Britains Observer newspaper said UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer was expected to resign on Monday and set out a timetable for his departure, though a government source said the leader remained focused on getting on with the job of governing. The threat to Starmers position, which has been building for months, increased sharply on Friday when his rival Andy ...

In late April, Chinas top intelligence agency claimed that foreign forces were weaponising the concept of lying flat to dispel young peoples belief in striving and undermine social values. Once a niche subculture, lying flat has evolved into a mainstream phenomenon over the past five years. Lying flat became a buzzword on Chinese social media around 2021 ...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Saturday that Ukrainian drones had struck an oil refinery in Russias Tyumen Region in western Siberia, more than 2,000km (1,200 miles) from Ukraine. He also said Ukraine had developed new long-range drones capable of operating over more than 3,000 km. Speaking in his nightly video address, Zelensky offered ...

Claude Guillemot, who co-founded French video-game publisher Ubisoft with his brothers in 1986, has died, the company said on Saturday. Ubisoft was deeply saddened to learn of the death of Claude Guillemot, co-founder of the group and chairman of Guillemot Corp, in an accident, the statement said. Our thoughts are with his family and loved ones during this ...

Russia has freed 24 Filipinos who have been detained for months without charges in a Siberian city, after Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr raised concerns about them in a meeting with President Vladimir Putin, Philippine officials said on Saturday. The 24 were scheduled to arrive in Manila on two flights early on Sunday, with the first batch to be ...

Hong Kong police have arrested a man in connection with three burglaries in Ma On Shan involving losses of more than HK$700,000. Police said on Saturday that they received three burglary reports between April 26 and June 3, concerning two flats at the Sausalito private residential estate on Yuk Tai Street and a house in nearby Tai Shui Hang Village. All ...

One of Icelands two remaining whaling ships set out this week to hunt the giant mammals after a two-year hiatus, local media and campaigners reported on Saturday. Iceland is one of only three countries that still openly permit whaling, alongside Norway and Japan despite international opprobrium from the public and animal welfare organisations. A protester ...

Iran dealt two quick blows to the interim agreement with the United States on Saturday, angered by Israels continued attacks in Lebanon, saying it had closed the Strait of Hormuz and announcing that while its negotiators were going to Switzerland for talks, not much is likely to happen there. Key mediator Pakistan, meanwhile, said the technical-level talks ...

Hong Kongs rail giant has launched an investigation after a woman was injured when a ceiling panel fell and hit her leg at Telford Plaza in Kowloon Bay. The MTR Corporation, which also manages the shopping centre, said on Saturday that a section of the ceiling near an entrance to Phase One had become loose and fallen shortly before midnight on June 18. ...

As the US voluntarily dismantles its global hegemony, China has neither the will nor the capacity to fill the role, a prominent Chinese foreign policy expert has argued. Beijing was forging an alternative path rooted in sovereign equality and multilateralism, rather than a quest for global dominance, said Da Wei, director of Tsinghua Universitys Centre for ...

A motorcyclist was killed in Hong Kong following a collision with a KMB doubledecker bus on Saturday afternoon. Police said the crash occurred at about 4pm on New Clear Water Bay Road outside the Shun Lee Disciplined Services Quarters in Sau Mau Ping. The rider suffered multiple injuries and was left unconscious. He was rushed by ambulance to United ...

A Spanish court has ordered the wife of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, Begona Gomez, to stand trial by jury for corruption and banned her from leaving the country, according to a court order released on Saturday. The case is one of several corruption affairs that have embroiled the Socialist leaders family and former allies, threatening to topple his ...

Shipping services in Guinea are being upended as the West African country ramps up iron ore exports for Chinas green steel production lines to take advantage of much higher prices. Vessels that usually ship bauxite from Guinea have been diverted to iron ore to maximise exports before heavy seasonal rains grind production to a halt, according to ...

Hong Kong police have arrested a man in connection with an attempted robbery at Kai Tak Cruise Terminal, where the victim was allegedly attacked with a rock early on Saturday. Police said that a 36yearold man reported that he had been assaulted while parking his car at the terminal at about 4.10am. The assailant allegedly hit him with a rock in an attempt ...

Beijing will make maritime surveys in the waters east of Taiwan a routine matter as it seeks to assert its sovereignty following talks between Japan and the Philippines, state media reported on Friday. An article published by Yuyuan Tantian, a social media account affiliated with state broadcaster CCTV, said mainland China was diversifying its claims to the ...

At least 30 people have died since the start of May in one camp for displaced civilians in northeastern Congo, a death rate that camp officials said was unprecedented, with some confirmed to have died from Ebola in a sign the disease could be spreading fast there. It was not possible to confirm the causes of all the deaths because patients or their ...

One person died after two freight trains collided on a bridge in Munich overnight, causing loaded cars to plunge to the road below, police said on Saturday. Two cars of one train fell about 5 metres (16 ft) from a bridge and came to rest at round 1.40am, according to a spokeswoman. It was unclear what caused the collision on the bridge, which caused one of ...

Taiwans first International Booker Prize-winning novel has reignited debate over the islands shifting identity, with its portrayal of a distinctly Taiwanese historical experience at odds with narratives long promoted by Beijing. The attention surrounding Taiwan Travelogue comes at a sensitive time in cross-strait relations, as rival interpretations of ...

Hong Kong police have arrested seven people over robbery of six gold bars worth HK$7 million (US$893,102), with some suspects believed to have fled to mainland China. The force said on Saturday that four men and three women were arrested on Thursday after a 36-year-old man reported the robbery at about 12.30am the same day at a car park at the airport. ...

Led by Japan, East Asia seems to be setting off along a road to nowhere beyond tension and maybe eventual conflict. This may seem a harsh indictment yet consecutive Japanese leaders have shown a lack of vision on the constructive role their country could play in achieving regional peace and economic integration. The latest manifestation of this is Japanese ...

Bolivias crisis intensified on Saturday as President Rodrigo Paz declared a state of emergency, enabling wider military deployment to clear blockades and restore order after protests brought the economy to a halt over the past 50 days. The emergency declaration gives Paz broader constitutional tools to restore order, such as sending armed forces to clear ...

Hong Kong could position itself as a magnet for international organisations and lead on setting standards, according to analysts who have weighed in how the city can contribute to Beijings global governance reform after the publication of a new white paper expanding on that initiative. The white paper published by Chinas State Council on Wednesday, titled ...

A 77-year-old man in southeastern China has spent nearly six decades turning homesickness, hardship and family duty into letters sent across the sea. Jiang Mingdian, from Quanzhou in Fujian province, is regarded as one of Chinas last active professional letter writers, though no public figures show how many still practise the trade. Over 59 years, he has ...

Hong Kong will review the age threshold of elderly residents in need to better identify priority cases and prevent more tragedies from happening, the welfare chief has vowed following the latest suicide by an elderly resident. Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han made the pledge on Saturday after a 70-year-old man was found hanging in his flat ...

More areas within the Northern Metropolis development could benefit from new measures to ease cross-border flows of data, materials and capital, with pilot initiatives set to launch this year in Hong Kongs innovation zone with Shenzhen. The details were revealed on Saturday in a paper submitted to the Legislative Council by the Development Bureau, which ...