ASIA

Nepal elephant festival scrutinised for beauty and bruises

8:03 pm January 3, 2020

Sauraha (Nepal): Hundreds cheered as the three beauty contest finalists strolled out into the middle of the grounds and raised their painted trunks to the judges — symbols of all that is admired and denounced at Nepal’s annual elephant festival. With her toe nails painted red and a lotus on her trunk, 35-year-old Buffkali took […]

4 killed in Lanka military plane crash

4:23 pm January 3, 2020

Colombo: At least four people were killed when a Sri Lanka Air Force plane crashed in the central hilly area of Haputhale on Friday. The Chinese built Y-12 aircraft was flying to the east coast when it crashed in a mountainous area, killing all four people on board, officials said. The plane had departed on […]

South Asia counts losses from devastating monsoon floods

Indonesia flood rescuers hunt for missing after 43 killed

2:59 pm January 3, 2020

Jakarta: Indonesian rescuers mounted a desperate search Friday for those missing after flash floods and landslides sparked by torrential rains killed at least 43 people across the Jakarta region, leaving whole districts under water and thousands homeless. Around a dozen people were still unaccounted for after record rains that started on New Year’s Eve pounded […]

Pak-born man’s visit to Goa stalled by Home ministry

6:28 pm January 2, 2020

Panaji: The visit of a Karachi-born Australian national, who has roots in Goa, has been stalled, pending security clearance from the Union Home Ministry, the State Commission for NRI Affairs said on Thursday. Pakistan-born Marco Monteiro (21) is one of the eight students who are slated to attend the 12th ‘Know Goa Program’ organised by […]

Hong Kong police say ‘around 400’ arrested in New Year’s Day unrest

11:30 pm January 1, 2020

Hong Kong: Hong Kong police said they had arrested “around 400” people on Wednesday after a massive New Year’s Day pro-democracy rally saw clashes between police and hardcore protesters. The arrests were made for offences including “unlawful assembly and possession of offensive weapons”, senior superintendent Jim Ng said at a press conference, adding that police […]