South Korea on Tuesday reported its first cases of African swine fever, becoming the latest country hit by the disease that has killed pigs from China to North Korea, pushing up pork prices worldwide. Officials said almost 4,000 pigs would be culled.

Hong Kong’s pro-democracy activists, including Joshua Wong and singer Denise Ho, are appealing to the US to pass the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act. Testifying before the Congressional-Executive Commission on China in Washington, they called for lawmakers to support the ongoing protests in Hong Kong.

Taiwan has terminated 36 years of formal relations with the Solomon Islands after the Pacific island nation’s cabinet voted on Monday to switch diplomatic ties to China. The decision came ahead of Taiwan’s presidential election in January 2020 and China’s 70th anniversary on October 1.

Hong Kong singer and activist Dennis Ho called for international support for Hong Kong at the annual Oslo Freedom Forum in Taipei on Friday. She asked the international society to stand together against what she called China’s intrusion and government tyranny. During a speech at the conference, Ho also said people in Hong Kong want a total political reform of the Hong Kong government.

Bayanan village in the Philippines is trying to tackle the scourge of plastic waste by offering rice to residents in exchange for their trash. Villagers can get 1kg (2.2lbs) of rice for every 2kg (4.4lbs) of plastic waste, which is handed over to the government for proper disposal or recycling.

People in Japan are taking to the streets as anger mounts over “outdated” rape laws that require proof of victim being “incapable of resistance”. The demonstration came after a man was allowed to walk free despite sexually assaulting his daughter, now 19 years old, for years.

Bebo Haider, a 35-year-old transgender woman, is opening the first salon for transgender people in Pakistan. Until recently, she could not go to a salon to get a haircut because of discrimination and prejudices against the LGTBQ community in Pakistan. Many beauty salons in the country refuse to serve transgender women, or even let them enter.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel raised the issue of the Hong Kong crisis with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and called for a peaceful solution during her visit in China. It was the first time she directly mentioned the issue with a top Chinese leader. Li said that Hong Kong is a matter for China. He is the highest-ranking Chinese official to comment on the situation in Hong Kong so far.

One person was killed and at least 30 people injured on Thursday when an express train and a truck collided on a busy rail line connecting Tokyo and Yokohama, according to Japanese authorities. The accident derailed the front carriage of the train and set the truck on fire.

In Tokyo’s Fuwaku rugby club, all players are over 40 years old. The oldest active player, Ryuichu Nagayama, is 86. The Fuwaku club is among about 150 clubs where players are over 40 in Japan.

Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong and fellow pro-democracy politicians visited Taiwan to meet with local political figures. Wong called for demonstrations ahead of China’s National Day on October 1 to put more pressure on Beijing. He also called on Taiwan’s politicians to set up measures to help Hongkongers who want to flee the city amid tightening crackdown.

Taiwan is asking China about the disappearance of a Taiwanese man, Lee Meng-chu. Friends and family say they have been unable to contact Lee for the past 10 days since he entered Hong Kong on August 18. According to a Taiwan township mayor, it is feared that he is being detained in Shenzhen for supporting Hong Kong’s protests.

A Bangkok street sweeper, Thitirat Keowa-ram, has been bringing her dog, Mazda, to work every day for the past year. A picture of her carrying Mazda on her back while sweeping the streets went viral on the internet.

Montreal’s Pride march banned Hong Kong pro-democracy activists after receiving “threats of sabotage” from “pro-Communists”. Instead, scores of flag-waving pro-China protesters followed alongside the parade on August 18. They sang China’s national anthem during a moment of silence for victims of Aids and homophobic violence.

China condemned G7 leaders’ joint statement reaffirming the existence of the 1984 Sino-British and calling for calm amid Hong Kong's months-long protests. China also accused some of the G7 members, including the UK and the US, of having “ulterior motives” and of meddling in Hong Kong affairs, after they expressed “deep concern” about the situation in the city.

