World

The Philippine military is now 3D-printing drones in preparation for future warfare and strengthening foreign partnerships, with Manila recently being recognised by Indo-Pacific defence ministers as a “frontliner” in keeping the region “free and open”. Armed Forces Chief-of-Staff General Romeo Brawner Jnr told the Foreign Correspondents Association on Friday that the 3D initiative had been in place since last year, …

A Chinese national has also been deported for flying a UAV near an airport, police have said Three Germans have been arrested in Norway for allegedly launching a drone in a prohibited zone around an airport, Bild has reported.  The outlet cited local media as saying the three men were detained on Tuesday and released shortly afterwards. It did not …

A former mayor of Lliber (Alicante), Jose Mas, has been convicted of fraud over licences granted to build 290 illegal villas. The Spanish properties were marketed to UK and European buyers at between €300,000 (£262,000) and €500,000 (£436,000). Construction took place in the Marina Alta region town between 1999 and 2003 on land which was classified as “non-developable”. Prospective buyers …

Greenpeace has called for the Hong Kong government to put in place conservation-driven measures to protect the Sai Kung outlying islands from ecological damage caused by overtourism. The green group raised the alarm on Friday after it found a large number of visitors trampling corals and excessively digging up coastal organisms in the city’s Unesco Global Geopark region. A site …

The local authorities have reported rising casualties and extensive damage after the storm tore through the country this week Over 50 people have been killed by Typhoon Bualoi in Vietnam, with 14 missing and 164 injured, the authorities have reported. The storm caused severe destruction across central provinces this week, damaging more than 230,000 houses and submerging farmland. Government figures …

A climbing influencer has tragically died whilst live-streaming as he scaled an iconic rock face, with his devastated mother opening up on the “horrible nightmare”. Balin Miller, 23, fell to his death on Wednesday as he was scaling El Capitan in Yosemite National Park. El Capitan is one of the most striking features of Yosemite National Park, an enormous sheer …

Venture capitalists poured US$192.7 billion into artificial intelligence start-ups so far this year, setting new global records and putting 2025 on track to be the first year in which more than half of total VC dollars went into the industry, according to data provider PitchBook. Most of the capital went to established start-ups – Anthropic and xAI both raised billions …

One of the most bone-chilling unsolved mysteries in history involves a farmer and his family being brutally murdered within their own barn, with eerie evidence suggesting that the killer may have been lurking in the loft of their home for weeks or even months prior to the attack. The Hinterkaifeck Murders are etched in history as one of the most …

At least five aircraft were spotted off the coast, Caracas claims Venezuela has accused the US of “illegally” flying F-35 fighter planes near its borders, amid rising tensions in the Caribbean. Foreign Minister Yvan Gil Pinto said the “illegal incursion” was detected on Thursday around 75 kilometers off the coast near the city of Maiquetia. He denounced the maneuvers as …

We have selected seven stories from this week’s news across Hong Kong, mainland China, the wider Asia region and beyond that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. China deploys prototype of missile defence system with planet-wide coverage China has deployed a working …