Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

Seoul, Aug 14 (AP/PTI) South Korea reported 103 new virus cases on Friday, one of its biggest daily jumps in months, as officials express concerned that infections are getting out of control in cities as people increasingly venture out in public.

Eighty-three of the new cases were from the densely populated Seoul metropolitan area, where health authorities have struggled to stem transmissions from various sources and groups, including churches, nursing homes, schools and workers. Infections were also reported in other major cities such as Busan, Gwangju and Ulsan.

Seoul, Aug 14 (AP/PTI) North Korean leader Kim Jong Un lifted a lockdown in a major city near the border with South Korea where thousands had been quarantined for weeks over coronavirus worries, state media said on Friday.

But Kim during a ruling party meeting on Thursday also insisted the North will keep its borders shut and rejected any outside help as the country carries out an aggressive anti-virus campaign and rebuilds thousands of houses, roads and bridges damaged by heavy rain and floods in recent weeks.

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — A leading terror suspect who has been linked to beheadings of hostages, including two Canadians and a Malaysian, has surrendered after being wounded in battle, officials said Friday.

National police chief Gen. Archie Gamboa said Thursday night that Abu Sayyaf commander Anduljihad Susukan gave up after negotiations with police in southern Davao city, where he was served warrants for at least 23 cases of murder, 6 for attempted murder and 5 for kidnapping.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un lifted a lockdown in a major city near the border with South Korea where thousands had been quarantined for weeks over coronavirus worries, state media said Friday.

But Kim, during a key ruling party meeting on Thursday, also insisted the North will keep its borders shut and rejected any outside help as the country carries out an aggressive anti-virus campaign and rebuilds thousands of houses, roads and bridges damaged by heavy rain and floods in recent weeks.

SEOUL, Aug 13 (NNN-YONHAP) — President Moon Jae-in designated 11 southern areas, devastated by monsoon-season heavy rains, as special disaster zones Thursday for speedy state assistance for recovery work and the provision of relief funds, Cheong Wa Dae said.

The regions include Namwon in North Jeolla Province; Naju, Gurye, Gokseong, Damyang, Hwasun, Hampyeong, Younggwang and Jangseong in South Jeolla Province; Hadong and Hapcheon in South Gyeongsang Province.

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Chinese tech giant ByteDance censored content it perceived as critical of the Chinese government on its news aggregator app in Indonesia from 2018 to mid-2020, six people with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

The sources said that local moderators were instructed by a team from ByteDance’s Beijing headquarters to delete articles seen as “negative” about Chinese authorities on the Baca Berita (BaBe) app.

HONG KONG, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- People from all walks of life and various organizations in Hong Kong have expressed their support for a decision adopted by China's top legislature for the sixth Legislative Council (LegCo) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) to continue performing duties.

HONG KONG (AP) — Jimmy Lai had just finished his morning exercise and was catching up on the news when the police arrived.

“There were 15, 20 policemen there, and they said I was under arrest and that they were from the national security department,” the Hong Kong media tycoon recounted in a live-streamed video chat Thursday.

TOKYO (AP) — Seventy-five years after the end of World War II, more than 1 million Japanese war dead are scattered throughout Asia, where the legacy of Japanese aggression still hampers recovery efforts.

The missing Japanese make up about half of the 2.4 million soldiers who died overseas during Japan’s military rampage across Asia in the early 20th century.

They are on remote islands in the South Pacific. They are in northern China and Mongolia. They are in Russia.

MANILA (Reuters) - Philippine scientists were set on Wednesday to meet representatives of the Russian research facility that developed a coronavirus vaccine, to discuss possible participation in clinical trials and access to its research data.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has lauded the vaccine and offered to be “injected in public” with the Russian COVID-19 vaccine, to allay public fears about its safety.