Key route cleared for trekkers stranded on quake-hit Indonesian volcano
One of three key routes leading to the summit of Mount Rinjani on Indonesia’s Lombok Island has been cleared following an earthquake that stranded hundreds of trekkers on the volcano’s slopes, the national park authority said on Monday.
South Korea to probe whether North Korean waitresses forced or tricked into defecting
A South Korean human rights commission said on Monday it will investigate whether a dozen North Korean restaurant workers who defected to the South two years ago came of their own free will or were tricked or coerced by an intelligence agent.
Japan picks Lockheed radar for Aegis Ashore batteries
Japan said on Monday it had picked Lockheed Martin Corp to build a new powerful radar for two multi-billion dollar ground-based Aegis ballistic missile defense (BMD) stations meant to guard against North Korean missile strikes.
Cambodia dismisses poll criticism, opposition laments ‘death of democracy’
Cambodia woke to another chapter of rule by strongman Prime Minister Hun Sen on Monday, a day after his Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) declared victory in a general election that rights groups said was neither free nor fair.
Vietnam minibus crash kills groom and 12 wedding guests
Thirteen people were killed and four injured when a minibus carrying guests on the way to a wedding in central Vietnam collided head-on with a large container truck on Monday, the government said in a statement.
Result of Cambodia vote must be ‘fully rejected’: opposition
The result of Cambodia’s general election, in which long-serving Prime Minister Hun Sen’s ruling party Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) declared victory, must be fully rejected by the international community, the opposition said on Monday.
Several hundred stranded on Lombok volcano after earthquake
Efforts were underway on Monday to rescue several hundred trekkers stranded on Mount Rinjani on Indonesia’s Lombok Island, a day after a powerful 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck the popular tourist destination, a disaster agency official said.
Australian coroner finds death of Iranian asylum seeker preventable
An Australian coroner found on Monday that the death of an Iranian asylum seeker held on a remote Pacific island was preventable and called on the Australian government to put the health of detainees first.
Cambodia wakes to another era of Hun Sen rule after ‘flawed’ election
Cambodia woke on Monday to another chapter of rule by strongman Prime Minister Hun Sen, a day after a general election in which his Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) declared victory but one which rights groups said was neither free nor fair.
China’s Chang and Canada’s Xuan win top prizes at Ballet Olympiade in Varna
Chinese dancer Sinuo Chang and Canadian ballerina Yuan Zhe Zi Xuan, also known as Jessica Xuan, won the top prizes at the Varna International Ballet Competition, the oldest ballet competition in world, on Sunday.




