ASTANA (Kazakhstan): Azerbaijan began a national day of mourning yesterday after a passenger jet from the flag carrier crashed in western Kazakhstan on Christmas Day, killing 38 of the 67 people onboard. The Embraer 190 aircraft was supposed to fly northwest from the Azerbaijani capital Baku to the city of
BANDA ACEH (Indonesia): Tearful mourners prayed yesterday as ceremonies began across Asia to remember the 220,000 people who died two decades ago when a tsunami hit coastlines around the Indian Ocean, in one of the world’s worst natural disasters. On December 26, 2004, a 9.1-magnitude earthquake off Indonesia’s western tip
ISTANBUL: A powerful blast ripped through an explosives plant in northwestern Turkey on Tuesday killing 12 people and injuring five others, officials said. Footage showed shards of glass and metal scattered outside the plant, where ambulances stood by. “According to initial reports, 12 employees died and four were taken to
SEOUL: South Korea’s opposition said Tuesday it would hold back a decision to impeach acting president Han Duck-soo until later in the week. The opposition Democratic Party earlier said it would introduce an impeachment motion against Han on Tuesday to protest against the interim leader’s refusal to sign into law
LONDON: Chocolate firm Cadbury said on Monday it was “disappointed” after losing its royal warrant for the first time in 170 years following King Charles III’s first review of the coveted list since becoming monarch. Campaign group B4Ukraine earlier this year urged the king to remove companies “still operating in
SEOUL: South Korea has become a “super-aged society”, with 20 per cent of its population aged 65 or older, official data showed on Tuesday, a gloomy trend driven by an alarmingly low birth rate. Asia’s fourth-largest economy recorded just 0.7 births per woman late last year — one of the
NEW YORK: Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid was ejected during the 76ers’ 111-106 victory over the San Antonio Spurs in a chaotic NBA clash on Monday. Tyrese Maxey stepped up with 32 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists, leading the 76ers to a late-game surge and the win despite Embiid’s absence. The
TOKYO: Japanese auto giant Honda and its struggling rival Nissan agreed Monday to launch talks on a merger seen as a bid to catch up with Chinese rivals and Tesla on electric vehicles. Their collaboration would create the world’s third largest automaker, expanding development of EVs and self-driving tech. But
Kabul: Every day before dawn, Jamil Ghafori gets to work on the floor of a cramped Kabul bakery with five other men churning out thousands of traditional flatbreads — the staple of every Afghan meal. The common bread Ghafori has made for 27 years is fluffy with a satisfying crunchy
TOKYO: A Japanese hot spring town popular for its photogenic snowy scenes began limiting entry to day-trippers on Monday in a trial to tackle overtourism during winter. Ginzan Onsen, a remote town in northern Yamagata region, draws around 330,000 visitors each year. Many share photos online of its old-fashioned buildings