China on Monday said it hoped to expand newly restored ties with the Pacific state of Kiribati, site of a strategic but mothballed Chinese space tracking station, in comments that may further stoke the United States’ anxiety about Beijing’s growing influence.A senior Chinese diplomat said Beijing was “open” to all sorts of projects in Kiribati, an ex-British colony made up mainly of atolls in the central Pacific, in waters dominated by the US and its allies since World War II.Speaking to…
‘A monster’: Indonesian PhD student, Britain’s worst rapist, jailed for life for sexually assaulting at least 48 men
A student from Indonesia was identified as Britain’s most prolific rapist on Monday after being convicted of more than 150 offences, including 136 rapes.In four separate trials, Reynhard Sinaga, 36, was found guilty of assaulting 48 men whom he drugged after taking them back to his apartment from outside bars and clubs in the city of Manchester.Many of the victims were lured by the offer of a place to sleep or more drink, and Sinaga filmed the assaults on his mobile phone, the Crown Prosecution…
The world’s oldest person, Japan’s Kane Tanaka, celebrates 117th birthday
Japan’s Kane Tanaka has extended her record as the world’s oldest person by celebrating her 117th birthday at a nursing home in Fukuoka in southern Japan.Tanaka marked her birthday with a party on Sunday along with staff and friends at the nursing home, television footage from local broadcaster TVQ Kyushu Broadcasting Co showed.Tanaka, whose birthday was on January 2, took a bite from a slice of her big birthday cake. “Tasty,” she said with a smile. “I want some more.”Tanaka was last year…
Jakarta floods: Indonesia sprays disinfectant to prevent disease, as death toll hits 60
Soldiers and health workers sprayed Indonesia’s capital with disinfectant on Sunday to fend off possible diseases spread by massive flooding that has killed 60 people and affected hundreds of thousands.Monsoon rains and rising rivers submerged a dozen districts in the greater Jakarta area starting on Wednesday after extreme torrential rains hit on New Year’s Eve, causing landslides in hilly areas on the outskirts of the capital that buried scores of people.It’s the worst flooding in the area…
Search for survivors as Cambodia building collapse toll rises to 7
Hundreds of soldiers and rescuers frantically picked through the rubble of a collapsed building in southern Cambodia on Saturday looking for bodies as the death toll from the disaster rose to seven.They used excavators, drills and power saws to clear concrete the morning after the seven-storey hotel under construction in seaside Kep province crumbled to the ground with an estimated 30 workers inside, prompting an all-night rescue.By Saturday morning, 18 people had been rescued, injured but…
Jakarta floods: fears grow of more rain as death toll hits 53
Indonesian rescue teams flew helicopters stuffed with food to remote flood-hit communities on Saturday as the death toll from the disaster jumped to 53 and fears grew about the possibility of more torrential rain.Tens of thousands in Jakarta were still unable to return to their waterlogged homes after some of the deadliest flooding in years hit the enormous capital region, home to about 30 million.In neighbouring Lebak, where half a dozen people died, police and military personnel dropped boxes…
Carlos Ghosn’s escape jet from Japan used illegally, Turkish company says
A Turkish airline whose jets were used to fly Carlos Ghosn from Japan to Lebanon said an employee falsified records and that Ghosn’s name did not appear on any documentation related to the flights.Ghosn, who is facing financial misconduct charges, jumped bail on December 30 to avoid what he called a “rigged” Japanese justice system, in a dramatic escape that has confounded and embarrassed authorities. He flew in to Beirut on a private jet.How he was able to flee Japan, avoiding the round-the…
Malaysia’s Pyongyang embassy reopening to cap relations ‘recovery’, says foreign minister
After a year of foreign policy mishaps, Malaysia on Friday sought to ring in 2020 with a new report card outlining its policy goals for the year ahead, including the reopening of its embassy in Pyongyang.Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah told reporters this would cap “the recovery of our bilateral relations with North Korea” nearly three years after Kim Jong-nam, half-brother of the current North Korean leader, was killed in Kuala Lumpur.Malaysia wants to be “friendly with all countries”, the…
Elections in Taiwan and Singapore, Kim’s nuclear ambitions, US-China trade war fallout: 20 things to watch in 2020
1. TAIWAN GOES TO THE POLLSPresident Tsai Ing-wen is widely expected to come out on top in the election, which is likely to impact cross-strait relations for years to come. Her opposition of closer ties to the mainland has helped her campaign, as has her support for Hong Kong’s protests – both of which will antagonise Beijing further in 2020 should she remain in power.2. KIM’S NUCLEAR AMBITIONSMore than a year on from Kim Jong-un’s much-lauded summit with US President Donald Trump, the two…
Malaysian Education Minister Maszlee Malik resigns, raising spectre of cabinet shake-up
Malaysia’s education minister resigned on Thursday in a surprise move that analysts said may indicate the start of a shake-up in Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad’s cabinet, even as the government grapples with increasing pressure to deliver on its election promises.Maszlee Malik, a member of Mahathir’s nationalist Malaysian United Indigenous Party (Bersatu), said at a press conference that he had been advised by the prime minister to step down, and did so with “a willing yet heavy heart”. He had…