https://www.scmp.com/rss/328487/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Julian Ryall Julian Ryall The day that Taiki Hirokawa stabbed his former girlfriend to death in a Pokemon store in Tokyo had started like any other, his mother told police. She and her son had breakfast together and nothing appeared out of the ordinary. Hours later, security camera footage caught 26-year-old Hirokawa walking straight into the store, pulling out a knife, going behind the counter where Moe Harukawa, 21, was serving customers, and repeatedly slashing her in the neck and chest before turning the knife on... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3348976/japans-knife-crime-wave-lays-bare-tragic-cost-youth-mental-burnout?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3348976/japans-knife-crime-wave-lays-bare-tragic-cost-youth-mental-burnout?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 06 Apr 2026 00:00:10 +0000 Julian Ryall Julian Ryall After playing in a forested area in the Solomon Islands, Billy’s children often break out in rashes or itchy boils at home. A few years ago, the family became dizzy, suffered headaches and vomited – they believed it was due to the clams from nearby mangrove beds that they had eaten. “It was lucky that we stopped the children from eating them,” said Billy, whose family lives a hand-to-mouth existence in the village of Yandina in the Russell Islands. The 50-year-old farmer suspected that... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3348779/solomon-islands-residents-live-fear-wwii-bomb-explosions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3348779/solomon-islands-residents-live-fear-wwii-bomb-explosions?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 03 Apr 2026 00:00:09 +0000 Ushar Daniele Ushar Daniele The risks of environmental calamity in the Strait of Hormuz are mounting with each passing week of the Iran conflict, conservationists have warned, as giant tankers filled with fuel are trapped in a small area and Iran continues to fire missiles and drones at Gulf oil assets. The potential for catastrophe in the waterway was sharpened on Monday when a Kuwaiti crude tanker was set ablaze at Dubai Port in an Iranian attack that damaged its hull, sparking warnings of a possible oil spill. The... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3348680/environmental-risks-grow-iran-war-traps-oil-tankers-strait-hormuz?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3348680/environmental-risks-grow-iran-war-traps-oil-tankers-strait-hormuz?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 Apr 2026 11:00:08 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones A Thai undertaker’s extreme mission to prove he was not hoarding fuel went viral over the weekend after he brought a coffin containing a body to a petrol station to convince attendants the extra fuel he needed was for cremation, not black market resale. Thais have been pressed into energy-saving mode by the US-Israel war on Iran, which has throttled oil and gas supplies to much of Asia. Thailand’s Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul insists there is enough fuel for over three months, while the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3348358/thai-undertaker-brings-corpse-petrol-station-prove-fuel-need?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3348358/thai-undertaker-brings-corpse-petrol-station-prove-fuel-need?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 30 Mar 2026 05:50:34 +0000 Julian Ryall Julian Ryall Recent reports of Japan exploring the feasibility of using the remote Pacific island of Minamitorishima as a final disposal site for high-level radioactive waste have raised concern at home and abroad. An official request to carry out a survey assessing the island’s suitability for the facility was presented to the mayor of Ogasawara village, which nominally administers the island some 1,900km (1,200 miles) southeast of Tokyo, earlier this month. Similar requests have been made of two towns in... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3348336/where-can-japan-store-its-nuclear-waste-island-plan-raises-alarm?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3348336/where-can-japan-store-its-nuclear-waste-island-plan-raises-alarm?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 30 Mar 2026 02:30:18 +0000 Joseph Sipalan,Ushar Daniele Joseph Sipalan,Ushar Daniele For a few weeks after the bombs started falling on Iran, Southeast Asian governments told their people not to worry. Emergency funds would cushion the blow. Subsidies would hold. Prices would stabilise. A month on, with oil well above US$100 a barrel, long queues for fuel forming at petrol stations across the region and Thailand restarting coal plants it had mothballed years ago, the reassurances have worn thin. Against this backdrop, an old question has resurfaced with fresh urgency: why does a... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3348186/iran-war-energy-shock-revives-aseans-power-grid-plans-its-way-go?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3348186/iran-war-energy-shock-revives-aseans-power-grid-plans-its-way-go?