After two years, global concern is fading for Rohingya refugees who fled Myanmar. But the World Food Programme has a new mascot to maintain awareness — three-week-old puppy named Foxtrot.

A flight attendant accused Cathay Pacific of firing her over Facebook posts linked to Hong Kong’s ongoing protests. She said she is concerned about a China-driven witch-hunt to root out pro-democracy workers at major firms. Earlier this month, China demanded Cathay ban employees who are linked to the protests from flights into or over mainland airspace.

Fires are devouring large sections of the Amazon rainforest. The smoke grew thick enough at one point to obscure the sky and darken Sao Paulo, Brazil's largest city, in the middle of the day. The state of Amazonas declared a state of emergency in its southern region and capital, Manaus, on August 9. Wildfires raging in the world’s largest rainforest have hit a record number of more than 73,000 this year, according to Brazil’s space research centre.

China has detained a Hong Kong citizen working at Britain’s Hong Kong consulate for violating “public security management regulations”. Cheng disappeared on August 8 while crossing the immigration checkpoint at the West Kowloon terminus back to Hong Kong after a business trip in Shenzhen. He had been detained by the Shenzhen police for more than two weeks.

Twitter and Facebook have taken down what they call China-linked accounts and pages that seek to undermine the ongoing pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. Both social media sites said these accounts are part of a larger coordinated campaign. Twitter said there is evidence that it is backed by the Chinese government.

High-end kakigori, a shaved ice dessert, has saved Japan’s dying ice-making industry. Cheap freezer-made ice dominated kakigori shops for decades, until the ice farmers rebranded the dessert with spring water ice as a luxury treat.

Dozens of pet owners attended a ceremony at a pagoda in Hanoi, where thousands of dogs and cats have been laid to rest in a pet cemetery. Preparing a feast for ancestors is common in Vietnam in August, the ghost month, but these pet owners think animals should be treated equally as humans.

Jackie Chan's recent comments on Hong Kong sparked anger on social media. The Hong Kong-born actor expressed nationalist support for Beijing on Weibo. He is among many Chinese celebrities who have shared the hashtag "Five-starred red flag has 1.4 billion flag guards", state media CCTV's patriotic social media campaign referring to China's 1.4 billion population.

Chinese fighter Zhang Weili is ready for a UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) title. She could be China’s first UFC world champion if she beats title-holder Jessica Andrade of Brazil in their fight at the end of August. Zhang began her journey to a UFC title shot when she was six.

Versace, Givenchy and Coach have become the latest international luxury brands to fall foul of Chinese consumers over the one-China principle. As Beijing cracks down once again on foreign companies that fail to toe the Communist Party line of China’s sovereignty, Chinese brand ambassadors for these labels have also cut ties with them.

Emily, a rescue donkey who lives in an animal shelter in Pune, a city in western India, has become an internet sensation after a video of her “singing” went viral.

Japan is providing Samoa free training to help local judokas (judo practitioners) prepare for Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games qualifications. It is part of Japan’s wider “soft diplomacy” with the Pacific islands. The region controls vast swaths of the Pacific ocean and strategic infrastructure such as airstrips and ports, attracting interest from China and a counter response from the US and its allies.

An Indonesian man, Medi Bastoni, is walking 700km (435 miles) in reverse to save forests. He set out from his home on a volcano in East Java and is walking all the way to Jakarta, on the other end of Java island. He hopes the trip would draw attention to East Java's quickly shrinking forests.

Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je launched a new political party called the Taiwan People’s Party on Tuesday. It could chip away at the two biggest political camps that have traditionally dominated Taiwan’s politics. Many speculate that the former trauma surgeon would join Taiwan’s 2020 presidential election and team up with Foxconn’s founder Terry Gou.

Taiwan celebrated the beginning of ‘Ghost Month’ by burning ‘ghost money’ stuffed in paper houses and releasing lanterns at midnight. Ghost Month falls on the seventh month in the lunar calendar, people believe that the hell’s gate is open now and spirits from the underworld are free to roam the earth.