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News - South China Morning Post

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Unexploded ordnance in Gaza wounds children despite...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/25

The Shorbasi family was sitting in their severely damaged house in Gaza City, enjoying the relative calm of the ceasefire. Then they heard an explosion and rushed outside to find their 6-year-old twins bleeding on the ground. The boy, Yahya, and his sister, Nabila, had discovered a round object while playing. One touch, and it went off. “It was like a toy,” their grandfather, Tawfiq Shorbasi, said of the unexploded ordnance, after the children were rushed to Shifa hospital on Friday. “It was...

Chinese President Xi Jinping puts personal stamp on...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/25

Chinese President Xi Jinping put his personal stamp on the national master plan for the next five years, with state media describing the plan’s framework as Xi’s brainchild – an indication of the document’s political weight. In a lengthy article on Saturday detailing some of the build-up to the Communist Party’s fourth plenum this week, state news agency Xinhua and party mouthpiece People’s Daily said Xi “personally headed” the team that drafted the outline for the next five-year plan. “[He]...

Malaysia’s tigers in crisis due to poachers, habitat...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/25

For two years, Malaysian conservationists tracked a tiger named “Bulan” as she raised four cubs. Then a fatal traffic accident made her another statistic in the country’s dwindling population. Malaysia’s national animal is in trouble. Poaching, food loss and diminishing habitat have slashed the population from 3,000 in the 1950s to less than 150 roaming free today, according to official estimates. The government said last month it was ramping up efforts to combat wildlife crime, introducing...

Buckle up on the road: Hong Kong to enforce seat belt...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/25

Footage of a police undercover crackdown on minibus commuters in Hong Kong has gone viral on social media, and the force will issue summonses to 31 passengers for failing to wear their seat belts. The Post breaks down the mandatory seat belt requirements for passengers on public and private transport. 1. What happened during undercover police operation on minibus passengers? According to police, the enforcement action took place on Friday and involved undercover officers from the force’s

China unveils ‘ghost’ drone for stealth underwater...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/25

Chinese scientists have created a ghostlike jellyfish robot that can carry out covert underwater missions. Described as an “underwater phantom”, the bionic jellyfish robot was developed by Tao Kai from Northwestern Polytechnical University’s school of mechanical and electrical engineering in Xian, Shaanxi province. According to the university, the robot is nearly indistinguishable from real jellyfish when submerged, enabling intelligent detection and real-time monitoring in aquatic...

UK police search London for asylum seeker after...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/25

British police said on Saturday they were scouring hours of closed-circuit TV recordings to find an asylum seeker sentenced for sexual assault who was mistakenly released from prison. Ethiopian national Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 38, was “last seen in the London area”, Essex Police said on Saturday, adding that officers from three separate forces were working together in the investigation. Kebatu came to national attention after his case triggered a wave of anti-migrant protests in London

Beijing takes aim at ‘Taiwan independence’ in...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/25

Beijing will leave no room for any form of “Taiwan independence” separatist activities, one of Beijing’s most senior leaders said on Saturday, marking the 80th anniversary of the island’s return from Japanese rule. “We should work together to advance the cause of national reunification and must leave no room for any form of ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist activities,” Wang Huning, Beijing’s No 4 official and top political adviser, said at an event to commemorate “Taiwan Restoration

Giant Labubu, Elmo, Grimace and Doraemon floating in...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/25

Fans of the popular characters Labubu, Elmo, Grimace and Doraemon flocked to see giant inflatables of the four in Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour on the first day of a week-long show on Saturday, although some visitors said they had little interest in paying for entry to a viewing deck or in buying souvenirs. Residents and tourists visited the Central harbourfront to take pictures of the inflatable sculptures of the popular intellectual property (IP) characters. A market selling merchandise

Philippine steel firm denies link to alleged...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/25

SteelAsia Manufacturing Corp. said it was ordered by the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute to take custody of 23 cargo containers allegedly containing radioactive zinc dust and rejected by Indonesia, adding it had no connection with the shipments. The Philippine steel company said it was tagged as the source of the radioactive materials by PNRI, and ordered to entomb the containers in its Calaca scrap recycling plant in Batangas province, according to a statement on Saturday. “The

Regina Ip, Hong Kong’s colourful ‘Iron Lady’, says...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/25

In a departure from her usual straight-talking style, Hong Kong’s “Iron Lady” Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee kept the public hanging for more than a week before finally announcing on Saturday that she will not run in December’s Legislative Council election, ending a 17-year tenure in the legislature. The 75-year-old founder of the New People’s Party also said it was time to pass the baton, having completed her “historic mission”, and that she would focus on nurturing new talent in the future. Openly...

