Pictured: Lucky escape for lorry driver as truck teeters on the brink
Mr. Wu, a motorist driving behind the truck, said: ‘This highway has a restriction where the maximum width of any vehicles should not exceed 6.8 metres. ‘It’s…
South Korea to test older drivers with virtual reality after spate of accidents
South Korea is set to introduce a virtual reality aptitude test for older drivers to counter a steady increase in deadly road accidents caused by pensioners behind…
The last places on Earth still closed to tourists (even the vaccinated)
Bhutan Bhutan’s borders have remained closed to all foreign nationals, including British citizens, for the duration of the pandemic. And it has announced no plans to reopen…
South Korea to test older drivers with virtual reality after spate of real-life accidents
South Korea is set to introduce a virtual reality aptitude test for older drivers to counter a steady increase in deadly road accidents caused by pensioners behind…
Thailand allows visitors to ‘The Beach’ after three-year closure to recover from mass tourism
“These things show that nature will heal if we give it time, and we have to work to keep it that way too.” To ensure it remains…
Beijing gives villages in India Chinese names as it seeks to expand in contested borderlands
Beijing has given Chinese names to 15 villages within the Indian territory in the disputed border region of Arunachal Pradesh to assert sovereignty over them, the Ministry…
China’s footballers banned from getting tattoos to ‘set good example for society’
Young footballers with tattoos could be ‘prohibited’ from playing on national teams Tighter rules for athletes apply beyond the professional leagues. Last year, a women’s university football…
Former Afghan president Ashraf Ghani says he fled because security were ‘not capable’ of protecting him
Former Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has offered to take a lie detector test to disprove allegations he took money out of the country as it fell to…
Xi Jinping introduces Mao-era ‘criticism and self-criticism’ for top Communist party members
Mr Xi is reviving chapters from Mao’s playbook as he is expected to begin an unprecedented third term in office next year and eventually rule indefinitely. The…
Chinese armed police parade ‘Covid restriction violators’ through streets as zero-Covid strategy falters
Jingxi is near the Chinese border with Vietnam. The public shaming was part of disciplinary measures announced by the local government in August to punish those breaking…
Military coup fallout turns Myanmar into world’s largest synthetic drugs hotspot
The Covid-19 epidemic has caused record levels of unemployment in India’s northeast and many residents have been tempted by the quick cash drug smuggling offers. One “soap…
Jesus statues vandalised and Santa models burnt in Hindu nationalist attacks on Christians in India
Contacted by telephone, the federal and state governments declined to comment. On Saturday, Christmas celebrations were also disrupted in Silchar, eastern Assam, after men, claiming to be…
I dodged hospital quarantine as Thailand tightened its borders – but it was worth the anxiety
A heavy helping of trepidation lingered as I made my way to Gatwick Airport last Thursday. I was soon to board a direct flight to Bangkok, my…
Chinese scientists create ‘world first’ AI prosecutor that will decide people’s fate
China has already been trying to incorporate technologies such as AI and big data to transform the way its legal system works. In 2017, authorities launched the…
Chinese province offers loans for babies as population slides
A Chinese province is offering married couples up to 200,000 yuan (£23,400) through bank loans if they have children, as part of efforts to tackle population decline….
South Korean President Moon Jae-in pardons predecessor Park Geun-hye ahead of tight election
South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in granted a pardon to former President Park Geun-hye, who is in prison after being convicted of corruption, the justice ministry said on…
Indian conjoined twins abandoned by their parents land their first job – with two salaries
They were born in 2003 in New Delhi, and have two hearts, two pairs of arms, kidneys, and spinal cords, but a single liver, gallbladder, spleen, and…
China’s most widely used covid vaccine ‘ineffective’ against omicron
The research translates into bad news for the country: more than 80 per cent of its population has been vaccinated with either the Sinovac jab or another…
‘We feel exploited’: India’s overused and underpaid female activists bringing Covid care to the poor
The dangers the Ashas face quickly becomes clear when accompanying them on their daily rounds. An aggressive inhabitant of Kanjur Village confronts the group and accuses them…
How Bitcoin miners are exploiting cheap electricity in Siberian ‘cryptocurrency allotments’
The Bitcoin gold rush here was given an extra boost after China banned digital coin companies earlier this year, partly on environmental grounds. But now Russia, too, is considering restrictions. The…
Japan executes three death row prisoners in first hangings since 2019
Japan hanged three prisoners on Tuesday, its first executions in two years, with the government saying it was necessary to maintain capital punishment in the face of…
On board the first low-cost flight from Britain to Bangkok
The seeming clarity of Scoot’s pricing is appealing. Indeed, passengers can log into Scoot’s mobile app to see exactly how the costs break down: £82 for air…
China: My friend won a scholarship to study in Britain, then vanished
So the celebrations at the end of August doubled as a farewell party. “I was surrounded by love and joy, though I also knew I was being…
Genetic ‘X-factor’ may explain Japan’s success in combatting Covid
Japanese scientists believe they have found a genetic “X-factor” that could partly explain the East Asian nation’s relative success in combatting the pandemic. The nation with the…
The truth about the world’s most misunderstood country
In answer to the question, “Why go to Kazakhstan?” it’s probably not to make ‘learnings’ on democratic transparency. Nursultan Nazarbaev led the country for almost 35 years,…