News Archives

4th Tibetan in week self-immolates in China
A U.S.-based rights group says a 24-year-old Tibetan farmer has become the fourth man in a far western Chinese county to set himself on fire this week in protest against Chinese rule. Tibetan immolations: China offers rewards for information
Police in China's Gansu province are offering rewards for information about planned self-immolations by Tibetans. Vietnam detains student over 'anti-state propaganda'
A Vietnamese student who had been missing for two weeks has been held by police over "security matters" state-run media say. North Korea leader Kim Jong Un still a mystery, Leon Panetta says
Whether North Korea's new leader will follow the dangerous path of his father is unclear, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said on Wednesday, despite worrying behavior by the reclusive state during Kim Jong Un's first year in power. Tokyo governor Shintaro Ishihara quits to form new party
Tokyo's governor Shintaro Ishihara is resigning to form a new national political party, ahead of expected general elections in Japan. Burma imposes overnight curfew in Rakhine state
The authorities in Burma have imposed a night-time curfew in at least two towns in western Rakhine state as inter-communal violence continues to spread. China manufacturing contracts at slower pace, HSBC says
Chinese manufacturing showed signs of recovery in October, shrinking at a slower pace than in previous months, according to a report by HSBC. APNewsBreak: US Navy reviews rules on Japan bases
Just days before two U.S. Navy sailors were accused of rape on the Japanese island of Okinawa, Navy commanders in Japan eased after-hours restrictions and said the majority of their sailors are "overwhelmingly outstanding." Muslim-Buddhist clashes spread in western Myanmar
Skirmishes between Muslims and Buddhists in western Myanmar have spread to two new districts where authorities are struggling to douse flames from burning homes, the government said Wednesday. Huawei offers access to source code and equipment
Huawei has offered to give Australia unrestricted access to its software source code and equipment, as it looks to ease fears that it is a security threat. Another Tibetan in western China self-immolates
A rights group says a Tibetan farmer has set himself ablaze in front of a market in remote northwest China, becoming the second death by self-immolation near the Labrang Monastery in two days. Indian ministry advises against Mumbai gunman plea
India's Home Ministry has recommended that the president reject a clemency plea filed by the lone surviving gunman of the 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people. Fresh violence in Myanmar leaves mosque, monastery burned
Fresh sectarian clashes in Myanmar's western state of Rakhine killed three people and left more than 400 houses, a monastery and a mosque burned to the ground, authorities said Tuesday. Japan minister quits after mob ties scandal
Japan's justice minister quit on Tuesday because of ill health, a cabinet official said, after calls for his resignation over past ties to an organized crime syndicate. The announcement dealt another blow to unpopular Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda. No balloons! North Korea threatens South over leafleting effort
Impoverished North Korea threatened on Friday to open fire on South Korea if it allows activists to go ahead with plans to drop anti-North leaflets on its territory, its most strident warning against its long-time foe in months. Tusks from hundreds of slain elephants found by Hong Kong in ship containers
Hong Kong Customs announced Saturday that it had found 1,209 elephant tusks smuggled in two shipping containers from Kenya and Tanzania. Seven people were arrested in what customs said was the biggest such bust in Hong Kong history. Japan owns almost as much U.S. debt as China
China's massive stake in U.S. Treasuries gets a lot of attention. But it's Japan, and not China, that has been busy gobbling up U.S. debt over the past year. South Korea blocks leaflet launch after North 'strike' threat
South Korean police have blocked activists from sending propaganda leaflets over the border, after threats of military action from North Korea. Myanmar leader holds landmark press briefing
Myanmar's leader has held his first press conference since taking power in 2011, in a show of openness for the once secretive and repressive regime. Vietnam's prime minister admits 'faults' on economy
Vietnam's prime minister has admitted he made mistakes managing the country's faltering economy, promising to reform state firms hit by corruption scandals.