Asia

Cryptocurrency giant Binance said on Thursday that it has frozen digital assets worth more than $2.5bn (£1.87bn) to prevent them from being stolen while it investigates a security issue. The company said as part of a series of alerts online that all deposits and withdrawals are temporarily suspended while its …

China’s sophisticated censorship system, which cuts 1.4 billion people off from the global internet, meant many didn’t know exactly what had happened. The accusation of “hurting the feelings of the Chinese people” alone seemed enough to trigger a tsunami of anger, amplified by social media algorithms and a heavily controlled …

Sixteen of the 33 members expelled are from the military, according to a communique issued on Thursday, which marked the end of the four-day closed-door gathering held at a hotel in Beijing. It’s unclear what specific charges these members face beyond “serious disciplinary and legal violations”. Such broad allegations have …

A court in the Philippines is expected to issue a warrant later this week authorising police to examine materials taken from the home of Thomas Markle, the father of the Duchess of Sussex. The materials are alleged to include images that show child sex abuse. Markle has strongly denied possessing …

The chief executive of Hong Kong, John Lee, has apologised for a massive fire that ripped through an apartment complex last year and killed 168 people. Speaking at a press conference, Lee promised major reforms to government departments to ensure such an incident would not happen again. A report by …

Former Neighbours actors and crew have raised concerns about plans to use AI to re-edit old footage and make mini episodes for mobile phone viewers. Fremantle, producer of the now-defunct Australian TV soap opera, has partnered with US-based RoseBerry Media for the project that will use AI to “scan decades …

A luxury cruise ship on a years-long voyage around the world said it suspended operations due to extraordinarily high fuel costs, leaving passengers stranded in Cambodia. The US-based operator of Villa Vie Odyssey said it was working with passengers on disembarkation plans and “temporary living arrangements”. It is unclear how …

Australian sunscreen manufacturers will be subject to stricter rules in the wake of a safety scandal that saw popular brands pulled off shelves. The reforms, announced by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) on Tuesday, include stronger testing and quality requirements for specific ingredients. This comes after a bombshell report last …

Experts say Kapur’s remarks offer a rare glimpse into what they describe as China’s increasingly assertive military posture along the disputed frontier. “This pattern of Chinese probing at various points of the Arunachal Pradesh border has been happening for some time,” Shyam Saran, a former Indian foreign secretary who led …

Families in China are for the first time supporting more elderly people than children, the country’s government has said. Official data released in the last week, external show the ratio of China’s dependent elderly people compared to the working age population rose to 23% last year, overtaking the figure for …

This aggressive discounting helped Jio rapidly amass some 553 million mobile subscribers by 2026. It also cemented its dominance in other segments, capturing 50% of the wireless broadband market and more than 40% of fixed broadband. Jio also carries 60% of India’s wireless data traffic and boasts of the largest …

The current government is led by Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, whose centre-right National party came to power following the came to power in 2023. It governs in coalition with the ACT and New Zealand First parties. His party emphasised economic management, restoring a budget surplus, and expanding KiwiSaver, New Zealand’s …

Sri Lanka’s foreign ministry says it has coordinated efforts to treat and repatriate 40 Iranian sailors suffering from unspecified medical emergencies in international waters off the island’s southeastern coast. Ministry spokesperson Thushara Rodrigo told BBC Sinhala they received a distress call on Saturday from Iranian ships arriving at Sri Lanka’s …

John Travolta’s old Boeing 707 luxury jet is being reassembled at the Historical Aircraft Restoration Society Aviation Museum in Albion Park, New South Wales. Travolta, a Hollywood star and avid pilot, first bought the plane in 1998. So why is it here in a small coastal Australian town? The BBC’s …

It is thought that Bukangi might have been drawn to the canal by unusually warm waters and plenty of fish. With the sea getting warmer each year, experts say Busan may play host to more sharks in the future. In recent weeks, more than 1.6 million visitors have descended upon …

Taking a seat at a Starbucks in China? Just make sure you’re also ordering something there. A new policy by Starbucks China takes effect across all its 8,000 stores on Thursday, making it mandatory for people to purchase items if they want to sit in its cafes. Starbucks China said …

The technology industry has already been reshaped by layoffs, cost-cutting and the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence (AI), making career moves tougher. But there are other routes to a US green card. People with exceptional accomplishments or whose work advances national interests may be eligible for categories that bypass the …

The BBC’s Liza Tambunan is in central Kalimantan, as Indonesia is facing its worst wildfire season in a decade. A toxic haze has been choking millions of residents in the region, and has spread to neighbouring countries such as Singapore and Malaysia. So why has it been so bad? Tambunan …

The CJP is not a registered political party, but a collective which began by mobilising thousands of young people to protest over leaked exam papers. By July it had emerged as a major force. A march towards parliament that month ended in clashes with police, drawing wider attention to the …

India’s second richest man Mukesh Ambani’s digital and telecommunications venture is tapping public investors for the first time in what’s expected to be the country’s largest share sale. Jio Platforms, a unit of conglomerate Reliance Industries Ltd, aims to raise 302bn rupees ($3.2bn; £2.8bn) in the initial public offering (IPO) …