ABC: BEIJING — Beijing imposed sanctions on Friday against 20 U.S. defense-related companies and 10 executives, a week after Washington annoucned large-scale arms sales to Taiwan. The sanctions entail freezing the companies’ assets in China and banning individuals and organizations from dealing with them, according to the Chinese foreign ministry. The companies include Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation, […]
ABC: TOKYO — A man was arrested after stabbing eight people and injuring seven others with what was believed to be bleach at a rubber factory in central Japan on Friday, officials said. Eight people were taken to hospitals after being stabbed by the man with a knife at the Yokohama Rubber Company in the city […]
(Reuters) KYIV, Dec 26 – Russian overnight drone attacks damaged Slovakia-, Palau- and Liberia-flagged vessels in ports in Ukraine’s Odesa and Mykolaiv regions, Ukraine’s deputy prime minister said on Friday. In recent weeks, Russia has escalated attacks on the southern Odesa region, and Ukrainian officials said Moscow aimed to cut Ukraine off from the Black Sea and […]
(Reuters) Dec 26 – Iran has seized a foreign oil tanker near the Iranian island of Qeshm in the Gulf, saying it was carrying 4 million litres of smuggled fuel, state media reported on Friday. Authorities did not name the vessel or disclose its nationality. They said 16 foreign crew members had been detained on […]
(Reuters) DUBAI, Dec 26 – The United Arab Emirates welcomes Saudi Arabian efforts to support security and stability in Yemen and remains committed to backing stability in the country, the UAE’s foreign ministry said on Friday. Yemen’s main southern separatist group, the Southern Transitional Council (STC), which is supported by Abu Dhabi, has pushed the […]
(Reuters) KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 26- Jailed former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak was found guilty of abuse of power on Friday in the biggest trial yet in the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal, a ruling that could have significant political repercussions. The judge had yet to deliver the full verdict and sentencing. Malaysia and U.S. investigators say at […]
BBC: President Donald Trump has said the US launched a “powerful and deadly strike” against the Islamic State (IS) group in north-western Nigeria. The US leader described IS as ” terrorist scum”, accusing the group of “targeting and viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians”. Trump said the US military “executed numerous perfect strikes”, while the US […]
ABC: BANGKOK (AP) — Myanmar will hold the first phase of a general election on Sunday, its first vote in five years and an exercise that critics say will neither restore the country’s fragile democracy undone by a 2021 army takeover, nor end a devastating civil war triggered by the nation’s harsh military rule. The military has framed the […]
ABC: TOKYO — Japan’s Cabinet on Friday approved a record defense budget plan exceeding 9 trillion yen ($58 billion) for the coming year, aiming to fortify its strike-back capability and coastal defense with cruise missiles and unmanned arsenals as tensions rise in the region. The draft budget for fiscal 2026 beginning April is up 9.4% from […]
BBC: For weeks now, angry and distressed residents in Indonesia’s westernmost province have been raising white flags over the state’s slow response to a series of deadly floods. Triggered by a rare cyclone in November, the deluge killed more than 1,000 people and displaced hundreds of thousands across the island of Sumatra. In Aceh, the worst-hit province […]