This Oct 13, 2021 file photo shows construction in the Israeli settlement of Rahalim, located near the village of Yatma, south of Nablus in the occupied West Bank. Israel plans to build more residences for Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank, a government ministry said. (JAAFAR ASHTIYEH / AFP) The European Union on Monday […]
In this July 6, 2020 photo, a doctor displays a COVID-19 vaccine at Padjadjaran university educational hospital in Bandung, West Java in preparation for efforts to vaccinate volunteers in the community. (TIMUR MATAHARI / AFP) JAKARTA – Indonesia now feels more optimistic about producing its own coronavirus shots next year even as it pushes ahead […]
South Korea's President Moon Jae-in delivers speech on the government budget at the National Assembly in Seoul on Oct 25, 2021. (JUNG YEON-JE / POOL / AFP) SYDNEY / SUVA / KUALA LUMPUR / ANKARA / SEOUL / TOKYO – South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Monday that the country will begin returning to normalcy from the […]
Children play in a camp for internally displaced people in Kabul, Afghanistan on Sept 13, 2021. (FELIPE DANA / AP) DUBAI – Millions of Afghans, including children, could die of starvation unless urgent action is taken to pull Afghanistan back from the brink of collapse, a senior United Nations official warned, calling for frozen funds to […]
This photo taken on Sept 18, 2019 shows a man stacking up sacks of plastic items sorted from piles of thrash to be sold at recycling shops in Manila. (MARIA TAN / AFP) MANILA – A group of recyclers in the Philippines is trying to ease the country's worsening plastic waste crisis by turning bottles, […]
A picture taken on January 20, 2021 shows the Israeli settlement of Pisgat Zeev (left), built in a suburb of the mostly Arab east Jerusalem, and the Palestinian Shuafat refugee camp (right) behind Israel's controversial separation wall. (AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP) AMMAN / RAMALLAH – Jordan on Sunday warned Israel against building new settlements in […]
Members of an election commission listen to the national anthem at a polling station during the presidential election in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Oct 24, 2021. (AP PHOTO) TASHKENT – Voting in Uzbekistan's presidential election ended with over 80 percent turnout on Sunday that was described by the country's Central Election Commission as a historic achievement for […]
Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida who is also ruling Liberal Democratic Party president, attends a debate session with other leaders of Japan's main political parties ahead of Oct 31, 2021 lower house election, at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo on Oct 18 , 2021. (ISSEI KATO / POOL PHOTO VIA AP) New Japanese […]
In this July 20, 2021 photo, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gives a speech following a parade in the northern part of Cyprus' divided capital Nicosia, in the self-declared Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. (Iakovos Hatzistavrou / AFP) ANKARA- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday said he instructed the Turkish foreign minister to declare […]
A woman casts her ballot during Uzbekistan's presidential election at a polling station in Tashkent on Oct 24, 2021. (VYACHESLAV OSELEDKO / AFP) TASHKENT – Uzbeks vote in a presidential election on Sunday with incumbent President Shavkat Mirziyoyev running for a second term in office, the Uzbek Central Election Commission said Saturday. Over 19 million voters have […]
This June 30, 2020, file photo, shows a view of the West Bank Jewish settlement of Ma'ale Efrayim in the Jordan Valley. (ODED BALILTY/AP) Israel is to push ahead with a plan to market land for building 1,500 new homes in the Jordan Valley by 2026. The plan would double the number of Israeli families […]
Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who is also ruling Liberal Democratic Party president, attends a debate session with other leaders of Japan's main political parties ahead of Oct 31, 2021 lower house election, at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo on October 18, 2021. (ISSEI KATO / POOL / AFP) Japanese Prime Minister Fumio […]
In this file photo taken on July 1, 2021, an international passenger reacts after a medical worker gave him a COVID-19 swab test following his arrival for the “Phuket Sandbox” tourism scheme that allows the entry of vaccinated visitors, at Phuket International Airport in Phuket, Thailand. (LILLIAN SUWANRUMPHA / AFP) MUMBAI / YANGON – Thailand’s […]
In this photograph taken on Oct 20, 2021, burqa-clad women wait in front of a bakery to get bread donations in Kabul. (BULENT KILIC / AFP) DUBAI – Afghanistan will shortly collapse into chaos unless the international community acts rapidly, Swedish and Pakistani ministers warned on Saturday. Afghanistan plunged into crisis after the Taliban movement […]
The Marina Bay Sands beyond Merlion Park in the central business district of Singapore. (BLOOMBERG) MELBOURNE – Singapore said only fully-vaccinated people and those who had recently recovered from the coronavirus will be allowed to enter workplaces from January, while those who haven’t taken the shots must test negative daily before they are granted access. […]
Palestinian students inspect a classroom at a school destroyed during the recent 11-day war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement, on their first day of the new academic year in Gaza City, on Aug 16, 2021. (MAHMUD HAMS / AFP) TEL AVIV – Israel on Friday designated six Palestinian civil society groups as terrorist […]
Island of Langkawi (MOHD RASFAN / AFP / GETTY IMAGES) WELLINGTON / MELBOURNE / TOKYO / KUALA LUMPUR / JERUSALEM / TEHRAN / BANGKOK / PHNOM PENH / MANILA / SEOUL / SINGAPORE / NEW DELHI – Malaysia will reopen the tourist haven of Langkawi islands to overseas visitors beginning Nov 15, under a pilot international tourism bubble project that will […]
This handout photo taken on Oct 12, 2021 and released by the presidential Blue House via Yonhap news agency shows Republic of Korean President Moon Jae-in speaking as he takes part in a virtual G20 Extraordinary Summit on Afghanistan, in Seoul. (HO / THE BLUE HOUSE / AFP) SEOUL – The Republic of Korean President […]
In this picture taken on Mar 17, 2021, visitors pose for pictures at Universal Studios Japan in Osaka. (PHILIP FONG / AFP) TOKYO – A total of 35 people were temporarily stranded on the top of a roller coaster at Universal Studios Japan in Osaka on Friday afternoon due to a power outage, but no […]
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announces an ambitious target of fully vaccinating 90% of eligible people to end coronavirus lockdowns, in Wellington on Oct 22, 2021. (ROBERT KITCHIN / POOL PHOTO VIA AP) WELLINGTON – New Zealand's Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, paused briefly as an earthquake rattled the capital Wellington on Friday while she […]