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‘They’re coming back’: Israelis await return of Gaza...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

Thousands of jubilant Israelis gathered in a Tel Aviv square on Thursday, hopeful for the return of hostages held in Gaza, after two years of fear and worry. Many wore stickers reading “They’re coming back”, waving Israeli and US flags and clutching photos of the hostages after Israel and Hamas reached a hostage release and truce deal in a major step towards ending the war. A group of beaming Israelis sang, clapped and jumped in a circle in Hostages Square, which has been the scene of weekly...

Kazakhstan seeks investment to become ‘transit hub’...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

While Kazakhstan is cooperating closely with China on the digitalisation of trade, a government official from the Central Asian country said this week that more infrastructure investment is needed – including along the Middle Corridor trade route – for it to realise its aim of becoming a bridge between Asia and Europe. Exporters turned to the Middle Corridor – which connects China and Europe via Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey – as an alternative to the northern route of the...

Chinese scientists find gene that determines central...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

In arid parts of central Australia, temperature plays a big part in determining whether central bearded dragon embryos emerge from their eggs as male or female. While the sex of mammals and birds is determined solely by genetics, the dragons are like turtles and crocodiles in that incubation temperature plays a part in the process. If incubated at 32 degrees Celsius (89.6 degrees Fahrenheit) or higher, some male embryos will emerge as female. If the temperature is cooler, genetics will

China’s rare earth clampdown deepens EU anxiety on...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

The European Union is “worried” by China’s move to tighten restrictions on rare earth minerals, with senior figures saying the controls will compound the deterioration in trade relations that have only “worsened” since a summit in July. On Thursday, China’s Ministry of Commerce announced a sweeping “upgrade” of rare earth licensing requirements that have been in place since April, expanding them to cover the export of technologies used to process the minerals. The move also tightens licensing...

EU’s von der Leyen survives 2 no confidence challenges

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen survived two confidence votes Thursday in the European Parliament, touting “strong support” from the assembly despite the tensions laid bare by the challenge. The motions of censure against the European Commission president were brought by the hard left and far-right, which accuse her of a lack of transparency and reject her trade policies. Neither motion secured the minimum 361 out of 720 votes. The challenge brought by the far-right Patriots won support from

Hong Kong police hunt for hoaxer who claimed 25...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

Hong Kong police are searching for a hoaxer who sounded like a scared boy and made several fake emergency phone calls claiming that 25 teachers and students were trapped by a hill fire in Pat Sin Leng, Tai Po. Police received four separate calls at about 1.45pm on Thursday from a person who reported a blaze on the 511-metre Hsien Ku Fung, one of eight peaks in the Pat Sin Leng range in the northeastern New Territories. The caller claimed that four teachers and 21 pupils were stranded on the...

Chinese premier begins North Korea trip with friendly...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

Chinese Premier Li Qiang promised closer cooperation with North Korea as he began a three-day visit to the country on Thursday following a recent flurry of diplomatic exchanges that signalled a thaw in relations. Li is the most senior Chinese official to visit the country since 2019. During his visit he will attend a series of events to celebrate the 80th anniversary of North Korea’s ruling party. Li said Beijing was ready to work with Pyongyang to “strengthen strategic communication,

How Donald Trump pulled off his Gaza deal

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

It was a typically theatrical moment for the man who loves to publicly boast of being the “peacemaker-in-chief”. Donald Trump’s top diplomat interrupted a televised meeting at the White House to hand the US president a note and whisper in his ear that a Gaza deal was imminent. Shortly afterwards, he announced the agreement on social media. “BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS!” he posted. But while the climax played out in front of reporters, most of Trump’s efforts had been behind the scenes, as he...

Axe ‘invisible barriers’ affecting people with...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

Hong Kong’s equality watchdog has urged service providers and property managers to eliminate “invisible barriers” that impact residents with disabilities after conducting its first review of reported cases of discrimination. In addition to laying out eight recommendations for such organisations in a new guide, the Equal Opportunities Commission highlighted on Thursday some of the cases that had prompted the review. They included the case of a bus driver who refused to allow a wheelchair user

Hong Kong to offer Kowloon site for tender amid focus...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

The Hong Kong government will launch a single residential site in Kowloon for tender in its third financial quarter, as authorities focus on the Northern Metropolis to launch new land sales as soon as the end of this year. A plot measuring 40,902 sq ft at Choi Hing Road, Jordan Valley, will be made available via tender in the December quarter, enough to provide about 570 average-sized flats, according to the Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn Hon-ho. That launch would come after the...