Takaichi clears path to be Japan’s first female PM...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/19

Japan’s ruling party and main opposition are set to form a coalition to enable Sanae Takaichi to become the country’s first female premier, local media reported on Sunday.Takaichi became leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party earlier this month, but her bid to become premier was derailed by the collapse of her ruling coalition. Since then, the LDP has been working to cobble together a different alliance, putting her chances back on track. Takaichi and her counterpart Hirofumi

China’s new hope in breaking reliance on foreign...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/19

AMIES Technology, a new Chinese lithography equipment manufacturer that showcased its latest chipmaking products at an industry event in Shenzhen last week, is offering renewed optimism in the nation’s drive to reduce its dependence on Dutch giant ASML. The company presented a wide range of products – including compound-semiconductor lithography machines, laser-annealing systems, advanced inspection tools and solutions for packaging and wafer bonding – at the WeSemiBay Semiconductor Ecosystem...

‘Work from the air’: Chinese airline offers free...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/19

China’s biggest airlines have started offering free Wi-fi to passengers on a growing number of domestic flights, as they vie to win back business travellers who now often prefer to shuttle between cities on high-speed trains. China Eastern Airlines on October 11 launched a free “basic” Wi-fi service on all its widebody aircraft operating on domestic routes, said a company representative who spoke anonymously per company rules. The planes cover a total of 37 routes serving major Chinese cities...

Is it time for property investors to end their love...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/19

As Japan enters a new era with the likely election of Sanae Takaichi as the first female prime minister of Asia’s second-largest economy, is it time for property investors to end their enduring love affair with Japanese real estate? The 64-year-old Takaichi emerged last week as the leader of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, paving the way for her to seek the premiership, although uncertainties remain following the collapse of a coalition with the party’s allies. Under an anticipated...

Britain’s obsession with ‘Chinese spying’ says more...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/19

The collapse of the so-called China spy case in the UK has sparked a storm of headlines. Accusations of “spying for China”, allegations of improper government involvement in the dropping of the case, White House anger – the story ticked every box for front-page drama. Criticism of the government’s handling of the case was amplified by opposition politicians and commentators who never miss an opportunity to cast suspicion on closer ties with Beijing. This is not the first time people have been...

Chinese man stabs wife after suspecting her of...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/19

A jealous Chinese man tried to stab his wife of 30 years to death because she received a discount from the local butcher. The victm, surnamed Zhao, later pleaded for leniency by saying that her husband always “brings all his money home”. The attack happened in March in Songyuan, Jilin province, northeastern China, when Zou, driven by unfounded suspicion, tried to murder his wife in their living room. Zou became convinced that Zhao was having an affair simply because she received a discount

Half of Hong Kong children aged 6 to 10 own...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/19

A Hong Kong non-profit group is stepping up a campaign for parents to delay giving their children smartphones until the age of 14, with a survey revealing more than half of youngsters between the ages of 6 and 10 in the city already own one. Look Up Hong Kong released the survey findings on Sunday in support of its push for parents to wait until their children turn 14 before getting them a smartphone and until 16 for granting them access to social media. The results coincide with an ongoing...

Why a US$70 day trip to Johor is now Singaporeans’...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/19

Every month, Rachel Tan, a 53-year-old Singaporean tutor, boards a bus across the 1km (0.6 mile) causeway for a day trip to Malaysia’s Johor state, where she stocks up on groceries and treats herself to lunch and a film. Thanks to streamlined immigration procedures, she rarely needs to present her passport, using a QR code to pass the checkpoint before catching a complimentary shuttle bus that whisks her to R&F Mall. The entire day out, including shopping, typically costs her about 300

‘Potassium railway’: China’s hidden card in the trade...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/19

Landlocked in the heart of Southeast Asia, Laos ranks among the world’s poorest nations. However, for over a decade, China invested heavily to build a dual-purpose passenger and freight railway through the thick rainforest between Kunming and Vientiane, the Laotian capital. This 1,000km (621-mile) rail line, with speeds of up to 200km/h (124 mph), has been operating quietly for four years. According to a Chinese government study released this month, this railway has become a critical conduit

Pakistan and Afghanistan agree to immediate ceasefire...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/18

Afghanistan and Pakistan have agreed to an immediate ceasefire during talks hosted by Doha, Qatar’s foreign ministry announced early on Sunday, after the South Asian neighbours extended a ceasefire following a week of fierce border clashes. Qatar’s foreign ministry said Afghanistan and Pakistan have agreed to the ceasefire during a round of negotiations mediated by Qatar and Turkey on Saturday. It said they also agreed to hold follow-up meetings in the coming days “to ensure the

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