Asia
Sterling falls to new low against the dollar in Asia trade
The pound has hit a new low in Asian trading as concerns about the UK's vote to leave the European Union continue to weigh on investor confidence. It touched $1.2798 against the dollar on Wednesday, which is a 31-year low. US government bond yields also fell to record lows as investors rushed to put money in perceived safe...
Bangladesh attack: Dhaka’s Holey cafe attackers were known to police
Bangladeshi officials have named five of the men who carried out the country's worst terror attack on Friday and said they were known to police. Twenty hostages, most of them foreign, were killed when Islamist militants stormed a cafe in the capital, Dhaka. Two police officers also died and 30 were injured. After a 12-hour...
Bangladesh Avijit Roy murder: Main suspect killed by police
Police in Bangladesh say they have shot dead the main suspect in the killing of secularist blogger Avijit Roy. They say the man, named as Sharif, died in a gun battle with police near the capital Dhaka early on Sunday. Police had been seeking information about Sharif and six other militants suspected in the case. Avijit Roy, an...
Protesters gather for anti-US military rally in Okinawa
Crowds are gathering on the Japanese island of Okinawa to protest against the heavy US military presence there. Demonstrators are angry after a former US Marine employed as a civilian worker was arrested over the rape and murder of a local 20-year-old woman. The case has intensified longstanding opposition to the military...
One chart that shows the world’s biggest arms dealers – and who’s buying
Asia was the main importer of weapons in the last five years The number of major weapons switching hands around the world was up 14 per cent in the last five years, compared to the five years before that. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, an independent resource on global security, has released a...
Obama, Southeast Asia leaders eye China and trade at California summit
President Barack Obama will press leaders from Southeast Asia to boost trade and back common goals for the South China Sea during a summit starting on Monday that the White House hopes will solidify U.S. influence in the region. Obama will also discuss curbing North Korea and plans to fight the Islamic State group during the...