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Mar 2026 00:00:13 +0000 Ushar Daniele Ushar Daniele Massive carbon emissions from military activities and war-driven fossil fuel dependence are undermining the global energy transition, climate advocates warn as they point to the ongoing Iran conflict exacerbating this long-standing blind spot. Activists from Climate Action Network Southeast Asia, Oxfam and the Fossil Fuel Treaty convened in Kuala Lumpur earlier this week to discuss strategies to protect the global environment at the Southeast Asia-South Asia Preparatory Meeting for the Santa... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3348144/wars-threaten-global-climate-activists-push-cop31-discuss-defence-spending?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3348144/wars-threaten-global-climate-activists-push-cop31-discuss-defence-spending?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Mar 2026 08:57:30 +0000 Kolette Lim Kolette Lim In recent weeks, Singaporean Cindy has been troubled by an odour lingering in the air during her evening walks to the gym. “It’s the same situation every year, but I would say that the fogginess and burning smell have been getting stronger for the last year or so,” said the 33-year-old resident who lives in the southern estate of Telok Blangah. “I have a baby, so it concerns me a lot, and I know many other families feel the same,” she said. “I always keep our windows closed, which is not very... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3348070/haze-returns-singapore-crisis-quietly-accepted-asean-inevitable?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3348070/haze-returns-singapore-crisis-quietly-accepted-asean-inevitable?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Mar 2026 03:00:13 +0000 Iman Muttaqin Yusof Iman Muttaqin Yusof Across peninsular Malaysia, the heat is getting unbearable and posing health risks for many, and nowhere is this felt more sharply than in Kedah and Perlis, two northern states at the centre of Malaysia’s food-growing belt. Over the start of the Eid period last weekend, the scorching sun dampened the holiday mood during the festival marking the end of the holiest month in the Islamic calendar. Families are timing visits to avoid the fierce afternoon sun, farmers are watching paddy fields – known... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3347822/malaysias-weather-so-hot-it-can-warp-payment-card?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3347822/malaysias-weather-so-hot-it-can-warp-payment-card?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Mar 2026 06:34:50 +0000 Sam Beltran Sam Beltran Two years ago, Vina Arazas found her dog’s lifeless body in a sack. The man responsible for beating her golden retriever Killua to death was made to pay a fine of just 1,000 pesos (US$17) – despite his crime being caught on camera and widely shared on social media. Now, a coalition of animal welfare groups in the Philippines is rallying behind two new bills that would place dedicated animal protection officers in every police station and create a national oversight body for such cruelty... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3347667/viral-dog-killings-pet-loving-philippines-spur-push-new-laws?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3347667/viral-dog-killings-pet-loving-philippines-spur-push-new-laws?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Mar 2026 04:50:43 +0000 Julian Ryall Julian Ryall In earthquake-prone Japan, 20 seconds could make a difference in minimising loss of life among train passengers who experience traumatic shaking during a major seismic event. The operator of the Shinkansen line between Osaka and Fukuoka in southern Japan is upgrading its earthquake early warning system to give trains operating at speeds of up to 300km/h (186mph) an additional 20 seconds to slow down and avert catastrophe in an area that experts warn could be hit by a megaquake at any moment. In... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3347585/japans-railways-get-earthquake-early-warning-upgrade?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3347585/japans-railways-get-earthquake-early-warning-upgrade?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Mar 2026 00:00:10 +0000 Park Chan-kyong Park Chan-kyong South Korea builds fast. It always has. The pali-pali (hurry, hurry) spirit turned a war-ravaged nation into an industrial titan in a single generation. It also has a habit of killing factory workers, safety experts say. Those deadly consequences were on full display in Friday’s fire at Anjun Industrial, a car parts supplier in Daejeon. The warning signs were impossible to miss. Oil vapour so thick it coated the lenses of workers’ glasses with a greasy film. Grease caking the ceilings, the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3347544/south-koreas-pali-pali-spirit-keeps-killing-its-workers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3347544/south-koreas-pali-pali-spirit-keeps-killing-its-workers?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Mar 2026 05:19:37 +0000 Kolette Lim Kolette Lim The clack of mahjong tiles, the soft rattle of exercise bikes and the slow thrum of sewing machines are the soundtrack to Monday afternoons at the Yong-en Active Hub: a senior centre with the vibe of a social club, where new skills and friendships are the antidote to old age. At the Bukit Merah estate in central Singapore, Agnes Chen, 74, strolls through the swinging doors, declines entreaties to join a game of Rummikub – a tile-based hybrid of mahjong and rummy – and fixes herself a... