Southeast Asia

Supporters of Myanmar military coup rampage in Yangon

Supporters of Myanmar’s military, some armed with knives and clubs, others firing catapults and throwing stones, attacked opponents of the February 1 coup, while Southeast Asian neighbours looked for ways to end the crisis.
Myanmar: The revolution will be Facebook-lived

With established media under ever greater pressure, the story of Myanmar’s anti-coup protests is being shaped for its people and the world by journalists and citizens streaming and sharing snippets of video and pictures.
Indonesia hunts for missing after mine collapse kills six

Rescuers hunted for at least one person still missing on Thursday after an illegal gold mine collapse in Indonesia killed six people.
Indonesian foreign minister to visit Myanmar as pressure mounts on generals

Indonesia’s foreign minister plans to fly to Myanmar on Thursday in the first known visit by a foreign envoy since the February 1 military coup, a leaked government document said, as Western pressure mounts over a crackdown on protesters.
Bangladesh can export edible oil to India, says High Commissioner Doraiswami

Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Vikram Kumar Doraiswami has said Bangladesh can export edible oil to India with 20 percent value addition to the product.
Info minister Hasan urges press to be careful in publishing news on Bangladesh-India relations

Awami League Joint General Secretary and Information Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud today urged journalists to be careful when publishing news on Bangladesh-India relations so that the news does not affect the relations through inaccurate information.
Malaysia deports 1,086 Myanmar nationals, despite court-ordered stay

Malaysia’s immigration department said on Tuesday (Feb 23) it had carried out a repatriation programme involving 1,086 Myanmar nationals, despite an earlier court order staying the deportation.
Malaysia court allows temporary stay of deportation of 1,200 Myanmar nationals

A Malaysian court has allowed a temporary stay of deportation of 1,200 Myanmar detainees who were scheduled to be sent back on Tuesday, according to a lawyer for rights groups that petitioned to stop the deportation.
Police say militants kill 4 women activists in NW Pakistan

A group of suspected militants ambushed a vehicle carrying women activists from a non-governmental organization in a former northwestern tribal region bordering Afghanistan on Monday, killing four of them and wounding the driver, police said.
India-Maldives sign $50 million defence deal

India and the Maldives today signed a $50 million defence Line of Credit (LoC) agreement to boost maritime capabilities of the strategically-located Indian Ocean island nation.
Two killed in Myanmar's Mandalay city in bloodiest day of protests

Two people were killed in Myanmar’s second city Mandalay when police fired to disperse protesting opponents of a February 1 military coup, emergency workers said, the bloodiest day in more than two weeks of demonstrations.
Indonesian capital slammed by monsoon floods, more than 1,000 forced to evacuate

Severe flooding across several areas in the Indonesian capital forced more than a thousand people to flee their homes on Saturday, with the country’s meteorology agency warning the conditions were set to continue for the next week.
Malaysian court finds news portal in contempt over readers' comments

Malaysia’s highest court today found news portal Malaysiakini in contempt of court over comments posted by readers deemed offensive to the judiciary, in a case widely seen as a test of media freedom in the Southeast Asian nation.
Fighting Covid-19: Modi places 5-point plan for collaboration among South Asian nations

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi today put forward a five-point plan for enhancing collaboration among South Asian countries to combat the Covid-19 pandemic. This includes launching of a special visa scheme for free movement of doctors and nurses.
Sea cruise with Maldives can be introduced in winter: PM

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today said sea cruise services can be introduced between Bangladesh and the Maldives during the winter season.
Malaysian labour market for Bangladeshis to reopen after Covid-19 situation turns normal: Expatriates’ welfare minister

The labour market for Bangladeshi workers in Malaysia will resume only after the Covid-19 situation turns normal in the Southeast Asian country, Expatriates’ Welfare Minister Imran Ahmad said today.
Bangladesh-Malaysia joint working group meeting postponed for now; will resume tomorrow

The Joint Working Group meeting between Bangladesh and Malaysia was postponed for today and will resume tomorrow.
Malaysia to deport 1,200 Myanmar migrants amid concerns

Malaysia’s government will repatriate 1,200 Myanmar migrants next week despite a military coup in their home country, but has assured that they will not include minority Muslim Rohingya refugees or those registered with the UN refugee agency.
Armoured vehicles deployed to major Myanmar cities after mass protests

Security forces in Myanmar opened fire to disperse protesters at a power plant and armoured vehicles rolled into major cities as the new army rulers faced a ninth day of anti-coup demonstrations that saw hundreds of thousands on the streets.
Tesla to set up electric car manufacturing unit in southern India

Billionaire Elon Musk’s Tesla Inc will set up an electric-car manufacturing unit in the southern Indian state of Karnataka, according to a government document seen by Reuters.
Hundreds of thousands protest in Myanmar as army faces crippling mass strike

Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets in Myanmar for a ninth day of anti-coup protests, as the new army rulers grappled to contain a strike by government workers that could cripple their ability to run the country.
Vietnam Embassy celebrates Lunar New Year 2021

The Embassy of Vietnam in Dhaka organised a gala programme to celebrate the Lunar New Year 2021.
India, pharmacy of the world, falls behind on vaccinations at home

India has won plaudits for gifting and selling Covid-19 vaccines around the world, but it will have to crank up the pace of immunisations at home to meet its targets.
Sanctions on Myanmar: US asks for redirecting $42.4m assistance to the nation

A day after imposing sanctions on Myanmar generals, the US has declared to immediately redirect $42.4 million assistance away from work that would have benefited the Myanmar government.
Three wounded in Myanmar as hundreds of thousands of protesters defy junta

Supporters of ousted Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi clashed with police on Friday as hundreds of thousands joined nationwide pro-democracy demonstrations in defiance of the junta’s call to halt mass gatherings.
Myanmar ruler calls for end to protests, sanctions loom

Myanmar’s new junta leader has called on civil servants to return to work and urged people to stop mass gatherings to avoid spreading coronavirus, as a sixth day of protests against him and his coup spanned the Southeast Asian country.
India, China start disengagement of troops in Ladakh

India and China have begun disengagement of troops on the two banks of strategically-located Pangong Lake along the de-facto border in eastern Ladakh which has seen a tense military standoff between the two sides for nearly nine months.
Bangladesh providing smooth air traffic control to airlines crossing Myanmar’s airspace: CAAB

Traffic control on all air routes operating in Myanmar’s airspace has been suspended following closure of the country’s air traffic control service.
Saffron-robed monks join third day of street protests against Myanmar coup

Thousands of anti-coup protesters marched in towns and cities across Myanmar on Monday, witnesses said, demonstrating for a third straight day against the military's removal and detention of elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi a week ago.
After a decade of change in Myanmar, fear of the past drives anti-coup protests

As communications blackout following the detention of Aung San Suu Kyi, all recalled the darkest days of a succession of military juntas that ruled Myanmar during half a century of ruinous isolation - driving many people to mass protests in fear that such times could return.