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"A Lebanese suspect from the Hezbollah group has been taken into custody by Thai officials and police are investigating further," Chalerm Yoobamrung told Reuters. "Following concern raised by the Israeli embassy about a possible attack by a group of Lebanese terrorists in Bangkok, Thai police officials had been coordinating with Israeli officials since before the New Year."

U.S. Navy Expects to Base Ships in Singapore By SHAUN TANDON, Agence France-Presse Published: 17 Dec 2011 13:04 WASHINGTON - The United States, facing a rising China but a tighter budget, expects to station several combat ships in Singapore and may step up deployments to the Philippines and Thailand, a naval officer said. The United States has been increasingly vocal about defending freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, where tensions over territorial disputes between Beijing and Southeast Asian nations have been on the rise. Related Topics In an academic article forecasting the shape of the U.S. Navy in...

Singapore's air force has received its first modernized C-130 featuring Rockwell Collins avionics upgrade. The company's Flight2TM upgrade included an improved flight management system allowing access to precision Global Positioning System approaches, preferred air traffic control routings and search-and-rescue patterns; multifunction displays featuring active matrix liquid crystal display technology; a central engine instrument display replacing analog gauges; improved voice communication; an enhanced digital autopilot and flight director; and an advanced digital weather radar.

CHICAGO (AFP) – US president-elect Barack Obama Monday vowed his incoming administration was "absolutely committed to eliminating the threat of terrorism." "We cannot tolerate a world where innocents are being killed by extremists," Obama said in the wake of Mumbai attacks in which more than 170 people were killed, including six Americans. "We have to bring the full force of our power, not only military but diplomatic and political, to deal with the threats," he told a Chicago press conference as he unveiled his national security team.

Arsenic risk high in Sumatra, Myanmar, Cambodia: study Fri Jul 11, 2:15 PM ET Eastern Sumatra, the Irrawaddy delta in Myanmar and Cambodia's Tonle Sap lake are among areas in Southeast Asia facing a high risk of arsenic contamination in the water, according to a study published on Friday. The researchers use innovative digitalised techniques, drawing on geology, geography and soil chemistry, to compile a "probability map" of naturally-occurring arsenic concentrations in five Southeast Asian countries and Bangladesh. The map is intended as a useful pointer for health watchdogs, urban planners and water engineers worried about concentrations of this poison...

Rangoon - The military junta began evicting destitute families from cyclone relief centres on Friday and rejected foreign food aid - because people can survive perfectly well by hunting "large, edible frogs." The New Light of Myanmar "newspaper", a government mouthpiece, also warned that foreign relief workers would snoop inside homes, and condemned donors for linking aid money to full access to the hardest-hit regions in the Irrawaddy Delta. The tirade came as the junta tightened its political grip on the country, extending democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi's house arrest and announcing that its new constitution has been enacted....

UN says 102,000 dead in Burma Thailand offers to be a base for relief supplies Thailand will act as a mediator to help with the movement of international relief supplies to Burma, which are being held up by the military junta and are stuck in Thailand, Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama said yesterday. The move comes as the UN says up to 102,000 people could have been killed by Cyclone Nargis and about 220,000 are reported missing. Mr Noppadon said he planned to leave for Burma tomorrow to push for additional assistance and ask the Burmese generals to provide wider access...

BACKGROUNDER Dictators' priority BACKGROUNDER Dictators' priority Bank denial Parachute drops possible Sutha quits Left in the lurch ANALYSIS Burma storm clouds Hillary to junta: Aid trickle begins Burma agony Aid blockade By Christiane Oelrich, dpa While bloated corpses still litter Irrawaddy delta fields, the controlled media promote the referendum. While a million Burmese in deep shock fight for their survival, government ministers give speeches on the "flourishing discipline democracy." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mae Sot - The ruling military junta of Burma has imposed a vacation ban for all officials - but not so every last person can be available to assist survivors...

