Category: Uncategorized

AdvertisementHong Kong national security lawHong KongLaw and CrimeHong Kong authorities seek forfeiture order for properties tied to Jimmy Lai’s crimesConfiscating properties will ensure they are not used to further threaten national security, government spokesman says
1-MIN READ1-MIN1 ListenOscar LiuPublished: 9:21pm, 2 Apr 2026The government has filed an application to confiscate properties linked to crimes committed by former media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying in accordance with Hong Kong’s national security laws.
A government spokesman on Thursday also said the application filed with the Court of First Instance aimed to achieve the “important objectives of preventing and suppressing acts and activities endangering national security”.
Lai, 78, founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily tabloid-style newspaper was sentenced to 20 years in prison in February after being convicted of two conspiracy counts of collusion with foreign forces and a third of conspiracy to print and distribute sediti..

A 36-year-old Indian national, Sandhu Ponnachan, has been charged with multiple serious offences after a car rammed into pedestrians in Derby city centre, leaving seven people injured.Ponnachan faces charges including six counts of grievous bodily harm (GBH) with intent, one count of attempted GBH with intent, dangerous driving, and possession of a bladed article, the BBC reported.Prosecutors said there is sufficient evidence and that pursuing the case is in the public interest.The incident took place around 9:30 pm on March 28 on Friar Gate, a busy street in Derby city centre. Police said a black Suzuki Swift mounted the pavement and struck pedestrians, causing panic in the area. Witnesses reported hearing loud bangs and screams as emergency services rushed to the scene near the Bishop Blaise pub.Seven people, including four men and three women aged between 36 and 52, sustained injuries. However, the injuries were non-life-threatening, and several victims have since been discharged fr..

Three men, including a British‑Pakistani teenager, were arrested on Wednesday in connection with a arson attack on Jewish community ambulances in Golders Green, north London, police said.The suspects, aged 20, 19 and 17, were detained at separate addresses in east London on suspicion of conspiracy to commit arson with intent to endanger life, the Metropolitan Police confirmed. Two are British nationals, while the third holds dual British-Pakistani citizenship.The attack occurred in the early hours of March 23, in Golders Green, a neighbourhood with a large Jewish community. Explosions caused by oxygen and gas canisters inside the ambulances shattered nearby windows and forced some residents to evacuate. The four targeted ambulances belonged to Hatzola, a volunteer-led Jewish emergency service.Earlier, two British men in their 40s were also arrested but later released on police bail. The investigation is being led by Counter Terrorism Policing London, though the incident is not currentl..

AdvertisementUS, Israel war on IranWorldMiddle EastTrump claims Iran president wants ceasefire, no response from TehranTrump said he could walk away from the war in two to three weeks once he felt confident Iran would not be able to build a nuclear weapon
4-MIN READ4-MIN ListenAssociated PressPublished: 9:32pm, 1 Apr 2026Iran hit an oil tanker off the coast of Qatar and Kuwait’s airport on Wednesday, while air strikes battered Tehran even as US President Donald Trump said he was nearly ready to wind down the war and claimed that Iran’s president wanted a ceasefire.
Iran had no immediate response to Trump’s claim on social media that “Iran’s New Regime President” was seeking a ceasefire, which Trump said would only happen once the Strait of Hormuz was “open, free, clear”.
It was not immediately clear who Trump was referring to in Iran, which still has the same president.
AdvertisementTrump, who is scheduled to address the nation later in the day, said he could walk away from the war in ..

AdvertisementEducation in Hong KongHong KongEducationUS church launches search for new HKIS school head amid legal row with operatorCo-founder Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod accuses school management of creating ‘risk of leadership interruption’
3-MIN READ3-MIN ListenWilliam YiuPublished: 9:10pm, 1 Apr 2026A US church that co-founded a prestigious Hong Kong international school has said it will take the lead in searching for a new head as the operator had failed to nominate candidates since 2022, accusing it of creating the “risk of leadership interruption” in the latest salvo in a war of words.
The move by the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS) was revealed in a letter to parents on Sunday from Hong Kong International School (HKIS) management, which called the search part of church actions “designed to create distraction and uncertainty around the school”.
LCMS, which co-founded the school in 1966, confirmed with the South China Morning Post that it was now conducting its own searc..

Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw, along with American songwriter Bob Dylan, are the only two people to achieve literary and cinematic harmony: winning both the Nobel and the Oscar. Bernard Shaw won his Nobel for the screenplay Pygmalion, which was made into a movie and was credited with elevating Hollywood from illiteracy to literacy. Bernard Shaw claimed to hate the award, though that didn’t stop him from plonking it on his mantlepiece. Pygmalion would later be remade as My Fair Lady and become a cultural milestone of metamorphosis, held up as proof that speaking proper English can solve all the world’s problems.For all the non-Macaulayputras here, My Fair Lady is a musical about a phonetics professor named Professor Henry Higgins who deems that he will teach a flower girl named Eliza Doolittle how to speak English ‘properly’ so that she can pass muster at the Royal Ascot.While she is almost ready to give up, Professor Higgins launches into one of the most quotable lines from the ..

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday lashed out at allies over rising fuel prices, mocking the United Kingdom and other countries hit by disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, telling them to “get your own oil” amid the ongoing Middle East conflict. He also criticised France as “unhelpful” with respect to the 'Butcher of Iran,' claiming that the United states will remember.In a series of posts on Truth Social, Trump said countries facing jet fuel shortages due to the situation in the Strait of Hormuz should rely on themselves.”All of those countries that can’t get jet fuel because of the Strait of Hormuz, like the United Kingdom, which refused to get involved in the decapitation of Iran, I have a suggestion for you: Number 1, buy from the US, we have plenty, and Number 2, build up some delayed courage, go to the Strait, and just take it,” he said.”You’ll have to start learning how to fight for yourself, the USA. won’t be there to help you anymore, just like you weren’t there fo..

AdvertisementUS, Israel war on IranChinaDiplomacyChina pledges ‘strategic coordination’ with Pakistan to help end US war on IranPakistani foreign minister arrives in Beijing amid speculation that Tehran is seeking security guarantees from China
3-MIN READ3-MIN ListenShi JiangtaoPublished: 9:05pm, 31 Mar 2026China said on Tuesday it would enhance “strategic coordination” with Pakistan on the Iran crisis to promote dialogue and help end the conflict as Islamabad’s top diplomat Ishaq Dar arrived in Beijing.Dar’s trip, his second to China in three months, came just days after a phone call with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Friday, during which Beijing pledged to support Pakistan’s role as a mediator.Describing Pakistan as an “all-weather strategic cooperative partner”, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning confirmed the visit and said the two ministers would discuss regional developments and bilateral ties.
Advertisement“We believe the two foreign ministers will strengthen st..

AdvertisementChina inflationEconomyChina EconomyChina has ‘room’ for imported inflation, but economic risks rising: PBOC adviserAs US-Israel war with Iran sends prices up, a monetary expert says impact on China depends on conflict’s severity, while higher energy costs are worrying
2-MIN READ2-MIN ListenXinyi Wuin BeijingPublished: 9:00pm, 31 Mar 2026China has sufficient leeway to cope with imported inflationary shocks from Middle East instability, a monetary-policy adviser to the People’s Bank of China said, but the country must balance those pressures with economic-growth risks.
Huang Yiping, a member of the PBOC’s Monetary Policy Committee, said that China was already experiencing upwards pressure on prices.
But China’s consumer price index (CPI), a key gauge of inflation, has remained below its official target of 2 per cent in recent years, he noted, speaking at a media briefing in Beijing on Tuesday.Advertisement“Relatively, we have a certain degree of room to absorb or accept impo..

Abu Dhabi launched international scholarships for Emirati students in social care/Representative Image Abu Dhabi has launched an international scholarship programme for Emirati students to study social work and psychology, aiming to address a growing shortage of qualified professionals in the social care sector.The programme has been introduced by the Department of Community Development in partnership with the Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge. It will support students pursuing undergraduate and postgraduate degrees at leading international universities.The initiative comes as demand for social care services continues to rise across the emirate, while the number of specialised national professionals remains limited. Despite an increase in service providers, there is still a gap between workforce supply and sector needs.The scholarships will cover bachelor’s degrees in social work and psychology, along with master’s programmes in areas such as family counselling, counselli..