Authorities in Hiroshima and northern Kyushu issue evacuation alert amid unprecedented rainfallMore than a million people have been urged to seek shelter as torrential rain triggered floods and landslides in western Japan, leaving at least one dead and…
Belarus repression and the Taliban advance: human rights this fortnight – in pictures
A round-up of the coverage of the struggle for human rights and freedoms, from Thailand to Mexico Continue reading…
Case of the mystery sea snakes: why are reptiles washing up on New Zealand’s shores?
A famously snake-free country, Aotearoa and its beaches are wrangling with the sporadic arrival of yellow-bellied sea snakesIt looked like a rope or a question mark – a black scribble on the sand. The creature had washed up on a Northland beach in May …
How India’s armed forces have become Bollywood’s new poster boys
A series of big films this year will focus on Indian military conflicts with Pakistan, reflecting an escalation of political belligerenceIndia’s military will take a starring role this summer. On 12 August, in time for Independence day on the 15th, Ama…
Beasts Clawing at Straws review – jet-black comedy in arch Korean thriller
A long-suffering sauna worker finds a bag stuffed full of cash in a crime caper with perfectly pitched performancesWhen Korean director Bong Joon-ho won the best picture Oscar in 2020 for his near-universally acclaimed Parasite, he suggested that maybe…
China recalls Lithuania ambassador in Taiwan diplomatic office row
Plan for representative offices draws angry response from Beijing amid heightened tensions with TaipeiBeijing has recalled its ambassador from Lithuania and asked Vilnius to do the same, over plans by the European country and Taiwan to establish recipr…
China’s herd of wandering elephants finally heads for home
Fourteen wild Asian elephants have been guided across the Yuanjiang river in Yunnan, and a path leading back to their nature reserve is being madeAfter an epic 17-month journey that made international headlines, China’s famous herd of wandering elephan…
Rice, rice baby: Japanese parents send relatives rice to hug in lieu of newborns
Each bag matches birth weight and features baby’s face, so new arrival can be hugged in pandemic Parents in Japan are sending bags of rice that weigh the same as their newborn babies to relatives who are unable to visit them due to the pandemic.The bag…
The house that can withstand a cyclone: how traditional dwellings are making a comeback in Vanuatu
Since Cyclone Pam devastated Vanuatu, locals are returning to the saeklon haos, made from vines, palm fronds and grassesWhen Cyclone Pam devastated Vanuatu and concrete buildings collapsed, their iron roofing blown away, there was no loss of life in th…
UK not doing enough to support those fleeing Hong Kong, advocacy group says
Hongkongers in Britain warns that many arrivals are being denied equal access to housing, education and jobs‘Employers seem baffled by this visa’: Hongkongers who have fled to UKThe UK risks providing Hongkongers fleeing persecution in their homeland w…