Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

HANGZHOU, China (Reuters) - Chinese retailer Alibaba Group Holding Ltd said on Monday that sales for its annual Singles’ Day shopping blitz crossed the $30 billion mark at 4:31 p.m. (0831 GMT), putting the event on track to set a record in its 11th year.

The figure is equivalent to over 80% of U.S. rival Amazon.com Inc’s online store sales in the latest quarter and matches takings across Alibaba’s e-commerce platforms on Singles’ Day last year.

VINH, Vietnam, Nov. 10 (Xinhua) -- Cao Huy Thanh's old run-down house is nestled deep into a narrow and winding road covered with big bushes and trees, a typical landscape of rural Vietnam.

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — A Malaysian judge on Monday ordered former Prime Minister Najib Razak to enter a defense at his first corruption trial linked to the multibillion-dollar looting at the 1MDB state investment fund that helped spur his shocking election ouster last year.

A calm Najib said in court he would testify in his defense when the trial resumes.

HONG KONG (AP) — A Hong Kong protester was shot by police Monday in a dramatic scene caught on video as demonstrators blocked train lines and roads during the morning commute.

The shooting is likely to inflame anger further in this semi-autonomous Chinese territory after a student who fell during an earlier protest succumbed to his injuries Friday and police arrested six pro-democracy lawmakers over the weekend.

BEIJING, Nov 10 (APP): The construction of Gwadar New International Airport Project (GNIAP), a key project under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) framework, has officially been launched and at present, the construction work is progressing in an orderly manner.

10 November 2019; AFP: Hong Kong's police watchdog is unequipped to investigate the force's handling of months of pro-democracy protests, a panel of international experts appointed by the city's own government has found.

The embarrassing verdict came as fresh unrest broke out on Sunday with activists and police clashing in multiple neighbourhoods after protesters held flashmob protests and vandalism sprees inside malls.

SEOUL (Reuters) - The United States is “very actively” trying to persuade North Korea to come back to negotiations, South Korea’s national security adviser said on Sunday, as a year-end North Korean deadline for U.S. flexibility approaches.

South Korea was taking North Korea’s deadline “very seriously”, the adviser, Chung Eui-yong, told reporters, at a time when efforts to improve inter-Korean relations have stalled.

JAKARTA (Reuters) - The murder of two Indonesian activists, which police say was ordered by a palm oil businessman, highlights the escalating violence and threats faced by environmentalists who challenge the industry, rights groups say.

Martua Parasian Siregar, 55, and Maraden Sianipar, 42, were found dead 10 days ago with multiple stab wounds near a palm plantation in the island of North Sumatra.

PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Cambodia lifted house arrest restrictions on opposition leader Kem Sokha on Sunday, more than two years after he was charged with treason, but the charges remain and he is banned from politics and from leaving the country.

Pressure has been growing on Hun Sen, Cambodia’s authoritarian ruler of more than three decades, to ease a crackdown on his opponents as the European Union considers whether to cut preferential trade terms.

PHNOM PENH, Nov 10 (NNN-XINHUA) – Cambodia commemorated 66th anniversary of the declaration of Independence from French colonial rule on Saturday.

Nation’s King, Norodom Sihamoni, accompanied by Prime Minister, Samdech Techo Hun Sen, laid a wreath and lit the ceremonial victory fire, inside the capital’s Independence Monument, to symbolise the country’s independence from France.

The victory flame will be kept burning for three days.