(REUTERS) A strong undersea earthquake with a magnitude of 6.4 struck southeast of Tokyo on Friday morning, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said. There was no tsunami warning issued by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii. Japan’s weather agency said there could be slight changes in the sea level but no damage to Japan. The quake’s epicenter was 226 kms (138 miles) southeast of the Japanese capital at a shallow depth of 10 […]
Asia
Strong 6.4 quake hits eastern Japan: USGS
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — A strong earthquake struck off the coast of eastern Japan on Friday, though there were no immediate reports of injuries or damage. The shallow 6.4 magnitude quake hit at 09:14 am (0014 GMT), about 150 kilometres (90 miles) east-southeast of Katsuura city, the US Geological Survey said. There was no threat of a tsunami, added the Japan Meteorological Agency, which measured it at a slightly higher 6.5 magnitude. Japan sits at […]
Taiwan asks Google to blur images of South China Sea island
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AFP) — Taiwan’s defence ministry has asked Google to blur images of a new development believed to be for military use on a disputed South China Sea island. Tensions remain high in the region over conflicting territorial claims, particularly over the strategically important Spratlys chain. Taiwan administers Taiping island, which is the largest in the Spratlys archipelago. The island chain is also claimed in part or whole by the Philippines, Vietnam and China. […]
After middle-finger salute, Philippines’ Duterte asks EU ‘Why insult me?’
Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte demanded on Wednesday (September 21) the European Union show him respect worthy of a president, despite giving the bloc a one-finger gesture and a vulgar four-letter rebuke after its legislators expressed concern about his drug war. Angered by last week’s call from the European parliament for restraint in his deadly 11-week crackdown, the former mayor of the southern city of Davao took aim for a second day at the European Union […]
Vietnam struggles with illegal pangolin trafficking
Vietnamese authorities and wildlife conservationists struggle to contain the illegal trafficking of the pangolin as CITES is set to discuss the species status at its 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties in Johannesburg later this month. The pangolin, a nocturnal mammal covered with scales that resembles a cross between an armadillo and an anteater, is protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Pangolins can […]
Typhoon Malakas slams Japan leaving south waterlogged
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — A powerful typhoon ripped into southern Japan Tuesday, dumping torrential rains on the region that left some communities partially submerged and forced dozens of flights to be cancelled. Typhoon Malakas made landfall in the southernmost main island of Kyushu shortly after midnight (1500 GMT), packing winds of up to 180 kilometres (112 miles) per hour, the Japan Meteorological Agency said. Television footage from public broadcaster NHK showed houses, cars and rice fields […]
Aid convoy attacked as Syria ceasefire collapses
by Karam al-Masri ALEPPO, Syria (AFP) — A convoy delivering aid to Syrians in Aleppo province was hit by an air strike, leaving 12 dead hours after the Syrian military declared an end to a week-long ceasefire, monitors and the UN said. At least 18 trucks were destroyed as the convoy travelled to the hard-to-reach town of Orum al-Kubra in Aleppo province, with the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights saying 12 Red Crescent volunteers and […]
North Korea’s Kim guides new rocket engine test, calls for satellite launch
(Reuters) North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has supervised a ground test of a new rocket engine to launch satellites, the North’s state media reported on Tuesday, the latest in a rapid succession of missile-related tests this year by the isolated state. Kim asked that the scientists and engineers make “preparations for launching the satellite as soon as possible on the basis of the successful test,” the official KCNA news agency said, indicating the […]
Truce teeters after raids on Aleppo, Syria troops
by Rouba El Husseini BEIRUT, Lebanon (AFP) — Syria’s ceasefire was on the brink of collapsing Sunday, after a US-led coalition strike killed dozens of regime soldiers and Aleppo city was hit by its first air raids in nearly a week. The barrage of strikes on rebel-held districts of Aleppo risks reigniting battlefronts in the city and could be the most serious threat to the ceasefire so far. A halt to fighting around Aleppo […]
Japan court backs Tokyo bid to relocate Okinawa base
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — A Japanese court on Friday approved Tokyo’s plan to relocate a US military base on Okinawa in a move unlikely to immediately resolve a long-running spat between central and local authorities. Tokyo wants to move the unpopular US airbase in a crowded residential district on Okinawa to a sparsely populated area in its north, but many locals want the base moved off the island altogether. The dispute has seen Okinawan governor Takeshi […]
Bali tourist boat blast kills two foreigners, injures 18
DENPASAR, Indonesia (AFP) – by Yulius Martoni An explosion on a speedboat in Bali left two foreigners dead and 18 other tourists injured Thursday, sparking dramatic scenes as rescuers rushed to haul stunned and bloodied holidaymakers off the vessel. Dazed passengers, many covered in cuts and bruises, were taken to medical centres on the Indonesian holiday island after the blast, with TV footage showing them being carried on stretchers to ambulances and lying in hospital beds. […]
Strongest typhoon of the year Meranti hits Taiwan
Parts of Taiwan is brought to a standstill as the strongest typhoon of the year skirts past the island’s southern tip, knocking out power for more than 180,000 households. (Courtesy Agence France Presse) https://youtu.be/-gJwi_WexCg Taipei, Taiwan (AFP) — Parts of Taiwan were brought to a standstill Wednesday as the strongest typhoon of the year skirted past the island’s southern tip, knocking out power for more than 180,000 households. Although super typhoon Meranti did not […]