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3347359/super-aged-singapores-secret-growing-old-well-stay-busy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3347359/super-aged-singapores-secret-growing-old-well-stay-busy?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 22 Mar 2026 04:00:16 +0000 Bibek Bhandari Bibek Bhandari Accelerating glacial retreat in the Himalayas over the past decades is threatening over 2 billion people in the region who depend on meltwater from the “water tower of Asia” for their daily needs, according to climate scientists. Glaciers in the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region have been losing ice at twice the rate since 2000, with smaller glaciers under 0.5 sq km shrinking more rapidly than larger ones, according to two landmark reports published on Saturday to coincide with the World Day for... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3347298/himalayas-glacier-loss-threatens-2-billion-people-greatest-problem-climate-change?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3347298/himalayas-glacier-loss-threatens-2-billion-people-greatest-problem-climate-change?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Mar 2026 07:00:10 +0000 Aidan Jones,Kolette Lim Aidan Jones,Kolette Lim Death is the family business for Viroj Suriyasenee, a second-generation Thai funeral director. His bespoke coffins range from plain wooden boxes to ornate creations trimmed in gold with plush red velvet interiors, priced anywhere from US$30 to US$30,000 – each one representing a story of loss, grief and a life concluded. They also speak to the sheer scale of Asia’s ever-growing, multibillion-dollar death economy. All the coffins Viroj makes are destined for the cremation furnace, yet the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3347355/ageing-southeast-asia-fights-fears-death-brave-inevitable?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3347355/ageing-southeast-asia-fights-fears-death-brave-inevitable?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Mar 2026 00:00:09 +0000 Vasudevan Sridharan Vasudevan Sridharan Namita Joshi made a New Year’s resolution in January to tackle one of her long-standing problems: being overweight. A key part of her slimming journey is her weekly weight-loss injections. While the 29-year-old interior designer has made changes to her diet and increased her workouts, she said the medication has helped her lose up to 6kg (13 pounds) in the past two months. With her weight at 85kg before her treatment and height at 1.65 metres (5.4 feet), Joshi was considered obese. “My mental... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3347198/indias-weight-loss-price-war-begins-semaglutide-patent-expires?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3347198/indias-weight-loss-price-war-begins-semaglutide-patent-expires?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Mar 2026 12:19:15 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk Malaysia’s medical tourism sector could receive a boost amid the widening conflict in the Middle East as potential patients look for safer alternatives in Asia, according to a private healthcare company. Dubai, the main medical hub in the region, has been under Iranian missile and drone retaliatory attacks since the US and Israel began air strikes on the Islamic Republic on February 28. This could prompt Middle Easterners who are seeking medical treatment to travel to Southeast Asian countries... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3347041/malaysian-medical-tourism-set-benefit-iran-wars-impact?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3347041/malaysian-medical-tourism-set-benefit-iran-wars-impact?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Mar 2026 10:13:03 +0000 Jean Iau Jean Iau Singapore sits just one degree north of the equator, where the air rarely drops below 25 degrees Celsius (77 degrees Fahrenheit) and humidity clings year round. It is, by most measures, one of the worst places on Earth to cool a data centre. Yet the city state crams more into its small footprint than almost anywhere else. Home to more than 70 facilities and over 1.4 gigawatts of capacity, Singapore has one of the highest densities of data-centre infrastructure per capita on the planet – a... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3346999/southeast-asias-ai-data-centre-gold-rush-tests-power-grids-tropical-heat?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3346999/southeast-asias-ai-data-centre-gold-rush-tests-power-grids-tropical-heat?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Mar 2026 09:00:14 +0000 Sam Beltran Sam Beltran A framework proposed at an Asean ministers’ meeting is set to propel disaster management to the top of the bloc’s agenda, further easing cooperation and decision-making in a region facing nearly US$18 trillion in disaster risk exposure. Analysts say the proposal, if implemented, would strengthen anticipatory action – potentially enabling the bloc to act before a formal request from a member state is even made. At the 35th Asean Socio-Cultural Community Council Meeting in Manila on March 5, bloc... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3346934/asean-bets-new-framework-remedy-uneven-disaster-response?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3346934/asean-bets-new-framework-remedy-uneven-disaster-response?