Asia

The sculptures were looted from the country during a period of war and unrest and their return is like welcoming home the souls of ancestors, Cambodia's culture minister says. 

Sri Lanka has been rocked by a series of crises in the past two decades but locals are now urging tourists to return and enjoy its sights.

At least 121 people die in a stampede after a large religious gathering in northern India. Here is what we know about what happened.

Taiwan's coast guard says the squid fishing boat was near the Taiwan-administered Kinmen islands but in Chinese waters when it was boarded and seized. 

A steep hike in visa fees is pushing current and prospective international students to consider other universities outside of Australia.

Australia's largest online bookstore, Booktopia, has collapsed and been placed into voluntary administration. Meanwhile, Australian stocks ended higher on Wednesday after a rally on Wall Street overnight.

A Cambodian court hands jail terms of up to eight years to 10 environmental activists on charges of plotting against the government and insulting the king.

An online petition for the impeachment of Yoon Suk Yeol is closing in on 1 million signatures, leading to delays and disruptions of the website. 

The Australian government is doubling the cost of student visa fees for international students, prompting outrage from student representatives who say that the price hike will drive potential students to competitors.

A roof collapses at a departure terminal at the main airport in India's capital, New Delhi, killing one person and causing authorities to cancel flights from one terminal.

Hong Kong's Education Department singles out two schools after an inspection finds their students are not putting enough effort into singing the anthem amid an increasing push for patriotism in the city's schools.

A new US State Department report highlights alleged Cambodian government "corruption and official complicity" in human trafficking for the online scam industry just days after a high-level Cambodian delegation visited Australia to learn about how to "fight against technological crime".

Foreigners in Indonesia say they are treated "just a little bit better than a tourist" despite having settled there for decades.

A fire at a lithium battery factory in South Korea has claimed the lives of at least 22 people, with eight injured, according to local fire officials.

After last week's violent clash between the Philippine Navy and the China Coast Guard in the South China Sea, the president of the Philippines says his country is "not in the business to instigate wars", but would not yield to "any foreign power". 

A 17-year-old vocational school student from rural China becomes a celebrity on social media after reaching the final round of a maths competition, beating many others from top universities and raising questions about the education system.

A 58-year-old man is killed in a suspected bear attack in Japan, as the country's bears are attacking humans at record rates.

A 74-year-old surfer and master of classical Japanese dance may seem an unlikely member of a seniors' breakdancing group, but Saruwaka Kiyoshie says getting into "breaking" was a no-brainer after it was confirmed for the 2024 Paris Games.

Record temperatures in recent days are causing hundreds of deaths across Asia, Europe and America, as scientists warn climate change is fuelling more extreme temperature peaks.

Now a few more details about what was (and wasn't) said behind closed doors are starting to emerge, bit by bit.

The Chinese foreign ministry says the Dalai Lama — the exiled spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism — must "thoroughly correct" his political views, as US poilticians push a bill aimed at pressing China to secure a negotiated and peaceful agreement on Tibet.

The Philippine Navy says a sailor has been seriously injured in what it says was an "intentional-high speed ramming" by the Chinese coast guard in the South China Sea.

Russian President Vladimir Putin begins a state visit to Vietnam, a day after signing a mutual defence pact with North Korea's Kim Jong Un, who offered his "full support" on Ukraine. 

Authorities in China's western Xinjiang region are systematically replacing the names of villages inhabited by Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities to reflect the ruling Communist Party's ideology, a report released by Human Rights Watch says.

Overgrown trees and shrubbery appear to be the cause behind 30 North Korean soldiers crossing the demarcation line separating the two countries, who are still technically at war.