Burma denies US access Relief supplies from UN starting to get through AP AND BANGKOK POST RANGOON - Relief supplies from the United Nations began arriving in Burma yesterday, but US military planes loaded with aid were still denied access by the country's isolationist regime five days after a devastating cyclone. The military junta also continued to stall on visas for UN teams seeking entry to ensure the aid is delivered to the victims, amid fears that a lack of safe food and drinking water could push the death toll above 100,000. Two planes carrying high-energy biscuits, medicine and other...

ADDING INSULT TO INJURY Burmese are angry at the junta's slow response to the cyclone, writes Achara Ashayagachat in Rangoon As if Burmese people have not suffered enough from military dictatorship and political disarray, Cyclone Nargis, which hit Burma early on Saturday morning, ravaged the country's largest city of Rangoon as it devastated many other areas. Since the storm, people in many parts of the former capital have had to live without tap water, electricity and telephone connections. Four riot control battalions stationed in the capital to control any political unrest arising from the referendum on a new constitution scheduled...

Archaeologists Find Evidence of Origin of Pacific Islanders By Heidi Chang Honolulu, Hawaii 31 March 2008 The origin of Pacific Islanders has been a mystery for years. Now archaeologists believe they have the answer. As Heidi Chang reports, they found it in China. The excavation of the Zishan site (Zhejiang Province) in 1996, where many artifacts from the Hemudu culture have been found China had a sea-faring civilization as long as 7000 years ago. Archaeologist Tianlong Jiao says, one day, these mariners sailed their canoes into the vastness of the Pacific Ocean, and stayed. He points out, "Most scientists, archaeologists,...

A group of Filipinos and Filipino-Americans is preparing a 500 million-dollar class suit against ABC Network in the United States in response to a slur against Philippine medical schools and Filipino medical professionals, aired in the premiere episode of the fourth season of “Desperate Housewives”. In that episode, the character Susan Mayer (played by actress Teri Hatcher) questioned the credentials of her gynecologist over a disputed diagnosis. Mayer said she wanted to check the doctor’s diploma to make sure it didn’t come “from some med school in the Philippines”. The class suit is being filed by the Northern California chapter...

King undergoes operation BangkokPost.com, Agencies Hospitalised Saturday for treatment of cerebral ischemia, His Majesty the King underwent about eight hours of surgery and related treatment for a blood clot which obstructed the flow of blood to his brain, official Thai News Agency reported. His Majesty was admitted to Bangkok's Siriraj Hospital Saturday for threatment after showing symptoms of loss of strength in the right side of his body, the Royal Household announced. Doctors diagnosed the king, 79, as suffering from lack an inadequate blood supply to the outer part of the left-side of his brain, said the Royal Household in...

Burma peace push starts here United Nations special envoy Ibrahim Gambari is to meet with Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont next week to begin an Asian voyage to craft strategies for dealing with the Burmese military regime, the foreign ministry announced on Friday. "Gambari will first meet with Thai Foreign Minister Nitya Pibulsonggram Monday morning and then with Prime Minister Surayud in the afternoon," ministry spokesman Tharit Charungvat said. After Thailand, Gambari is to travel to Malaysia, Indonesia, India, China and Japan to consult with Asian governments as part of his preparations for a return to Burma some time in November...

The Manila Melting PotLike many cities in developing nations, Manila is not without its pollution and traffic, nor the conspicuous divide between rich and poor. Nevertheless, this bustling Philippines capital, situated on the west coast of the island of Luzon, is a remarkable melting pot of Asian and Latin cultures, thick with history and flavor. When in Manila, sightseeing is protocol. Many history lessons have been learnt while visiting the oldest part of the city, Intramuros (Latin for “within the walls”), which was founded by the Spanish in 1571 and houses numerous historic buildings and churches. Rizal Park, named after...

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) hailed Sunday the United States Congress's passage of a resolution recognizing the commencement of Ramadan as the holy month of fasting and spiritual renewal. In a statement on its website (www.luwaran.com), the MILF described the US Congress' resolution as an "epoch-making" act that will help stop bigotry and racism against 1.5 billion Muslims worldwide. “This is indeed an epoch-making for the rest of the world to follow suit and recognize this holy month observed by fasting by more than one billion Muslims all over the world," said Sheikh Mohammad Muntassir, chairman of the MILF...