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Mar 2026 02:30:08 +0000 Ushar Daniele Ushar Daniele Lingan bin Man pulls up to the fishing jetty in the early afternoon, guiding his small boat towards a narrow strip of wooden planks as waves crash against the dock. On board are his wife and toddler. Together, the Malaysian family inspects the day’s catch: 2kg (4.4lbs) of clams after three hours at sea. “I can sell this for US$7,” the 52-year-old said. For fishermen in Kampung Sungai Kurau, a village on Pulau Carey, an island in Selangor state, this has become the new normal. Members of the Mah... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3346725/malaysias-us6-billion-megaport-imperils-mah-meri-way-life?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3346725/malaysias-us6-billion-megaport-imperils-mah-meri-way-life?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 Mar 2026 09:00:12 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji When the alert arrives on his phone, Yashwant Deshmukh knows exactly what to do. The Dubai-based political analyst moves away from the windows, waits for the second message confirming the missile has been intercepted, and then goes back to work. “It has become a drill,” he said. For the roughly 9 million Indians living and working across the Gulf, the war on Iran has shattered one of the region’s most durable illusions: that cities like Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha and Manama would remain apart from... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3346524/iran-war-fallout-puts-9-million-indian-workers-line-fire?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3346524/iran-war-fallout-puts-9-million-indian-workers-line-fire?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Mar 2026 08:00:12 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji India’s Supreme Court has allowed the parents of a 31-year-old man to withdraw life-sustaining treatment after more than a decade in a vegetative state, a ruling experts say could shape how the country implements its legal framework for passive euthanasia. The decision in the case of Harish Rana is widely seen as one of the clearest real-world applications of the principle that patients have a right to die with dignity under India’s constitution. Rana, an engineering student, had been in a... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3346540/indian-man-13-year-vegetative-state-allowed-die-supreme-court?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3346540/indian-man-13-year-vegetative-state-allowed-die-supreme-court?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Mar 2026 12:23:40 +0000 Resty Woro Yuniar Resty Woro Yuniar Powerful waves have chewed away large sections of Bali’s iconic Kuta Beach, raising fresh concern about the future of the Indonesian island’s most famous stretch of sand. Officials say the latest damage, driven by recent rough seas, has intensified a long-running problem of coastal erosion that experts warn is being worsened by extreme weather and decades of coastal development on the resort island. Abrasion along Kuta’s shoreline is not new, but officials say this year’s extreme weather has... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3346510/balis-kuta-beach-disappearing-coastal-erosion-crisis-threatens-famed-shoreline?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3346510/balis-kuta-beach-disappearing-coastal-erosion-crisis-threatens-famed-shoreline?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Mar 2026 09:35:38 +0000 Julian Ryall Julian Ryall They were killed by American bombs. They were held at gunpoint by Japanese guards who fired indiscriminately into the crowded holds and when the ship finally went down, many were left to drown. Eight decades later, the United States is coming back for them. Hundreds perished when the Japanese “hell ship” Oryoku Maru was sunk in Subic Bay in December 1944. Now, the Pentagon has launched a multi-year mission in waters off the Philippines to retrieve their remains. As many as 250 Americans are... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3346424/us-returns-wwii-dead-japans-hell-ship-tomb-philippines?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3346424/us-returns-wwii-dead-japans-hell-ship-tomb-philippines?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Mar 2026 02:30:08 +0000 Resty Woro Yuniar Resty Woro Yuniar Indonesia’s appointment of two Chinese companies to run waste-to-energy (WtE) projects in two cities – part of President Prabowo Subianto’s push to reduce mounting rubbish in landfills while generating power – has sparked a debate over costs, efficiency and whether the initiative will deliver on its waste-reduction goals. Danantara, the Indonesian state wealth fund, on Friday announced that it had chosen Wangneng Environment as the operator of a WtE plant in the city of Bekasi, while Zhejiang... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3346252/why-indonesias-waste-energy-goal-may-not-be-quick-fix-landfill-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3346252/why-indonesias-waste-energy-goal-may-not-be-quick-fix-landfill-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Mar 2026 04:00:09 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain How does a missile strike on a Qatari gas plant end up raising the price of rice in Bangladesh? The answer is fertiliser, an unglamorous commodity that nevertheless sustains much of what the world eats. Qatar burns natural gas to produce ammonia. Ammonia is converted into urea. Urea goes into the ground and out of the ground comes grain. Disrupt the first step, as Iran did when it struck QatarEnergy’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) processing facility on March 1, and the consequences travel along... