Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

JAKARTA (Reuters) -A magnitude 5.9 earthquake off Indonesia’s Java island on Saturday killed one person and damaged buildings in several cities, media reports said.

The quake was felt in cities and towns across East Java, home to 40.7 million people, and nearby provinces, including the resort island of Bali, Indonesian media reported.

One person died in Lumajang after being hit by a falling boulder, news website Detik.com said, citing a town disaster official.

There had been aftershocks but there was no risk of tsunami, Indonesian geophysics agency BMKG said.

BEIJING, April 9 (Xinhua) -- China on Friday expressed hope that the Japanese government will conduct a thorough assessment of the possible impact of the disposal plan for tritium-contaminated wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear power plant.

"The radioactive leak caused by the meltdown of the Fukushima nuclear power plant has had a profound impact on the marine environment, food safety and human health," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian told a daily press briefing.

YANGON (AP) — Security forces in Myanmar cracked down heavily again on anti-coup protesters Friday even as the military downplayed reports of state violence.

Reports on online news outlets and social media said at least four people were killed in Bago, about 100 kilometers (60 miles) northeast of Yangon, in an attack by government troops and police that began before dawn and continued sporadically until after dark.

The Bago Weekly Journal Online said a source at the city’s main hospital, whom it didn’t name, believed about 10 people had been killed.

BEIJING (AP) — Alibaba Group, the world’s biggest e-commerce company, was fined 18.3 billion yuan ($2.8 billion) by Chinese regulators on Saturday for anti-competitive tactics, as the ruling Communist Party tightens control over fast-growing tech industries.

Party leaders worry about the dominance of China’s biggest internet companies, which are expanding into finance, health services and other sensitive areas. The party says anti-monopoly enforcement, especially in tech, is a priority this year.

BEIJING, April 9 (Xinhua) -- China is firmly opposed to the United States adding seven Chinese supercomputing entities to its "entity list", and will take necessary measures to resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Friday.

Spokesperson Zhao Lijian made the remarks while answering a relevant question at a daily news briefing.

BEIJING (AP) — The Biden administration has added seven Chinese supercomputer research labs and manufacturers to a U.S. export blacklist in a spreading conflict with Beijing over technology and security.

The measure announced Thursday is the latest sign President Joe Biden is sticking to the tough line taken by his predecessor, Donald Trump, toward Chinese tech industries seen by Washington as potential threats.

YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — An information blackout under Myanmar’s military junta worsened Thursday as fiber broadband service, the last legal way for ordinary people to access the internet, became intermittently inaccessible on several networks.

Authorities in some areas have also started confiscating satellite dishes used to access international news broadcasts.

Protests against the Feb. 1 coup that ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi continued Thursday despite the killing of 11 people by security forces a day earlier.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has called for waging another “arduous march” to fight severe economic difficulties, for the first time comparing them to a 1990s famine that killed hundreds of thousands.

Kim had previously said his country faces the “worst-ever” situation due to several factors, including the coronavirus pandemic, U.S.-led sanctions and natural disasters last summer. But it’s the first time he publicly drew parallel with the deadly famine.

BEIJING, April 8 (APP): China on Thursday hoped that India would strictly abide by the signed agreements between the two sides and stabilize the situation in the borders areas with real actions.

“We hope Indian side will work with China to follow through the important consensus of our two leaders and abide by relevant agreements and treaties to de-escalate the tension at the border,” Chinese Foreign Ministry’s Spokesperson Zhao Lijian said during his regular briefing held here.

BEIJING, April 8 (APP): Pakistan Ambassador to China, Moin ul Haque said development is taking place in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous region and the region’s progress in transportation and agriculture left a deep impression on him.

“Development is taking place in Xinjiang, including infrastructure, industry, agriculture, water purification projects, educational institutions and exhibition centers.