Japan man stabs at least 10, sets fire on Tokyo train in shock attack on Halloween

A 24-year-old man dressed in Batman’s Joker costume attacked passengers on a Tokyo train line on Sunday night, injuring about 10 people as many party-goers headed into the city centre for Halloween gatherings, media reported.Police arrested the suspected attacker on the spot, media reported.A man in his 60s was unconscious and in critical condition after being stabbed, while witnesses also said the attacker had spread fluid around the train and started a fire, according to media.One video…

As the Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA) turns 50, what lies ahead for the defence pact?

Come Monday, the world’s second-oldest military pact will turn 50.The Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA) was formed in 1971 after the British withdrawal east of the Suez Canal, with the primary aim of protecting former colonies Malaysia and Singapore in a region that was fraught with conflict.The two Southeast Asian countries are grouped with Britain, Australia and New Zealand, and members are obliged to consult one another in the event of an armed attack.Much has changed since then…

An Indonesian woman tried to report an attempted rape. She was turned away for being unvaccinated

It was late in the afternoon on October 17 when Sarinah (not her real name) heard a knock on the back door of the home she shares with her mother and younger sister in a village in Indonesia’s ultraconservative Aceh province.Home alone and still new to the neighbourhood, the 19-year-old wondered who would be visiting. When she opened the door, a strange man grabbed her, covered her mouth so she could not scream and tried to rip off her clothes.What happened next was a bit of a blur as Sarinah…

COP26: is carbon pricing the climate change silver bullet world leaders would like you to believe?

If there were a climate policy equivalent of an oven-ready casserole for world leaders to take to this week’s climate talks in Glasgow, it has to be their carbon-pricing strategies.While a handful of experts continue to caution against an over-reliance on market mechanisms to slow climate change, that has not stopped governments from hailing carbon pricing as the single most important way of reducing emissions.Whether through a carbon tax, where a fixed price is paid per tonne of greenhouse gas…

Malaysia unveils US$80 billion biggest ever budget in feel-good boost to post-Covid recovery

Malaysia on Friday unveiled its biggest ever budget with Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz indicating the government was well aware that businesses and residents required continued state aid with the battle against Covid-19 “still raging”.Analysts said the large spread of beneficiaries across social groups under the spending plan showed the government was seeking to boost a rising nationwide “feel good” factor as the economy – roiled for months – picks up following a phased reopening…

Indonesia frees US woman jailed in Bali for assisting in ‘suitcase murder’ of her mother

An American woman convicted of helping to kill her mother on Indonesia’s tourist island of Bali in 2014 walked free from prison on Friday after serving seven years of a 10-year sentence and will be deported to the United States.The badly beaten body of a wealthy Chicago socialite, Sheila von Wiese-Mack, 62, was found inside the boot of a taxi parked at the upscale St Regis Bali Resort in August 2014.Heather Mack, who was almost 19 and a few weeks pregnant at the time, and her then-21-year-old…

Son of Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan granted bail, as supporters allege religious persecution

The son of Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan was on Thursday granted bail, three weeks after being arrested during a cruise ship drugs bust in a case that has gripped India.Aryan Khan, 23, the eldest son of the actor dubbed the “King of Bollywood”, was detained in early October alongside 19 others after the Narcotics Control Bureau raided a ship set to sail from Mumbai to Goa.He was given bail on Thursday along with two others by the High Court of Bombay on their fourth attempt.Son of…