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3346201/war-iran-threatens-asias-food-supply-fertiliser-prices-surge?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3346201/war-iran-threatens-asias-food-supply-fertiliser-prices-surge?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 11 Mar 2026 08:00:14 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk Warissara* survived the crash. It was the next four hours that killed her. The 21-year-old had been riding home from her restaurant job on the night of February 20 last year, caught in heavy rain on a slick Bangkok road, when she came off her motorbike. Emergency responders who arrived at the scene found only a few visible scratches – and detected the smell of alcohol. She had no identification on her. The call was made: send her to the police station, not the hospital. She arrived at... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3346046/mistaken-drunks-left-die-thailands-police-have-deadly-blind-spot?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3346046/mistaken-drunks-left-die-thailands-police-have-deadly-blind-spot?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 Mar 2026 04:23:09 +0000 Iman Muttaqin Yusof Iman Muttaqin Yusof Malaysia has slashed operating licence fees for gyms in Kuala Lumpur by 80 per cent, offering a regulatory “carrot” as the government tries to push residents in one of Southeast Asia’s heaviest nations to exercise more. The move comes as Malaysia grapples with some of the region’s highest obesity rates – a problem health officials say is especially pronounced in sedentary urban centres such as the capital. Under the new rate, effective from January 1, gyms in Kuala Lumpur now pay 10 ringgit... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3345861/malaysias-new-plan-beat-obesity-slash-gym-licence-fees-kuala-lumpur?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3345861/malaysias-new-plan-beat-obesity-slash-gym-licence-fees-kuala-lumpur?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 Mar 2026 02:30:11 +0000 Kolette Lim Kolette Lim Singapore is moving to ban caged lorries used to transport migrant workers in a bid to reduce safety risks in emergencies, but activists say the change does not address the wider dangers of ferrying workers in such vehicles. Senior Minister of State for Transport Sun Xueling said that caged lorry decks posed “additional safety risks” to passengers sitting in the rear. “For example, if a lorry with a caged door that is locked or latched from the outside is involved in an accident or a fire,... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3345815/singapores-ban-caged-lorries-revives-debate-over-migrant-worker-transport?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3345815/singapores-ban-caged-lorries-revives-debate-over-migrant-worker-transport?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 07 Mar 2026 11:00:12 +0000 Resty Woro Yuniar Resty Woro Yuniar Indonesia will begin restricting access to some social media platforms for users under 16 from March 28, marking one of the region’s toughest moves yet to curb children’s exposure to harmful online content. Communications and Digital Affairs Minister Meutya Hafid announced the measure on Friday, saying the government had signed a regulation that would gradually stop children under 16 from holding accounts on platforms deemed “high risk”. Hafid said the rule would apply to platforms such as... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3345763/indonesia-ban-under-16s-high-risk-social-media-platforms?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3345763/indonesia-ban-under-16s-high-risk-social-media-platforms?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Mar 2026 13:00:00 +0000 Julian Ryall Julian Ryall Muslims in a small town in northern Japan have been rattled by several suspected arson attacks, following months of online agitation targeting the community over purported construction violations. Three fires in just over two weeks have damaged Pakistani-owned businesses and the Ebetsu Masjid, a mosque in Ebetsu, central Hokkaido, prompting police investigations and deepening anxiety among the city’s roughly 700 Muslim residents. “We have women and children in the community, and I can tell you... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3345330/muslim-community-japan-shaken-suspected-arson-attacks-everyone-scared?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3345330/muslim-community-japan-shaken-suspected-arson-attacks-everyone-scared?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Mar 2026 04:00:21 +0000 Iman Muttaqin Yusof Iman Muttaqin Yusof A man has been arrested in Johor after an 11-second viral clip showed him clinging to the front of his ex-wife’s moving car before tumbling onto the road in full view of onlookers. Police said the suspect had clung to the car for around 2km (1.2 miles) and that he had tested positive for ketamine. The incident unfolded at about 3.30pm on Saturday outside a supermarket in Bandar Seri Alam, a township in Johor, the southern Malaysian state bordering Singapore, after an argument between the pair... