Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 6 (NNN-BERNAMA) — Two separate High Courts here today set Jan 16 to hear the bail applications of Gadek assemblyman G. Saminathan and DAP member V. Suresh Kumar who are facing charges for supporting the defunct Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) terrorist group.  

Judge Datuk Ahmad Shahrir Mohd Salleh and Judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah set the date after counsel Ramkarpal Singh representing the two accused told the courts that his clients have filed their applications on Dec 26 last year.

6 January 2020; AFP: Beijing's new top envoy to Hong Kong said he hoped the protest ravaged city would "return to the right path" as he took up his post on Monday.

Luo Huining replaced Wang Zhimin as head of Beijing's Liaison Office in Hong Kong -- the most significant personnel change by China since violent pro-democracy protests erupted in the city nearly seven months ago.

BEIJING (Reuters) - China criticized the United States for aggravating tension in the Middle East through its use of force in the standoff between Washington and Tehran and urged all parties to exercise restraint to ensure peace and stability.

A U.S. drone strike that killed Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani has further escalated the conflict between the two countries already at odds over Tehran’s nuclear activities.

TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s justice minister vowed Monday to strengthen border departure checks and review bail conditions after Nissan’s former chairman, Carlos Ghosn, fled the country.

Masako Mori told reporters at a news conference the ministry has already acted to prevent a recurrence but declined to give details.

She was asked about reports that Ghosn had hidden in a box and that baggage checks at a regional airport might have been insufficient.

Beijing, Jan 5 (APP): A China-Pakistan free trade agreement (FTA) and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) can play an important part in leading Pakistan’s economy to prosperity.

The tariff arrangement documented in the second phase of the China-Pakistan FTA, which was signed by leaders of the two countries in April, came into force on the first day of 2020, Global Times, a daily Chinese tabloid newspaper commenting on international issues, reported.

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan on Sunday said it would tighten immigration measures after former Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn fled the country while on bail, its first official response to an astonishing escape that has transformed the executive into an international fugitive.

Authorities have remained quiet after Ghosn revealed on Tuesday that he had fled to his childhood home of Lebanon to escape a “rigged” justice system in Japan. All government offices and most businesses in Japan have been shut for the new year holidays.

PHNOM PENH, Jan 5 (NNN-AKP) – Death toll in the collapse of a six-story building in southwest Cambodia’s Kep province on Friday, has risen to 22, a provincial spokesman said today (Sunday).

“By 8:10 a.m. (local time) today, 22 people were confirmed dead, and 23 others injured,” Kep Information Department director, Ros Udong, said.

He said, all the victims were Cambodian construction workers and their family members. “The rescue operation is still going on, and is expected to be completed at noon today,” he added.

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Landslides and floods triggered by torrential downpours have left at least 60 people dead in and around Indonesia’s capital, as rescuers struggled to search for people apparently buried under tons of mud, officials said Saturday.

Monsoon rains and rising rivers submerged a dozen districts in the greater Jakarta area and caused landslides that buried at least a dozen people.

BEIJING, Jan 4 (APP): The second phase of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a flagship project of Belt and Road Initiative has started with the establishment of special economic zones in various parts of the country, Pakistan Ambassador to China, Naghmana Alamgir Hashmi said on Saturday.

“The second phase of CPEC has now started, which is actually the establishment of special economic zones in various parts of the country,”she said in an interview with China Economic Net.

4 January 2020; AFP: Tens of thousands of Indonesians were still unable to return to their waterlogged homes Saturday after flooding hit the Jakarta capital region, killing at least 53 people, authorities said.

More than 170,000 people took refuge in shelters across the massive urban conglomeration -- home to some 30 million -- after whole neighbourhoods were submerged.