Compassionate, concerned people are watching the disturbing and thrilling events in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma. As pro-democracy protesters, sparked by the economic hardships endured by the people under the military dictatorship, face repression they have caught the attention of the world community. Missing from the reportage of major Western media outlets such as the New York Times and BBC News, has been the philosophical identification of the military dictatorship, namely the Burmese way to socialism, which is the state's official ideology.

Rangoon (dpa) - In their ongoing crackdown on dissent in Rangoon, where tens-of-thousands took to the streets in protests last week, military authorities have arrested people who merely clapped for the demonstrators or took pictures of the events, sources said Thursday. On Wednesday night security personnel raided homes situated along Kyartawya Street, east of the Shwedagon Pagoda, and arrested scores of people who had allegedly given moral support to the monk-led peaceful demonstrations that rocked Rangoon between September 18 to 26, informed sources said. "Their crime was for clapping and encouraging the monks," said one observer. The Shwedagon, Rangoon's most...

The new charter stipulated that the CNS, along with the interim government, would leave office when a new elected government was sworn in. Gen Sonthi said yesterday he stepped down as CNS chief because the position no longer had meaning for him after he retired as army chief at the end of last month. ''It is such a relief to be freed of responsibilities as leader of the CNS,'' he said. It was better to hand the CNS top job over to a member who was still in control of the armed forces, he said. Air force chief ACM Chalit...

The country's top brass seem to have learned nothing from the contempt they drew from the international community for their conduct 19 years ago when Burmese generals put down the popular uprising in 1988. Then Gen Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, as the country's army commander-in-chief, blithely headed a high-ranking delegation to Rangoon shortly after the junta's resort to violence left some 3,000 people dead, and sent hundreds of thousands seeking refuge in Thailand. The visit was tantamount to condoning a military dictatorship elsewhere decried for the excesses against demonstrators. The trade-off? Some kind of arrangement involving Burmese timber and fishery. Not long...

The monks have vowed to continue their action Lorries with loudspeakers have been driving through Burma's main city of Rangoon warning residents to stop anti-government protests.The broadcasts threatened that "action will be taken against those who violate this order". But hundreds of monks and civilians defied the threats and began fresh protests at the Shwedagon pagoda. On Monday, there were protests in at least 25 towns, with tens of thousands of people marching in Rangoon. Several military trucks are now parked near Shwedagon pagoda, which has been the focus of the protests. Eyewitnesses said several hundred monks gathered at...

They lived in the Philippines, but they were members of the U.S. armed forces. More than 200,000 of them fought during World War II. Tens of thousands died before the final hard-won triumph over Japan. But in the decades following the war, the title of U.S. veteran -- and resulting compensation -- has eluded them.  Now, Filipino-American World War II veterans, aided by their adult children, have stepped up a decades-long fight to get Congress to recognize them as bona fide U.S. veterans – a move that would qualify them for VA benefits."Our community has been lobbying for this...

MANILA, Philippines -- As a trial-court judge, Florentino V. Floro Jr. acknowledged that he regularly sought the counsel of three elves only he could see. The Supreme Court deemed him unfit to serve and fired him last year. Case closed? Not in the Philippines, where vampires are said to prey on unwary travelers and wealthy politicians consult fortune tellers and card readers. Mr. Floro, 54 years old, has become a media celebrity. He is now wielding his new clout to campaign for the return of his job -- and exact vengeance on the Supreme Court. Helping him, he says, are...

REFILE-China offers to sell military choppers to Manila 05 Sep 2007 09:11:46 GMT Source: Reuters MANILA, Sept 5 (Reuters) - China has offered to sell 8 utility helicopters to the Philippine military as it seeks to replace its Vietnam War-era aircraft, a Philippine air force official said on Wednesday. Defence ties between China and the Philippines -- a longtime U.S. ally -- have grown steadily since 2004 when the two sides launched an annual security dialogue. Beijing has since donated $2.5 million worth of engineering equipment to the military to help it carry out development projects in areas where communist...

