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India

Heritage for hire in Delhi? The idea stirs a monumental debate

NEW DELHI: It is a balmy winter afternoon. Workers from shops and offices nearby are having lunch, seated in small groups on the lawn of a park in Delhi's Vasant Vihar neighbourhood. Squirrels and crows keep them company, nibbling on grains left behind for them.

Cambodia

Border tensions expose a divide between power politics and rules-based conduct: Opinion

PHNOM PENH: The renewed clashes along the Thailand–Cambodia border have done more than ignite another round of regional instability. They have exposed, with unmistakable clarity, two sharply different national approaches to conflict resolution: one driven by unilateral military force, the other grounded in international law and institutional oversight.

Vietnam

Vietnam's 'Sorrow of War' sells out after viral controversy

HANOI: When "The Sorrow of War" was honoured by Vietnam's government as one of the 50 greatest works of literature and art since reunification, some conservative figures reacted with fury -- suggesting the novel's unvarnished depictions of the war diminished the victors' heroism

Philippines

Philippines' farm-to-market road works get P33bil funding

MANILA: After a two-hour deliberation during the first day of the bicameral conference committee meeting on the disagreeing provisions of the 2026 budget, lawmakers have decided to fund farm-to-market roads a whopping P33 billion.

Brunei

Maiden calls signify Muara port’s growing opportunities, connectivity: Minister

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: Minister at the Prime Minister's Office and Minister of Finance and Economy II Dato Seri Setia Dr Awang Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah reaffirmed that Muara Port Company Sdn Bhd (MPC) will continue to work closely with all stakeholders to support Brunei's economic diversification agenda and to create new opportunities for people.

Sabah & Sarawak

Fire razes 30 houses in Tawau

TAWAU: Thirty semi-detached houses were destroyed in a fire at Lorong Jade 4, Kampung Sri Aman, Jalan Apas here on Saturday (Dec 13).

Nation

Immigration raids lead to detention of 49 illegal immigrants in Johor

JOHOR BARU: A total of 49 illegal immigrants believed to be working without permits were detained by the Immigration Department in 16 raids here.

Japan

Tokyo-bound United plane returns to Washington after engine fails

NEW YORK: A United Airlines Boeing 777 bound for Tokyo had to turn back to Washington's Dulles International Airport on Saturday (Dec 13) after an engine failed during takeoff, igniting a brush fire near the runway, officials said.

Indonesia

Volunteers step up to help HIV-positive children in Indonesia amid stigma and state inaction

SOLO, Central Java: The squat, one-storey school building near the Bengawan Solo (Solo River) appears unremarkable from the outside. Inside, rows of bunk beds line former classrooms, the blackboards and chalk replaced with simple shelves and medicine boxes.

Myanmar

Myanmar hands over three drug fugitives to Thailand

YANGON: Myanmar authorities have handed over three drug-related fugitives wanted by Thailand and one Thai national who was residing illegally in Myanmar to Thai authorities, according to the Myanmar Police Force.

Singapore

‘Batik Uncle’ of Singapore's Holland Village celebrates 100th birthday in style

SINGAPORE: Gifts, cake and celebrity guests made for a 100th birthday to remember for Ang Kum Siong, known to many as the "Batik Uncle" of Holland Road Shopping Centre.

Nation

Woman sells prized Pokémon cards to join next Sumud Flotilla mission

KUALA LUMPUR: Letting go of something you love is never easy, especially when it carries memories and has sentimental value.

Thailand

Thai marines retake area in Trat at dawn, raise flag to reaffirm sovereignty.

BANGKOK: Rear Admiral Parach Rattanachaiyapan, spokesperson for the Royal Thai Navy, said on Sunday (Dec 14) that the navy — through the Chanthaburi and Trat Border Defence Command (CTBDC) and the Trat Marine task force — launched a military operation to reclaim Thai sovereign territory around three houses in Ban Nong Ree, in Trat province, after opposing forces moved into Thai territory.

World

Japan's green tea exports reach highest level in over 70 years

TOKYO: Japan's green tea exports in the first 10 months of this year reached the highest level in over 70 years on the back of the booming overseas market for matcha powder, and the depreciation of the Japanese yen, government and industry data showed Saturday (Dec 13), Kyodo News reported.

Focus

Mine games in the Thailand-Cambodia conflict

Khmer Rouge-era land mines have a big role in the endless Thailand-Cambodia conflict.

Focus

Thailand-Cambodia conflict: A thousand years of heritage shattered by military aggression

Ta Krabei Temple stood for nearly a millennium as one of the quiet sentinels of Khmer civilisation.

Focus

Richest 0.001% now own three times more wealth than poorest half of humanity combined

This concentration is not only persistent, but it is also accelerating, says a new report.

Japan

Bears on the slopes add new risk for skiers

A ski resort here said it had received reports of bear sightings while a snowboarder described how one of the animals chased him on the piste.

Indonesia

Orang utan ‘extinction level’ event

The nation's deadly flooding was an "extinction-level disturbance" for the world's rarest great ape, the tapanuli orang utan that cau­sed catastrophic damage to its habitat and survival prospects, scientists warned.

AseanPlus News

Google to build subsea cables under Australia defence treaty

Alphabet's Google will build three subsea cables in Papua New Guinea, which the largest Pacific Island nation said was funded by Australia under a mutual defence treaty, in a key upgrade to its digital backbone.