Asia
Afghanistan: rescuing refugees
Airbnb is offering free housing to 20,000 Afghan refugees globally and is seeking more assistance from hosts who rent their property through the accommodation-sharing company. Samaritan's Purse, the Christian humanitarian group led by…
Afghanistan: anti-Taliban resistance group
The National Resistance Front of Afghanistan (NRF) has thousands of fighters in its Panjshir valley stronghold but wants to pursue negotiations with the Taliban before fighting. Amrullah Saleh, who was vice-president before being…
Iran: prisons chief apologises
The head of Iran's prison service has apologised after hackers leaked videos showing the abuse of detainees at Tehran's notorious Evin prison. The security footage showed guards beating prisoners and dragging one along…
Taiwan: homegrown vaccine criticised
Taiwan is administering its domestically developed Covid-19 vaccine, amid criticism that its approval was rushed. The Medigen vaccine had not completed phase three trials when it was granted emergency approval by regulators. Medigen…
Afghanistan: lamenting loss of freedoms
Previously midwife Nooria regularly discussed treatments for locals with male doctors at the clinic she works in. But now male and female meetings are prohibited by orders of the Taliban. When she goes…
Japan: can the Paralympics bring lasting change?
The Paralympic Games open in Tokyo on 24 August, with over 4,000 disabled athletes from around the world. Ahead of the event, the International Paralympic Committee is launching a campaign called 'Wethe15'. Wethe15…
Iran’s Kabul embassy 'operational' despite Taliban
Two days after the Taliban captured Kabul, Iran's foreign ministry said its embassy continues its normal operations. Its consulate in Herat, close to the Iranian border, also remains fully operational. Iran's embassy is…
Lebanese pastor spiritually warned
Pastor Said Deeb, in Beirut, had a strange feeling on the day of the explosion. ‘ I felt something bad was going to happen,’ Deeb explained, ‘as if the Holy Spirit was saying,…
Iran / Israel: rockets and threats
19 rockets fired by Hezbollah into northern Israel on 7 August sent local residents into the towns’ shelters. These barrages, the first since the 2006 second Lebanon War, followed similar attacks the previous…
Myanmar coup leader declares himself prime minister
General Min Aung Hlaing, who led Myanmar’s coup, declared himself prime minister and said military rule and a state of emergency will continue until 2023; then the country will hold elections. This contradicts…