Beijing’s liaison office chief in Hong Kong lays out...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

Beijing’s liaison office chief in Hong Kong has expressed hope that the local media will report more on the nation’s development for a global audience and support the administration’s efforts to boost the economy and improve people’s livelihoods. Office Director Zhou Ji also encouraged media professionals on Thursday to convey the public’s views while helping to build a consensus in society. He was speaking at a reception held by local media outlets to mark the 76th anniversary of the

Digital IP protector from US among 18 firms expanding...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

A US-based Emmy Award-winning digital content protection firm is among the latest batch of strategic enterprises that will open offices or expand in Hong Kong, seeking to leverage the city’s creative talent and accelerate its intellectual property (IP) development. Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said the Office for Attracting Strategic Enterprises (OASES) had brought in 18 more firms to establish offices or expand in the city. With their addition, the total number of OASES enterprises

China’s ‘super golden week’ box office lags, but...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

China’s extended “super golden week” holiday saw cinemas’ box-office revenues slump compared to last year’s National Day break, but nationwide takings since the start of the year have already exceeded the total for all of 2024. According to box-office tracker Dengta Data, cinemas raked in 1.83 billion yuan (US$257 million) during the eight-day holiday, which ended on Wednesday. That was the second-lowest total since 2017 and down from the 2.1 billion yuan reported for the regular seven-day...

China hits out at report that says it used US...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

China hit out on Thursday at a US congressional report that accused it of exploiting American higher education institutions for military research. The foreign ministry said China had lodged “stern representations” with the United States over the “malicious actions” of the select committee that produced the report. Guo Jiakun, a spokesman for the ministry, told a regular press briefing that the House China committee had long attacked and smeared China for political purposes and had “no...

Hungary’s Laszlo Krasznahorkai wins 2025 Nobel Prize...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

Hungarian writer Laszlo Krasznahorkai won the 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature, the award-giving body said on Thursday, “for his compelling and visionary oeuvre that, in the midst of apocalyptic terror, reaffirms the power of art”. “Laszlo Krasznahorkai is a great epic writer in the Central European tradition that extends through Kafka to Thomas Bernhard, and is characterised by absurdism and grotesque excess,” the Academy said in a statement. “But there are more strings to his bow, and he also...

China to host global women’s summit, with Xi Jinping...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

China will host a global women’s summit in Beijing next week, with President Xi Jinping attending the opening ceremony and delivering the keynote speech. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the event on Thursday, confirming an earlier report by the South China Morning Post that the event would take place in October. The summit, which commemorates the 30th anniversary of the United Nations’ Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, was first announced by Foreign Minister Wang Yi in...

Malaysia’s Top Glove fights China rivals in US market

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

The world’s largest glove maker, Top Glove, expects to expand US sales in the 2026 financial year, even as it faces intensifying competition from Chinese rivals setting up production in Southeast Asia to take advantage of lower American tariffs. “The glove business is challenging and competitive, especially on an international level,” Top Glove Executive Chairman Tan Sri Dr Lim Wee Chai said in the Malaysian company’s earnings statement on Thursday. With an improved cost structure, Top Glove

TikTok’s brief suspension in Indonesia fuels fears of...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

Indonesia’s brief suspension of TikTok’s operating licence over its refusal to hand over user data related to a wave of protests in August has reignited scrutiny over online governance and warnings that it could chill freedom of expression and encourage self-censorship. Although the ban was quickly lifted, digital rights advocates said the government’s handling of the episode – including its opaque data demands and threats of regulatory sanctions – highlighted a “problematic” legal framework...

‘Dirtiest town in Asia’: Malaysian MP told to clean...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

A lawmaker representing a Malaysian tourist town on the island of Borneo has come under fire after a viral video labelled it “Asia’s dirtiest town”, prompting condemnation from the public and fellow politicians. The one-minute clip shows British travel vlogger Ben Frier, who goes by the handle Backpacker Ben, strolling around Semporna, a coastal town in Sabah that serves as a gateway to popular tourist islands like Sipadan and Mabul. Panning around, he shows rubbish clogging the waters...

Hong Kong’s electronics fairs brew up the future of...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/10/09

[The content of this article has been produced by our advertising partner.] AI-controlled robots are no longer futuristic. They are fast becoming part of our everyday life and have become one of main attractions at this year’s autumn technology fairs in Hong Kong. The HKTDC Hong Kong Electronics Fair (Autumn Edition) and electronicAsia 2025, held from October 13-16 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, have become powerful showcases for intelligent systems that learn, sense and...

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