About 50 million people are affected in Bangladesh About 140 million people, mainly in developing countries, are being poisoned by arsenic in their drinking water, researchers believe. Speaking at the Royal Geographical Society (RGS) annual meeting in London, scientists said this will lead to higher rates of cancer in the future. South and East Asia account for more than half of the known cases globally. Eating large amounts of rice grown in affected areas could also be a health risk, scientists said. "It's a global problem, present in 70 countries, probably more," said Peter Ravenscroft, a research associate in...

Jose Maria Sison, the former Communist leader in the Philippines, has been arrested in the Netherlands, charged with the murders of two former political associates. 66-year-old Sison has been living in the Netherlands since 1987, and was the founder of the Philippine Communist Party. The party's military wing, the NPA or New People's Army, is waging an armed rebellion across the Philippines that has cost 40,000 lives. The National Public Prosecutor for the Netherlands, John Lucas, explained the reasons for Sison's arrest. "He's suspected of involvement in the murder of two people in the Philippines. We think that he was...

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is keen for the deal to be ratified The Philippine government is urging the country's senate to ratify a $4bn (£2bn) trade deal with Japan, which it says may create more than 300,000 jobs.The agreement, struck last year, would bolster local exports such as shrimp to Japan, the government said, a market being eyed by trading rival Thailand. Japan has also pledged to employ at least 1,000 Philippine nurses. But the opposition-dominated senate has objected with claims the deal would see toxic waste sent to the Philippines. However, this has been denied by the government, which...

The researchers disovered at least 74 new temples The great medieval temple of Angkor Wat in Cambodia was once at the centre of a sprawling urban settlement, according to a new, detailed map of the area.Using Nasa satellites, an international team have discovered at least 74 new temples and complex irrigation systems. The map, published in the journal PNAS, extends the known settlement by 1000 sq km, about the size of Los Angeles. Analysis also lends weight to the theory that Angkor's residents were architects of the city's demise. "The large-scale city engineered its own downfall by disrupting its...

Asean members hope to adopt the charter formally later this year Ministers from South-East Asian countries have reached agreement on a landmark draft charter. The document gives the Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean) a set of binding rules for the first time in the bloc's 40-year existence. The agreement comes after nearly two years of deliberations among members. It includes a contentious provision to set up a commission monitoring human rights in the region - despite strong misgivings from some Asean countries. Credibility boost With governments in the region running the gamut from fully-fledged democracies to a military...

MANILA: Southeast Asian diplomats have completed the first draft of a landmark charter for the region, but left out a provision creating a human rights body after a row, a senior official said yesterday. The issue will now be decided at a meeting of foreign ministers of the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) today in Manila. “We’ve done our part,” said the official, who declined to be named because he was not authorised to speak for the task force that is drafting the charter. “We’re leaving it to our ministers to decide on how to deal with the...

Islamic militants in the southern Philippines have killed 14 marines, beheading 10 of them, a military spokesman has said. Nine other marines were wounded and at least four rebels were killed during the incident on Basilan island. The clash took place as the marines were searching for an Italian priest. The priest was seized in June by kidnappers believed to be from either Abu Sayyaf or the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. Both groups are seeking an independent Islamic state in the southern Philippines. Ceasefire violation? The priest, named as Giancarlo Bossi, was seized by armed men near the coastal village...

JAKARTA (AFP) - Muslim hardliners stormed a church in Indonesia during services, smashing images of Jesus Christ and demanding that it be closed down, the pastor said on Monday. Dozens of churches have had to be closed in the Muslim-majority country in recent years, and Sunday's attack was the second on the small Protestant church in the West Java town of Soreang since 2005. Reverend Robby Elisa, who heads the church, said around 100 hardliners attacked while Sunday school was in session. He said his wife was beaten and that at least four stained glass depictions of Jesus were smashed....

Three people have been killed after a bomb exploded at a bus station in the southern Philippines.A young boy was among the dead and at least 15 other people were hurt in the blast, in the city of Cotabato. Local police told reporters it was unlikely the explosion was related to the country's mid-term elections, held earlier this week. Cotabato is on Mindanao island, where Islamic militants have been fighting the largely Catholic government. Police chief Jomar Yap told the Associated Press that an improvised explosive device was left in a cluster of stalls at the station. "Witnesses heard...

