JAKARTA - Indonesian police have detained 48 students and a teacher from an Islamic boarding school and seized firearms and sharp weapons. Police stormed the Darul Akhfiya school in eastern Java's Nganjuk district on Monday and kept the students and teacher overnight for questioning. "Police also seized long-barrelled rifles, ammunition and sharp weapons, including a cleaver, as well as books on jihad," an official said. AFP
YANGON - A powerful earthquake that struck Myanmar at the weekend has left 38 people dead or missing, the Red Cross said yesterday as a new tremor rattled the capital, Naypyidaw. Previously, the toll had stood at 13 dead, according to aid agencies. The Red Cross said 251 houses were destroyed and 22 hospitals were damaged along with 137 religious buildings, 48 government offices and four schools. AFP
MANILA - Philippine authorities have lifted a ban on six brands of South Korean noodles after tests disproved earlier reports they had unsafe amounts of a cancer-causing chemical. The health department found the noodles made by Nongshim had safe amounts of benzopyrene. The Philippines had ordered the recall on October 31. AFP