South Korea

Seoul pet festival combines adoption drive, activities and support for grieving owners

SEOUL; Rescue dogs will walk a red carpet in search of new families, while pet owners can join conversations about saying goodbye to their animal companions at a Seoul festival on Saturday.

Myanmar

Myanmar rebuffs UN report, citing deportation of 73,000 foreign cyber-scam suspects and ongoing cooperation

YANGON: Myanmar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) has rejected a UN Secretary-General report on the country's human rights situation, dismissing it as biased, one-sided and reliant on anti-government narratives.

Singapore

Singapore aims to tighten haze law amid hurdles in gathering evidence, securing cooperation: Minister

SINGAPORE: Singapore is looking into strengthening its transboundary haze law, with the aim of addressing enforcement gaps and improving the country's ability to hold to account those responsible for the fires.

Thailand

Thailand opens reserved viewing for October 28 Royal Barge rehearsal

BANGKOK: The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has arranged reserved seating for the public to watch the second full-dress rehearsal of the Royal Barge Procession in Bangkok on Wednesday (October 28).

Laos

Buddhist Lent ends with colourful river traditions in Laos

VIENTIANE; Residents and visitors are celebrating the end of Buddhist Lent with religious ceremonies and traditional festivities along the Mekong River, culminating in the capital's annual Boat Racing Festival on October 27.

Entertainment

Aamir Khan opens up about flops, family time and '3 Idiots' sequel

The Bollywood star was given the Singapore International Film Festival's Screen Icon Award recently.

Vietnam

Kidney transplant succeeds after 1,800km journey across Vietnam

HUE; A kidney preserved for about 18 hours on a journey across Vietnam began working almost as soon as it was transplanted, the hospital that performed the operation said on Monday.

Indonesia

Tanker used ship-to-ship transfer to smuggle ketamine, says Indonesian police chief

MEDAN; Indonesian authorities have intercepted the Mongolian-flagged tanker MT Global 168, which sailed from Malaysia carrying 1.16 tonnes of ketamine worth about Rp 3.48 trillion (US$192 million) in the Malacca Strait.

Thailand

Nok Air suspends three southern Thailand routes amid rising fuel costs

BANGKOK; Budget carrier Nok Air has temporarily suspended its domestic services from Don Mueang International Airport to Trang, Nakhon Si Thammarat and Hat Yai, effective October 27 through December 20, 2026, amid soaring jet fuel costs.

Nepal

Nepal to expand flood warning systems at six river basins

KATHMANDU: Nepal's Hydrology and Water Resources Research Centre has published its 2026-27 White Paper, outlining plans to strengthen flood early-warning systems, improve scientific research and promote sustainable management of Nepal's water resources.

AseanPlus News

New Zealand ex-PM Ardern to teach leadership in Sydney

SYDNEY: Former New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern will teach students about "empathetic leadership" after being hired for a new job at the University of Sydney.

AseanPlus News

Australia warns of 'unprecedented' AI threat

SYDNEY: Artificial intelligence poses an "unprecedented" threat as foreign governments turn it loose to hack computer networks and critical infrastructure, Australia's cyber security agency warned on Tuesday (Oct 26).

China

Displaced residents move into prefabricated homes three days after Xizang earthquake

BAQEN; Three days after the 7.0-magnitude earthquake damaged his home, Tsewang Khangshi was busy moving folding beds and quilts into his temporary new home

Brunei

Brunei equips Quran instructors with sign language skills

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: The Ministry of Religious Affairs (MoRA), through the MABIMS Al-Quran Learning and Dissemination Centre, will organise a Level 1 Sign Language Quran Teaching Competency Course for instructors from October 27 to 29, 2026. It will be held at Room 5, Multipurpose Room, An-Naura Hall, Yayasan Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Complex in the capital and will be conducted from 8am to 12.30pm and from 1.45pm to 4.30pm.

South Korea

South Korea repatriates drug trafficking suspect after 22 years on the run

SEOUL; A man in his 80s, suspected of transporting more than five tonnes of narcotics aboard a fishing vessel in waters off South America in the early 2000s, has been repatriated to South Korea after spending 22 years on the run, police said on Monday.

Nation

Felda settler killed in suspected amok incident

KOTA TINGGI: A Felda settler was killed in an axe attack by a man who is believed to have run amok at Felda Lok Heng Selatan here on Monday (Oct 26) evening.

Nation

No repeat of past governance breaches identified in govt-linked entities, says Anwar

KUALA LUMPUR: No governance violations similar to those uncovered in past scandals have been identified in government-linked entities so far, says Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Japan

Japan says officials met detained reporter in Russia

TOKYO: Japanese officials have met a journalist detained in Russia for the first time since his arrest on spying accusations earlier this month, Tokyo has said.

Markets

Asian stocks surge as Anthropic IPO lifts sentiment ahead of earnings, central banks

SINGAPORE: Asian stocks surged on Tuesday as AI bellwether Anthropic's eagerly anticipated IPO filing lifted risk appetite ahead of tech earnings that will be a test for the AI trade, and central bank meetings that will influence near-term interest rates.

Cambodia

Road accidents kill 1,160 people in Cambodia in first nine months of 2026

PHNOM PENH: Road traffic accidents killed approximately 1,160 people in Cambodia during the January-September period of 2026, Deputy National Police Chief Lieutenant General Chev Hak said on Monday (Oct 26).