Six road workers kidnapped by Abu Sayyaf extremists were found beheaded Thursday in Jolo. The severed heads of the six mostly-Christian workers were found in the jungles of Jolo by soldiers, four days after the workers were seized while heading to a government road project, said Major General Ruben Rafael. The workers were seized by Al Bader Parad, a commander of the Abu Sayyaf, responsible for the worst terror attacks in Philippine history. One of the soldiers who found the remains said, on condition of anonymity, that the heads had been scattered in various places in Jolo. The soldier said...

The Philippine government and a Muslim rebel group have been urged to end a three-day battle that has left at least 12 people dead and displaced thousands.The Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) called on both sides to abide by a 1996 peace agreement. Government troops and helicopter gunships pounded a base of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) on southern Jolo island at the weekend. It followed a mortar attack on two marine camps on Friday. That attack, which killed two marines and a child, has been blamed on an MNLF commander, Habier Malik. Government forces retaliated by...

Journalists caught a rare glimpse of Burma's military leader Than Shwe Burma's military rulers have been showing off their new capital for the first time to the outside world. The new city, called Naypyidaw, or Abode of Kings, is being built about 460km (300 miles) north of the old capital, Rangoon. Until now few outsiders were allowed to go there, but the foreign media has been invited to the capital to watch the huge Armed Forces Day parade. However, it is still not clear why the generals have moved here. The rutted and overcrowded roads of Burma suddenly give...

Mr Howard will hold talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Australian Prime Minister John Howard has arrived in Japan on a visit which will include the signing of a bilateral security pact. The declaration is thought to include co-operation on terrorism, peacekeeping and disaster relief. The government has dismissed suggestions that the defence deal could strain ties with China. Meanwhile, Australian diplomats are due in North Korea for talks on its nuclear programme. The delegation will urge Pyongyang to abide by its agreement last month to start dismantling its nuclear facilities. Such progress could result in Australian aid,...

After more than 60 years of silence, World War II's most enduring and horrible secret is being nudged into the light of day. One by one the participants, white-haired and mildmannered, line up to tell their dreadful stories before they die. Akira Makino is a frail widower living near Osaka in Japan. His only unusual habit is to regularly visit an obscure little town in the southern Philippines, where he gives clothes to poor children and has set up war memorials. Mr Makino was stationed there during the war. What he never told anybody, including his wife, was that during...

Globally, remittances make up about $230bn Money sent home by Filipinos working overseas last year totalled a record $12.8bn (£6.5bn), the Philippines' central bank has said.The remittances - a 20% rise on 2005 - account for about 10% of the country's economy, the bank added. Most of the eight million overseas workers are in the US or Middle East. According to the World Bank, the Philippines is the fifth-largest recipient of foreign remittances behind India, China, Mexico and France. It has forecast that Filipinos will send home about $14.1bn this year. Their remittances play an increasingly significant role in...

Chinese-made bus on the streets of Manila, Philippines. Bus export offensive I am referring to China ’s juggernaut that has claimed for itself a substantial space on the most visible place possible—our major roads and highways. This is China’s bus export offensive into the country, which in a period of less than five years has made inroads so impressive that experts say it is all set to dominate the Philippine market in a decade or less. Two conditions though for this to happen: its Japanese and European competitors fail to carry out dramatic moves. And South Korea does not...

The military is being told to concentrate on defence Vietnam's leaders have decided to remove dozens of companies from the control of the armed forces and the ruling Communist Party. The companies will instead be transferred to civilian ownership. The decision, taken last week by the Communist Party's main policy-making body, the Central Committee, represents a significant break with the past. Many state and party organisations have made large amounts of money by going into business. Vietnam's armed forces own a mobile phone company, a bank, shipbuilders, textile factories and even hotels - in total more than 100 firms....

SINGAPORE, Oct 7 (Reuters) - Visibility plunged to 50 metres in parts of Borneo island on Saturday and Singapore recorded its highest pollution reading in nearly a decade as fires in Indonesia sent acrid smoke across Southeast Asia. Singapore issued its first haze-related health warning this year. The daily air pollution index hit 128, the National Environment Agency said on its Web site (www.nea.gov.sg). A reading above 100 is rated unhealthy. In Central Kalimantan, on the Indonesian side of Borneo, visibility in some places had plunged to 50 metres (165 ft) governor Agustin Teras Narang told Elshinta radio. Hundreds sought...

