Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

BEIJING (AP) — China’s military has blasted a dam to release floodwaters threatening one of its most heavily populated provinces, as the death toll in widespread flooding rose to at least 25.

The dam operation was carried out late Tuesday night in the city of Luoyang, just as severe flooding overwhelmed the Henan provincial capital of Zhengzhou, trapping residents in the subway system and stranding them at schools, apartments and offices.

Another seven people were reported missing, provincial officials said at a news conference.

TOKYO (AP) — Brisbane was picked Wednesday to host the 2032 Olympics, the inevitable winner of a one-city race steered by the IOC to avoid rival bids.

The Games will go back to Australia 32 years after the popular 2000 Sydney Olympics. Melbourne hosted in 1956.

“We know what it takes to deliver a successful Games in Australia,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison told International Olympic Committee members in an 11-minute live video link from his office.

21 July 2021; MEMO: The bidding process for the hosting rights for the 2027 Asian Cup has been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and will be held in 2022 instead of this year, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) said on Wednesday, Reuters reported.

The selection of the host nation was initially due to be done at the AFC Congress on Nov. 27, 2021.

India, Iran, Qatar and Saudi Arabia are bidding to host the continental governing body's flagship men's tournament.

TOKYO (AP) — The Tokyo Olympics should not be judged by the tally of COVID-19 cases that arise because eliminating risk is impossible, the head of the World Health Organization told sports officials Wednesday as events began in Japan.

How infections are handled is what matters most, WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a speech to an International Olympic Committee meeting.

“The mark of success is making sure that any cases are identified, isolated, traced and cared for as quickly as possible and onward transmission is interrupted,” he said.

HONG KONG, July 20 (Reuters) - Hong Kong's government said on Tuesday authorities will review a planned air travel bubble with Singapore in late August, given the recent surge of COVID-19 cases in Singapore.

Both governments would review the target date "taking into account the effectiveness of the enhanced infection control measures implemented by Singapore and the global situation at that time," Hong Kong's government said in a statement.

TOKYO, July 20 (Xinhua) -- Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has expressed his confidence in successfully delivering the Tokyo Olympic Games despite the specter of COVID-19.

"Because of the COVID-19 pandemic since last year, the (pandemic) situation is making progress and sometimes backwards, but vaccinations have come. After a long tunnel, an exit is now in our sight," Suga told officials before declaring the opening of the 138th IOC Session here on Tuesday.

TOKYO, July 20 (Xinhua) -- The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has approved adding "together" into the Olympic motto.

The move of adding "together" into the Olympic motto of "faster, higher, stronger" was unanimously approved at the 138th IOC session here on Tuesday.

It was proposed by Thomas Bach after his re-election as the IOC president during the virtual 137th IOC Session in March.

QINGDAO, July 20 (Xinhua) -- China's new high-speed maglev train rolled off the production line on Tuesday. It has a designed top speed of 600 km per hour -- currently the fastest ground vehicle available globally.

The new maglev transportation system made its public debut in the coastal city of Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province.

It has been self-developed by China, marking the country's latest scientific and technological achievement in the field of rail transit, according to the China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation.

BEIJING, July 19 (Xinhua) -- China hopes that the World Health Organization (WHO) will adhere to the spirit of science, professionalism and objectivity, and work with the international community to maintain the scientific and serious nature of COVID-19 origin tracing, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said on Monday.

He said China is concerned about certain countries' move to politicize the issue of origin tracing, which is in fact a serious issue need to be dealt with through the collaboration of global scientists.

BEIJING (AP) — China on Tuesday rejected an accusation by Washington and its Western allies that Beijing is to blame for a hack of the Microsoft Exchange email system and complained Chinese entities are victims of damaging U.S. cyberattacks.

A foreign ministry spokesman demanded Washington drop charges announced Monday against four Chinese nationals accused of working with the Ministry of State Security to try to steal U.S. trade secrets, technology and disease research.