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3345085/viral-clip-malaysian-man-clinging-ex-wifes-moving-car-leads-arrest-johor?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3345085/viral-clip-malaysian-man-clinging-ex-wifes-moving-car-leads-arrest-johor?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Mar 2026 04:19:33 +0000 Julian Ryall Julian Ryall Japan is likely to face another record-setting summer, climate experts have warned, as global warming continues to shrink Arctic ice, alter wind patterns and heat ocean waters. The Japan Meteorological Agency on Tuesday released its seasonal forecast for the coming months, predicting a 60 per cent probability of above-normal temperatures across Kyushu, Shikoku and the southern and eastern parts of Honshu between June and August. The southern islands of Okinawa, the northern prefecture of... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3344770/japan-set-endure-another-record-hot-summer-global-warming-persists?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3344770/japan-set-endure-another-record-hot-summer-global-warming-persists?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Feb 2026 00:00:09 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones The deaths of 72 captive tigers at a private park popular with tourists in northern Thailand have renewed scrutiny of a lucrative industry that campaigners warn treats wild animals as “entertainment”. The outbreak at Tiger Kingdom in Chiang Mai began in early February, with authorities initially attributing the deaths to canine distemper – a virus carried by dogs but often fatal to big cats. A deeper investigation is under way, with some medical experts suspecting contaminated food may have been... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3344470/why-did-72-tigers-die-thailand-tourist-park-under-2-weeks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3344470/why-did-72-tigers-die-thailand-tourist-park-under-2-weeks?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Feb 2026 09:58:22 +0000 Iman Muttaqin Yusof Iman Muttaqin Yusof The vapes used to be obvious. Bright displays of flavoured liquid, a shop just down the road, a transaction as unremarkable as buying shampoo. Batrisyia, 28, remembers how easy it was. Those days are gone. Or rather, in Malaysia at least, the trade has moved under the table. “It’s definitely less open now,” said Batrisyia, a Johor native who asked to be identified by a pseudonym for fear of backlash. “You don’t see big vape displays like before, and we can’t buy online any more. But it hasn’t... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3344146/malaysias-vape-ban-plan-leaves-14-million-users-regulatory-limbo?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3344146/malaysias-vape-ban-plan-leaves-14-million-users-regulatory-limbo?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 22 Feb 2026 00:00:09 +0000 Ushar Daniele Ushar Daniele Malaysia has drawn a hard line against becoming a dumping ground for the world’s toxic scrap, but enforcing that pledge means sifting through millions of shipping containers each year – a daunting challenge shared by ports across Southeast Asia. Last week, Kuala Lumpur imposed an immediate ban on e-waste imports, reclassifying the material under an “absolute prohibition” and declaring the country would not be a “dumping ground” for the world’s waste, in an effort to curb a trade that often blurs... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3343458/malaysia-says-no-e-waste-dumping-can-its-ban-stop-global-trade?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3343458/malaysia-says-no-e-waste-dumping-can-its-ban-stop-global-trade?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Feb 2026 08:00:10 +0000 Aisyah Llewellyn Aisyah Llewellyn Indonesia’s capital is now officially the world’s most populous city, but for many among the 42 million people who call the greater Jakarta metropolitan area their home, the ranking is less a badge of honour than a symbol of endurance. Jakarta overtook Tokyo late last year under new UN criteria that also factor in the city’s wider metropolitan area, moving it to the top of the global rankings by population. For its residents, the title reflects the harsh realities of daily life – perpetually... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3343360/indonesians-weigh-peril-and-promise-life-jakarta-world-most-populous-city?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3343360/indonesians-weigh-peril-and-promise-life-jakarta-world-most-populous-city?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Feb 2026 06:00:10 +0000 Maria Siow Maria Siow New Zealand’s government has come under fire for keeping its talks with the United States over critical minerals under wraps, as opposition parties level accusations of secrecy amid mounting concern about environmental damage and foreign influence. Analysts say Wellington is reluctant to promote any formal agreement with Washington or invite public debate on the issue, even as both governments have confirmed that they are “exploring further opportunities” on critical minerals cooperation. In a... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3343516/new-zealand-catches-flak-secret-us-critical-minerals-talks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3343516/new-zealand-catches-flak-secret-us-critical-minerals-talks?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Feb 2026 03:00:08 +0000 Ushar Daniele Ushar Daniele The persistent tuberculosis cases in Malaysia are indicative of an outbreak that could be under-reported for a disease that is easy to diagnose and treat, according to medical experts. Malaysia had detected 10 active TB clusters nationwide as of February 7, with a total of 2,571 cases. Four of these clusters – defined by health authorities as two or more epidemiologically linked cases identified within a specific setting or time frame – were found in Selangor, Malaysia’s most populous state. The... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3343224/malaysia-risks-under-reporting-tb-cases-slow-burn-epidemic-persists?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3343224/malaysia-risks-under-reporting-tb-cases-slow-burn-epidemic-persists?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 11 Feb 2026 13:39:20 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk Australia has summoned the Laotian ambassador to protest against what a victim’s family described as an “absolute injustice” after 10 people linked to a deadly methanol poisoning case received suspended sentences and fines equivalent to US$130. The case stems from a fatal incident in the riverside town of Vang Vieng, a popular tourist destination in Laos, in November 2024. Melbourne teenagers Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles, both 19, died after drinking methanol-tainted alcohol at Nana... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3343154/australia-demands-answers-laos-over-methanol-poisoning-injustice?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3343154/australia-demands-answers-laos-over-methanol-poisoning-injustice?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 11 Feb 2026 05:20:48 +0000 Resty Woro Yuniar Resty Woro Yuniar The faint outline of a hand in a cave in Indonesia’s Sulawesi has been recognised as the world’s oldest known rock art, shattering a long-held scientific theory that human artistic expression first flourished in Ice Age Europe. Dating back at least 67,800 years, the faded stencil was found hiding beneath a more recent chicken sketch in Metanduno cave on Muna Island. Researchers say the finding, which was published in the scientific journal Nature on January 21, proves that ancient humans in... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3342713/indonesias-68000-year-old-handprint-birth-human-art?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3342713/indonesias-68000-year-old-handprint-birth-human-art?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 08 Feb 2026 05:00:09 +0000 Julian Ryall Julian Ryall Japan’s hay fever sufferers have been warned to brace themselves for significantly higher levels of pollen this spring, with some already reporting having runny noses and itchy eyes for days. Hay fever season typically starts in Tokyo and eastern parts of the country in early February, peaks towards the end of the month and eases from mid-March. It affects the southern and other parts of the country slightly later. According to Weathernews, a weather information company which monitors the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3342548/japan-enters-hay-fever-season-pollen-levels-may-surge-due-horribly-high-summer?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3342548/japan-enters-hay-fever-season-pollen-levels-may-surge-due-horribly-high-summer?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Feb 2026 03:00:09 +0000 Resty Woro Yuniar Resty Woro Yuniar The waste woes of tourism hotspot Bali have come under intense scrutiny after Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto shamed island authorities for what he said were improper steps to tackle the problem. But even as Balinese officials scramble to clean up their beaches, experts point to structural problems endemic to the issue, such as overtourism, lack of enforcement and insufficient education among locals. Prabowo publicly dressed down Bali’s governor, Wayan Koster, and his regents earlier this... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3342523/balis-waste-woes-under-scrutiny-prabowo-slams-indonesian-officials-slow-response?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3342523/balis-waste-woes-under-scrutiny-prabowo-slams-indonesian-officials-slow-response?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Feb 2026 10:01:34 +0000 Julian Ryall Julian Ryall With the number of deaths during the current severe winter season in Japan expected to rise, environmental and tourism experts have warned of greater risks to lives and property arising from unpredictable weather patterns due to climate change. Parts of Japan have experienced “disaster-level” snowfall in recent days, with authorities reporting at least 29 dead and 290 injured in accidents since January 20. Just as Japanese summers are becoming hotter, longer and more humid, global warming is... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3342265/japans-deadly-winter-rages-fears-disaster-level-weather-patterns-mount?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3342265/japans-deadly-winter-rages-fears-disaster-level-weather-patterns-mount?