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AP photo US president Donald Trump on Sunday said he is ready to release the results of the MRI scan he took in October. Speaking to reporters while flying back to Washington from Florida, Trump said, “If you want to have it released, I’ll release it.” He described the results as “perfect.”Trump further told reporters he has “no idea” which part of his body the MRI covered. “It was just an MRI,” he said. “What part of the body? It wasn’t the brain because I took a cognitive test and I aced it.”The MRI was done during Trump’s visit to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in October.The debate over releasing the report began after Minnesota governor Tim Walz replied to Trump’s post saying, “Release the MRI results.” Trump had earlier used an offensive term for Walz while claiming that Somali immigrants were “taking over” Minnesota and criticising the governor for not acting.The White House has not explained why the MRI was done or which part of Trump’s body was scanned. Press sec..

AdvertisementHong Kong propertyBusinessHong Kong’s home sales recovery looks more solid as transactions, prices edge upMortgage and resale data both show a sustained rise in sentiment amid improving rates, prices and rental yields, agents say
Reading Time:3 minutesWhy you can trust SCMPYulu AoPublished: 9:30am, 1 Dec 2025Hong Kong’s property market is expected to extend its gradual recovery into the end of the year, supported by improving sentiment, rising rental yields and firmer demand in the mass-market segment, according to property analysts.
The latest mortgage and resale data suggest that buyers are returning following rate cuts and stamp-duty adjustments earlier this year, although the pace of improvement remains uneven across districts and price brackets.
Mortgage registrations continued to climb in October, reflecting a sustained rebound in transactions, climbing 7.1 per cent from September to 6,463, excluding off-plan units, according to a Centaline Property report on Thursda..

AdvertisementJapanThis Week in AsiaLifestyle & CultureIs decline in Japanese studies risking US relations with key Indo-Pacific ally?Academics bemoan the myopic approach after a recent report calls dropping Japan-focused subjects a ‘looming crisis in US-Japan relations’
Reading Time:3 minutesWhy you can trust SCMP3Julian RyallPublished: 9:30am, 1 Dec 2025Academics are bemoaning the decline in programmes focused on Japanese language, culture, history, art and other social science subjects at universities in the United States, warning that a “short-sighted approach” could threaten future trade and business opportunities as well as the critical diplomatic relationship.Funding for liberal arts courses at US universities has been under pressure for some years, they point out, but that appears to be accelerating as greater emphasis is placed on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) programmes.The situation has become so serious that a recent report has described universitie..

33 Thomas Street/ Image:X In a city obsessed with views, one of Manhattan’s tallest towers has none. At 33 Thomas Street in Lower Manhattan, a 550-foot concrete block rises above the Civic Center with no windows, no visible life, and no obvious explanation. When a recent video of the building resurfaced on Reddit, the old question came back with force: what exactly is going on inside this thing? Even celebrities have joined in the curiosity. Back in 2017, Tom Hanks posted a photo of the structure on X and wrote: “This is the scariest building I've ever seen! WTF goes on inside?” Years later, the tower still offers no clues from the pavement – just blank granite walls and a handful of ventilation openings.What 33 Thomas Street was actually built for
The building is not an abandoned relic or an art project. It was built in the 1970s for a very specific purpose: to carry phone calls. Known as the AT&T Long Lines Building, 33 Thomas Street was designed to house massive switching equi..

Jason Hudson, a 48-year-old man from Deatsville, Alabama, was sentenced to 965 years in prison on November 19, 2025, after an Autauga County jury convicted him in October of 84 counts related to child sex crimes. The charges included first-degree rape, sodomy, incest, sexual abuse of a child under 12, and producing and possessing child pornography.
Investigation and evidenceAuthorities launched the probe after Hudson downloaded tagged child sex abuse material on information-sharing platforms, triggering alerts to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC). The Autauga County Sheriff's Office uncovered thousands of images and videos depicting male and female children, some under age 2, enduring sexual abuse and torture with whips, fire, and rope. Further searches revealed home videos Hudson made of himself raping, sodomizing, and sexually abusing a child under 12.Sentences were imposed consecutively by 19th Judicial Circuit Presiding Judge Amanda Baxley: 90 years ..

