Malaysia’s search for alternative crude supplies is complicating Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s “friends with all” foreign policy, analysts have said, with the country potentially tapping Russian oil despite Western sanctions against Moscow. On Thursday, oil prices rose again after Iran declared the Strait of Hormuz closed, 103 days after the US-Israel war with Iran began on February 28. Washington has signalled it wants sanction waivers over Russian oil to end “as soon as possible”. Economy...

China might be downplaying nuclear weapons by not mentioning the issue after Xi Jinping’s visit to North Korea but that does not mean it has accepted its neighbour’s growing arsenal, according to analysts. Neither Beijing nor Pyongyang mentioned nuclear weapons or denuclearisation in their statements on the Chinese president’s two-day state visit to Pyongyang this week. Since Xi’s summit with US President Donald Trump in May, observers have been speculating that Beijing’s stance on Pyongyang’s...

An upgraded border crossing between Hong Kong and Shenzhen is expected to open next month, allowing travellers to complete immigration in just five minutes, according to authorities. The redeveloped Huanggang Port Building will be the first link between the two cities to adopt the “collaborative inspection and joint clearance” model. The South China Morning Post looks at the details of the checkpoint and what travellers can expect from the streamlined process. 1. How does it differ from the Lok...

Rocket launches in Kazakhstan are being pitched to Hong Kong travellers, as some Central Asian travel operators make their debut at the city’s flagship travel expo ahead of new direct flights to the region. Six Kazakhstan-based operators set up booths under the theme “Visit Almaty” at the 40th International Travel Expo, the annual event running from June 11 to 14 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. Despite the conflict in the Middle East affecting global tourism, the 2026 edition...

By Montira Rungjirajittranon Two Chinese Uyghur men were sentenced to death Thursday for carrying out a 2015 attack on a Bangkok shrine that killed 20 people, a long-awaited verdict in Thailand’s deadliest bombing case. Bilal Mohammed (centre) and Yusufu Mieraili (back right), defendants in the 2015 Erawan shrine bombing case, arrive at a military court in Bangkok on February 16, 2016. File photo: Nicolas Asfouri/AFP. A Bangkok court convicted Yusufu Mieraili and Bilal Mohammed of premeditated and attempted murder for their role in planting a bomb at the popular Erawan Shrine in the capital’s commercial heart. The blast tore apart the site where worshippers and tourists had gathered, wounding more than 100 people and leaving the shrine to the Thai representation of Brahma littered with motorbike fragments and singed debris. Seven Chinese tourists were among the fatalities when explosives — apparently left in a backpack — detonated. “The defendants committed a single act that violated multiple laws. The court therefore imposed the harshest penalty available under the law, the death sentence,” one member of the four-judge panel said Thursday as the lengthy verdict was read out. The defendants — both Chinese nationals who arrived in court in prison garb — were acquitted of charges stemming from a separate bombing at a Bangkok pier. Following the verdict, Mieraili said: “RIP Thailand’s justice system. I don’t accept any of this. I didn’t do anything wrong.” Choochat Kanpai, the defendants’ lawyer, told reporters they “will appeal the ruling because there are many aspects of the case that the court has not fully considered, including the treatment of the defendants during the proceedings”. The decade-long trial was beset by delays due to coronavirus disruptions and problems securing translators. The blast came weeks after Thailand’s then-ruling junta forcibly repatriated 109 Uyghurs to China, prompting speculation that it was part of a revenge plot. Beijing welcomed the death sentences. “The attackers were totally inhumane and extremely heinous,” foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian told reporters. “China supports Thailand in conducting the trial in accordance with the law and severely punishing the murderers.” Delays and drugs Shortly after the bombing, police named 17 suspects, but only Mieraili and Mohammed were initially apprehended. Thailand’s junta authorities were criticised for a murky investigation that appeared to wind down shortly after the arrest of the two men. Erawan Shrine in Bangkok on January 16, 2015, seven months before the deadly bombing. Photo: Wikimedia Commons. They went on trial in 2016, accused of planting the explosives. But the proceedings — which have involved hundreds of witness testimonies — have been delayed multiple times, once because the translator for the accused was hit with drugs charges. In 2017 a Thai woman called Wanna Suansan was detained on arrival in Bangkok on a warrant linked to the shrine blast — making her the third named suspect arrested by police. She was charged with attempted murder, associated murder and possession of bombs and weapons, but was acquitted in 2024. The Uyghurs, a Turkic minority, primarily hail from China’s westernmost region, Xinjiang. Beijing has been accused of detaining more than a million Uyghurs and other Muslims since 2017, part of a campaign that the United Nations previously said could constitute crimes against humanity. China vehemently denies these allegations, saying its policies have rooted out extremism in Xinjiang and boosted economic development. Thailand deported dozens of Uyghurs to China in February 2025 despite warnings from human rights groups that they would face persecution on their return, drawing swift condemnation from the United Nations. The Erawan Shrine remains a popular draw for Chinese and other tourists to the Thai capital, and dozens of visitors made traditional offerings of marigold garlands and incense as usual on Thursday. Devotee and online vendor Satiwan Phobangwai, 45, approved of the sentences. “As a Buddhist, I was taught to only do good deeds and good things, right? It’s like karma, as the saying goes, ‘you reap what you sow,'” she said. “So they must face the consequences of the wrongdoing they committed.”

