passed through the Strait of Hormuz sometime between 4am and 2pm on Thursday, according to data from Mingkun Technology, a Chinese maritime...

Myanmar frees Win Myint, cuts Aung San Suu Kyi’s...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

Myanmar ⁠has freed former president Win Myint and reduced the sentence of imprisoned former leader Aung San Suu ‌Kyi as part of an ‌amnesty that saw the release of 4,335 prisoners, according to state media. “The president has pardoned Win Myint,” said a statement on Friday from the office of newly elected president Min Aung Hlaing. Win Myint, an ally ‌of ⁠Suu Kyi, served as president ⁠from 2018 and 2021 but ‌was ousted ‌by a military coup and had been detained since. Suu Kyi’s 27-year

7 arrested in crackdown on party rooms offering...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

Hong Kong customs has arrested seven people in a citywide crackdown on party rooms offering suspected illegal karaoke sets with songs that infringed copyright. The operation, code-named “Magpie”, took place between March 16 and Wednesday this week and involved more than 100 officers, who raided 14 party rooms, a bar and the residences of two online sellers. Ng Ka-chun, divisional commander of customs’ intellectual property technology crime investigation, said on Friday that authorities seized

China woman sweeps wrong tomb, boy does homework at...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

China is a land where the unexpected becomes part of daily life, and these quirky excursions often add a touch of excitement to mundane routines. In southern China, during this year’s Tomb Sweeping Festival in early April, a woman surnamed Wu discovered a surprising piece of information while sweeping the tomb of her great-grandfather – a man from another village informed her that her family had been visiting the wrong grave for the past two years. Wu, a resident of Guangdong province,

Hong Kong school to close in 2029 over Primary One...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

A primary school on an outlying island in Hong Kong will cease operations in the 2029–30 academic year after failing to submit a survival plan due to an insufficient number of Primary One pupils for next year. CCC Cheung Chau Church Kam Kong Primary School will also be the first of 15 under-enrolled schools barred from operating subsidised P1 classes from September. A spokeswoman for the Education Bureau said on Friday that the school did not apply for any survival options despite being...

China’s energy mismatch

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

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South Korean mum faces child abuse charges for...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

A South Korean woman in her thirties is facing child abuse charges after allegedly feeding her two-month-old infant tteokguk, or rice cake soup, with the case coming to light through photos she posted online. The dish, commonly eaten to mark the new year in South Korea, is considered inappropriate for infants, whose digestive systems are not yet developed enough to process semi-solid foods. According to the Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency on Friday, the unidentified woman is being...

Europe tests ‘third way’ on Hormuz without the US,...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

France and Britain are pulling together a coalition of more than 30 nations on Friday for a Parisian summit aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Neither the United States nor Israel or Iran have been invited to the first major European push to influence a war that was launched six weeks ago by a US-Israeli bombardment on Iran. Europe insists it is not a party to the war, but as energy prices soar and munitions get diverted from Ukraine it is already paying the price. China is among the

China’s 3-satellite surveillance network, Hong Kong’s...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

We have selected seven stories from this week’s news across Hong Kong, mainland China, the wider Asia region and beyond that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. 3 satellites to track all? Chinese radar images confirm US military fears Last month, China released a series of undated radar images of the Towa Maru. It marked the first time ever that a geosynchronous orbit (GEO) synthetic

South African politician Malema sentenced to 5 years...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

South African opposition party leader Julius Malema was sentenced to five years in prison Thursday after he was convicted of breaking firearm laws by firing a rifle at a political rally in 2018. He was released pending an appeal, which will be heard at a later date. If the verdict and sentence are upheld, Malema will be disqualified as a lawmaker. South African law bars anyone from serving in Parliament if they have been convicted of an offence and sentenced to more than 12 months in prison...

Cuba’s president says island does not wish for US...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said Thursday that while Cuba does not want military aggression from the United States, his country is prepared to fight should it happen. Diaz-Canel spoke during a rally that drew hundreds of people to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the declaration of the Cuban Revolution’s socialist essence. “The moment is extremely challenging and calls upon us once again, as on April 16, 1961, to be ready to confront serious threats, including military aggression. We

US oil floats to top as Asia looks for Middle Eastern...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

Asian refiners have grown increasingly reliant on US crude as oil-starved fuel makers scour the globe to replace Middle Eastern supply and stave off shortages that could ripple through the broader economy. Buyers in Japan led the charge to purchase May-loading cargoes from the US early in the month, with South Korean, Singaporean and Thai processors also among customers, said traders familiar with the matter. At least 60 million barrels of grades from the US Gulf were bought for loading next...

Hong Kong police hunt suspect over phones snatched at...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

Hong Kong police are hunting for a man after mobile phones were snatched from two women moments before MTR train doors closed at two different stations. Police received reports from two victims, aged 48 and 33, at 8.24pm and 8.33pm on Thursday, respectively, that their phones had been grabbed by a man at Lai King and Mei Foo stations. The suspect, believed to be about 30 years old, took advantage of the closing doors to snatch the devices and escape. The stolen phones – an OPPO Find X9 and

Tai Po probe: owners urged contractor to use more...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2026/04/17

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. The role of the management committee of Wang Fuk Court owners’ corporation is expected to be a key focus on Friday at a hearing by an independent panel investigating Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades, with a former chairman of the body and a construction worker set to testify. Tony Tsui Moon-come, chairman of the management committee at the time of the...

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