The Myanmarese news website 'Mizzima News' reported that Indian troops have moved into the Indo-Burmese border region of Moreh. India and Myanmar have had a very good military relationship with Myanmar helping India with tackling border insurgencies. About 50 Indian military trucks believed to be carrying weapons crossed the border into Burma last Thursday, according to eyewitnesses. "Five trucks full of soldiers followed the 50 trucks," a resident in Moreh said. The backs of the trucks were reportedly covered with plastic sheets. The Burmese embassy in India refused to comment on what the trucks were carrying. Security was tightened in...

While Iraqis might be celebrating the death of al-Zarqawi and his death reportably being praised around the world, the reality over here seems quite different from what is being reported in much of the Western media. The initial reaction from Southeast Asia this morning seems a bit tempered with many of the local population not even being aware of the news reporting his death. Much of the local population relies on print and televison for their news with the internet penetration rates still well below that of the West. Zarqawi's death is hardly making any headline news over here. This...

Australian Prime Minister John Howard has a record that is the envy of conservative leaders around the world. Recently elected to a fourth term (with an enhanced majority, to boot), he has charted a distinctive and largely successful course for Australia's international relations over the past decade. As the Harper government begins to formulate its own approach to foreign policy, Mr. Howard arrives in Ottawa at an opportune moment. Under Mr. Howard's leadership, Australia's ties with the United States have warmed considerably, stemming in large part from Canberra's staunch support for U.S.-led anti-terrorism initiatives and the invasion of Iraq. Mr....

The fall of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has thrown Thailand into uncertainty. Thaksin will remain at the head of his Thai Rak Thai party and has not ruled out a possible comeback, so the rough road has not yet reached its end. But if Thai politics are in for more political jockeying, what about the rest of Southeast Asia? What about the political fortunes of his fellow leaders in the region, some of whom emerged around the same time? Is Thailand alone? The uncertainty in Thailand is not likely to have any shattering effect on the region. But it is...

Cut-price air travel has arrived in South-East Asia - and it is making the same kind of impact as it did in Europe and the United States. Well-established national carriers that have enjoyed near-monopolies are finally being challenged. The newcomers use a similar business model to internet-based operations in Europe and the US. Because of the limited access to computers in some countries in the region, tickets are also available through travel agents. But the same principle applies: the earlier you book, the cheaper the ticket. One of the main players is the Kuala Lumpur-based Air Asia, a company that...

Asia Rising Donald Rumsfeld infamously made a distinction between Old Europe and New Europe. He has been scored ever since for his sweeping and impolitic language, but he wasn't sweeping enough: In geopolitical terms, all of Europe is old, the world's most tourist-friendly museum piece. For the future of high-stakes U.S. diplomacy and of great-power politics, look no further than Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to the U.S. It is Asia that should occupy an outsized place in our strategic thinking, and it is Europe that should be the relative afterthought, not the other way around. The media and foreign-policy...

In Southeast Asia, home to one of the world's most strategic sea lanes—the Straits of Malacca, and the world's second largest port, Singapore—the vulnerability of the maritime sector is of great concern. As a result, over the last few years various scenarios of how terrorists might carry out an attack in the maritime domain have been put forward by the media and academics alike. Many of these potential scenarios are extremely unlikely due to their complicated nature and their sheer impracticability. Nevertheless, a great number of these scenarios have remained unchallenged due to a lack of knowledge of the geography...

JAKARTA (AP): Southeast Asian terrorists are "regrouping, adapting and recruiting," and more regional cooperation is required to defeat them, Indonesia's president said Monday. In a speech to lawmakers from the Asia-Pacific region, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono warned that the campaign against militants would be a long one, and said it would need to be fought on "political, economical, legal, social and spiritual" fronts. "We know that the terrorists are regrouping, adapting and recruiting," he said. "We all need to intensify our cooperation to fight terrorism." Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation, is a key front in the war against terrorism...