Allowing vehicles from Guangdong province to enter Hong Kong’s South Lantau must be approached with “caution,” Hong Kong’s transport chief has told lawmakers. A mainland Chinese car arrives in Hong Kong on the first day of implementation of the Southbound Travel for Guangdong Vehicles scheme on December 23, 2025. Photo: GovHK. At a Legislative Council meeting on Wednesday, Secretary for Transport and Logistics Mable Chan said that authorities would have to consult local residents and the district council, citing recent cases of vehicles from Guangdong illegally entering the restricted scenic roads on rural South Lantau. Addressing a question from lawmaker and rural leader Kenneth Lau, Chan said: “Regarding reviews of quotas and other potential improvements for self-drive tours on Lantau going forward, we will cautiously and carefully monitor the situation. We will also consult and explore options with local residents and the Islands District Council.” Vehicles under the Southbound Travel for Guangdong Vehicles scheme have been operating smoothly, and testing centres in Guangdong have provided drivers with information on Hong Kong’s traffic rules, she added. Under the southbound travel scheme, which took effect in December, up to 100 private cars from Guangdong province are permitted daily to drive into Hong Kong’s urban areas via the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge and stay for a maximum of three days. The transport minister had previously touted the scheme as a boon for Hong Kong’s economy, driving tourism and trade while enhancing “integration” for citizens in both regions. Secretary for Transport and Logistics Mable Chan. File photo: GovHK. The government launched the Driving on Lantau Island Scheme in 2016, allowing a daily quota of 25 private cars to access closed roads to Ngong Ping, Tai O, Cheung Sha and Mui Wo on weekdays. The second phase was launched in 2022, with the daily quota increased from 25 to 50. Under the scheme, some 12,000 quotas are available for allocation each year, with all of them filled. Citing official figures, Chan said that the Transport Department received about 84,000 applications in 2023 and about 30,000 in each of the subsequent two years. She attributed the high number from three years ago to pandemic-related travel restrictions that limited residents to local tourism. Responding to a suggestion by lawmaker Chan Hok-fung to extend South Lantau permits from one day to two or three days, the transport minister said the authorities would look into extending the permit period to include weekends. But she added that any quota extensions must balance tourism development and local residents’ traffic concerns.

China to legislate on preschool education

China to legislate on preschool education

The US military had attacked the Palau-flagged tanker on Wednesday after accusing it of not complying with directions.

Twenty people died and 120 others were injured in the explosion at the Erawan shrine 11 years ago.