Headlines- The twin earthquakes that hit Venezuela last month claimed the lives of over 5,000 people, according to officials, who also stated that the country would need $346 million from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for reconstruction.
- According to the US Central Command, strikes against Iran were carried out for the seventh consecutive night.
- Iranian foeces targeted a Thai-flagged vessel that attempted to transit the Strait of Hormuz, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency.
- The US attacked an Iranian oil tanker docked at Karg Island, deputy governor of Bushehr, Iran said.
- After what it described as an Iranian strike involving ballistic missiles and drones, Kuwait's military claimed on Friday that several of its ground forces injured and that both military and civilian facilities damaged.
- Iran said it attacked an American military base in eastern Syria on Friday.
Category: News & Views
Since Coup, Nearly 450 Civilians Killed...
Civilians are being killed at an alarming rate in Myanmar’s civil war, dying in airstrikes, artillery shelling and while being held in detention, data released from an armed ethnic group fighting the junta showed.
Former PM Najib Loses Last Legal...
Former Malaysian leader Najib Razak on Friday lost his final judicial chance to get out of prison when the country’s highest court rejected his request to review its 2022 decision to incarcerate him for corruption, although his lawyer claimed Najib’s legal hopes were still alive.
Once-Bustling Town of Thantlang Reduced to...
Western Myanmar’s once bustling town of Thantlang, with a sign above its gateway proclaiming that its inhabitants are “Not rich, but happy,” now lies in ruin after an onslaught of military raids, arson attacks, and airstrikes
UN Calls for Release of Ailing...
The United Nations has called on Hong Kong authorities to release veteran rights activist and lawyer Albert Ho, who was returned to custody to await trial for “subversion” under a national security law after his bail was revoked earlier this month.
Asia Fact Check Lab: Did Putin...
Around the time of Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s visit to Moscow earlier this week, a Twitter account with more than 50,000 followers posted a photo purportedly showing Russian President Vladimir Putin kneeling before Xi and grasping his hands in apparent supplication.
Analysts: Rising Intolerance,Religious Conservatism in Malaysia...
An International Women’s Day march, a film about a Muslim character exploring other religions’ views on the afterlife, and an interfaith program have all recently become targets of religious conservatives’ outrage in Muslim-majority Malaysia.
Myanmar Junta Pledges 15 Villages for...
Myanmar’s junta is planning 15 new villages with 750 plots of farmable land in Rakhine state as part of a pilot program that would see 1,500 ethnic Rohingyas repatriated from refugee camps in neighboring Bangladesh next month.
Activists Fear ‘Political Vacuum’ After Thai...
Thailand’s election in May could result in no party winning a clear mandate, likely forcing the longtime opposition Pheu Thai party and a military-backed one to form an alliance, Thai activists and academics told BenarNews this week.
As Ramadan Begins, China’s Muslims Face...
As Muslims around the world prepare to begin the holy month of Ramadan, China’s Muslims are facing fasting bans and their cultural and religious traditions are increasingly under attack
Nyepi and Ramadan Observances Align This...
Two major religious observances coincided in Indonesia on Wednesday as Nyepi, a Balinese Hindu festival, shut down most activity on Bali island for 24 hours, and Muslims prepared to begin the Ramadan month of fasting and prayer.