AdvertisementUkraine warWorldEuropeRussian drone attack kills 1 near Kyiv as Ukraine’s Zelensky seeks peace talksA child was among the 11 wounded during the attack on Vyshgorod, regional governor said
Reading Time:2 minutesWhy you can trust SCMPAgence France-PressePublished: 9:49am, 30 Nov 2025A Russian drone attack has killed one person and wounded 11 on the outskirts of the Ukrainian capital, the regional governor said on Sunday.Mykola Kalashnyk, the Kyiv regional governor, reported “another enemy drone attack” and said rescuers were evacuating residents of a high-rise building and firefighting was ongoing.
“Unfortunately, as a result of the enemy attack on Vyshgorod, one person was killed and 11 were wounded. Among them is one child,” Kalashnyk wrote on social media.
AdvertisementThe latest attack follows a Russian drone and missile attack on Friday night that killed three people and left hundreds of thousands across Ukraine without power.A team of Ukrainian negotiators flew to the ..

AdvertisementSingaporeThis Week in AsiaLifestyle & Culture‘Zero-drama’ Singapore is just the ticket for Chinese tourists snubbing JapanBeijing’s call to boycott Japan after Sanae Takaichi’s remarks is benefiting Southeast Asian countries, travel agents say
Reading Time:4 minutesWhy you can trust SCMPJean IauPublished: 9:30am, 30 Nov 2025Amid the diplomatic fallout between Tokyo and Beijing, Hunanese accountant Echo He feels relieved she has chosen Southeast Asia for her year-end trip with her husband and colleagues, instead of the popular choice, Japan.The latest spat between both nations arose on November 7 when Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested her country could deploy its military forces in the event of a conflict in the Taiwan Strait.This infuriated Beijing, which sees Taiwan as part of China to be reunited by force if necessary. Most countries, including the United States and Japan, do not recognise Taiwan as an independent state, but Washington is opposed to any at..

Representational (AP file photo) Trump administration on Friday ordered US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officers to stop making all asylum decisions, following the shooting of two National Guard soldiers in Washington, DC. The pause comes after Wednesday’s attack, which officials say was carried out by an Afghan man who received asylum earlier this year. One of the soldiers has died. The suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, entered the US in 2021 under the Biden administration’s humanitarian parole programme and was granted asylum this spring. The order affects all nationalities and covers “affirmative” asylum cases handled by USCIS. Officers were told to continue interviews and case reviews, but stop at the point where a decision would normally be entered. In-person appointments scheduled for Monday, where applicants receive final decisions, were also cancelled. In a statement to CBS News, USCIS director Joe Edlow confirmed the decision. He said, “USCIS has halted all asylum..

Hernandez, Trump (AP file photos) US president Donald Trump on Friday intervened in Honduras' politics by pardoning former president Juan Orlando Hernandez, just days before the country votes for a new president, and warned that US support to the country could be cut if his preferred candidate loses.Hernandez was convicted in a US court last year for drug trafficking and given a 45-year sentence. He governed Honduras from 2014 to 2022 and was accused by US prosecutors of helping move nearly 400 tonnes of cocaine into the United States. He was extradited soon after leaving office, when the current president, Xiomara Castro, took power. Trump’s announcement came through a social media post backing Nasry Asfura, the candidate from Hernandez’s right-wing party. Trump had already endorsed Asfura, but this time he went further, suggesting that future US aid depends on Asfura winning Sunday’s election. On Truth Social, Trump wrote, “If he doesn't win, the United States will not be t..

AdvertisementWomen and genderOpinionChina OpinionAudrey Jiajia LiBeing Chinese | Why Chinese women like me are done being quiet and ‘appropriate’Chinese women are praised for gentleness. Our tone must please; our anger must be graceful. But a new generation is speaking out
Reading Time:3 minutesWhy you can trust SCMPAudrey Jiajia LiPublished: 9:30am, 29 Nov 2025In China, girls are taught early to be “appropriate” – to listen, not lead; to speak gently, not loudly. We grow up believing that quietness is likeability, and likeability is safety. But something is shifting.
When Chinese writer Jiang Fangzhou said to me during a recent interview, “I can’t be waiting for some influential man to say, ‘I’ll give you an hour to talk about literature’. You can’t be waiting for a seat, for a microphone”, it struck a chord far beyond us. It was a generational declaration – for women who are done being echoes.
Jiang’s trajectory is familiar to many in China. She began writing at seven, published her ..