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Thai marines have rescued five starving animals – two lions and three bears – abandoned in cages at a bombed-out Cambodian casino complex amid a deepening border fight between the neighbours.Security forces were conducting a sweep of the seized building on Sunday in Trat province when they made the grim discovery, prompting them to send a veterinary team to the site the following day.Officials from the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) evaluated the condition of a pair of lions, two Asiatic black bears and one sun bear, describing them as scrawny due to chronic underfeeding and…
Two top PLA Air Force officers have become the latest military brass to miss a key political event, as the anti-corruption campaign in the Chinese military continues unabated.Footage broadcast by state television CCTV indicated that General Chang Dingqiu and Guo Puxiao, Air Force commander and political commissar, respectively, were not present at a ceremony on Monday to fill top-level vacancies caused by the sweeping crackdown.The event in Beijing was led by President Xi Jinping, who is also chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), the top command body for China’s armed forces.General Chang Dingqiu has for years been the youngest…
A Philippine cabinet minister has claimed that fugitive former lawmaker Zaldy Co intends to build a five-storey basement within a luxury home to store money, as more revelations of the widening flood-control corruption scandal surface.Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla made the claim at a press conference on Tuesday, saying government checks of applications to a private village association and building permits suggested the Forbes Park property in Makati – one of Metro Manila’s most exclusive neighbourhoods – was being built with a basement far deeper than one built for residential parking.“Yes, our initial investigation showed that the house being constructed by…
The government on Wednesday defended the privatisation of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), saying the Rs135 billion bid submitted by the Arif Habib Corporation Limited–led consortium would generate a total economic value of Rs55 billion for the exchequer, amid criticism and competing narratives surrounding the transaction. Addressing the media at PTV Headquarters, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Privatisation Muhammad Ali, and Federal Minister for Information Attaullah Tarar, highlighted the rationale and structure of the privatisation deal. “The goal of privatisation is that the private sector is best suited to run these businesses; it is not the government’s job. The investment…
India has taken a decisive step to open its tightly controlled nuclear power sector to private and foreign capital, signalling a shift in how the country plans to meet soaring electricity demand while cutting emissions.Parliament earlier this month approved the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (Shanti) Bill, one of the most consequential overhauls of India’s civilian nuclear framework in decades, ending years of near-exclusive state control.Under the new law, private Indian and foreign companies will be allowed to build, own and operate nuclear power plants under government licence, while long-standing liability rules that had deterred…
China Jinmao Holdings, the property development arm of state-backed Sinochem Holdings, has sold a tourism subsidiary that owns the five-star Ritz-Carlton hotel on Hainan Island for 2.26 billion yuan (US$322 million), as it pursues asset restructuring amid a prolonged downturn in mainland China’s real estate market.Shanghai Jinmao, the developer’s wholly owned unit, reached an agreement with Sanya Luanmao on Tuesday to sell its 100 per cent stake in Sanya Tourism, which solely owned the Ritz-Carlton Sanya Yalong Bay, China Jinmao said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange on Wednesday.“Since its opening, the Ritz-Carlton Sanya Yalong Bay has…
Following the burglary of a warehouse belonging to Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com on Monday, a judicial source has confirmed an investigation has begun on charges of theft by an organised gang.The incident came in the middle of the Christmas shopping season and took place in the town of Dugny, a northern suburb of Paris that serves as a midpoint between the French capital and its main freight hub, Charles de Gaulle Airport.Suspects neutralised the warehouse’s video surveillance system, with investigators analysing available footage taken by cameras outside the building, the source said on Tuesday under condition of anonymity.The value of…
The children of ex-Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak have been yearning for their father to leave prison and the family to spend the New Year together. But their hopes were dashed this week after a court ruled against Najib’s application to return home under house arrest.In a five-minute video posted online shortly after the decision on Monday, Najib’s eldest son, Mohd Nizar Najib, said the family had gone to court prepared for both outcomes, but had quietly believed the long fight – based on a potential reprieve through a disputed royal addendum – would finally bring relief to the family.“When…
After months of operating in the dark, markets finally received some inflation data last week. The long-delayed November Consumer Price Index offered an official glimpse into day-to-day price pressures after a record-length government shutdown had disrupted the economic calendar. The figures themselves were better than expected. Headline inflation came in at 2.7% year on year, while core inflation registered 2.6%. That was below the near-3% readings economists had been bracing for, and it kept inflation within the psychologically important “two-handle” range that markets have become fixated on heading into 2026. At the same time, the report was far…
ISLAMABAD: The National Board of Revenue Bangladesh, the country’s tax agency, and the Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) of Pakistan have agreed to work together in the areas of tax dispute resolution, taxpayer facilitation and a conducive tax environment for trade and investment. A delegation from the National Board of Revenue (NBR), Bangladesh, called on the Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO), Zafar-ul-Haq Hijazi, at the Federal Tax Ombudsman Secretariat, Islamabad, on Tuesday. The delegation was led by Md. Lutful Azeem and comprised Abul Kalam Kaikobad, Member (Tax Administration & Human Resource Management); Barrister Mutasim Billah Faruque, First Secretary (Tax Policy); Mohammad Abdur…