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Feb 2026 03:00:39 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk Singapore’s southern holiday island of Sentosa has halted all water activities after a crocodile sighting on Saturday night. The island’s main coastal recreational stretches – Siloso, Palawan and Tanjong Beach – remain open, but the Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) has banned all water activities, including swimming and kayaking, as wildlife officials continue to search for the reptile that was spotted off Sentosa Cove. The SDC said on social media it has ramped up patrols and was... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3341972/singapores-sentosa-halts-water-fun-after-crocodile-sighting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3341972/singapores-sentosa-halts-water-fun-after-crocodile-sighting?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Feb 2026 02:46:51 +0000 Julian Ryall Julian Ryall The number of children who died by suicide in Japan rose to a record 532 in 2025, the second straight year in which the figure has reached a historic high, even as the country’s overall suicide toll fell to its lowest level in decades. Preliminary statistics released by the health ministry on Thursday showed the figure was up by three from the previous year and is the highest on record since comprehensive data were first made available in 1980. In a statement issued the same day, Hitoshi... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3341721/japan-child-suicides-reach-record-high-experts-warn-mounting-pressures?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3341721/japan-child-suicides-reach-record-high-experts-warn-mounting-pressures?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 30 Jan 2026 00:00:29 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji A small cluster of Nipah virus infections reported in eastern India has sparked regional anxiety because of the disease’s high fatality rate, prompting countries across Asia to tighten health screening ahead of the Lunar New Year travel rush, even as experts say the outbreak is likely to remain contained. That assessment follows confirmation by Indian authorities of two Nipah cases in West Bengal, but analysts have said the limited numbers, combined with the time that has passed since the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3341520/nipah-cases-india-raise-regional-anxiety-experts-say-wider-spread-unlikely?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3341520/nipah-cases-india-raise-regional-anxiety-experts-say-wider-spread-unlikely?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 28 Jan 2026 07:14:01 +0000 Kolette Lim Kolette Lim At Seah Im Food Centre in southern Singapore, Nur’Ain Zainuddin is constantly on the lookout. Other than serving customers, the owner of hawker chain Aspirasi Chicken Rice has to make sure no uninvited visitors enter the stall. “The birds like to pick up leftovers on tables and at the tray returning station, and even enter our stall sometimes. It’s concerning because we don’t know if they carry any viruses,” Nur’Ain said. This concern is not hers alone. Singapore received more than 24,000... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3341305/singapore-aims-be-city-nature-can-residents-and-wildlife-coexist-harmony?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3341305/singapore-aims-be-city-nature-can-residents-and-wildlife-coexist-harmony?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 27 Jan 2026 01:30:12 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk Authorities in Batam have begun sending hazardous electronic waste back to the United States, a tentative breakthrough in a case that has clogged one of Indonesia’s busiest ports with hundreds of suspect containers and tested the country’s ability to police such illegal imports. Four containers of electronic waste classified as hazardous and toxic materials were shipped out last week from Batu Ampar Port under the supervision of Batam Customs, according to Indonesian media reports. The move... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3341289/indonesia-begins-re-exports-toxic-us-e-waste-crackdown-illegal-imports?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3341289/indonesia-begins-re-exports-toxic-us-e-waste-crackdown-illegal-imports?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 26 Jan 2026 12:25:36 +0000 Alan Robles Alan Robles The Philippines is reviving a popular disaster monitoring and simulation programme that was defunded nine years ago by then president Rodrigo Duterte – a move that some have blamed for resulting in a swathe of corrupted construction projects now plaguing the country. Last month, Congress said it would allot 1 billion pesos (US$16.9 million) in the 2026 General Appropriations Bill for the Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards (NOAH) project, a clutch of programmes that identifies risk... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3341026/did-shelved-anti-disaster-scheme-lead-philippines-corrupted-flood-control-projects?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3341026/did-shelved-anti-disaster-scheme-lead-philippines-corrupted-flood-control-projects?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Jan 2026 04:00:09 +0000