Asia Cambodia The Ministry of Environment plans to establish 4 nursery stations in Kampong Speu, Koh Kong, Siem Reap and Thbong Khmum provinces; each station will accommodate at least one million tree seedlings responsive to different sorts of land and weather
Asia Qatar The country described as 'destructive' leaked audio statements by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticising Qatar's efforts to mediate with Hamas as 'problematic', complicating the already difficult negotiations
Asia Philippines The government will give priority to Philippine-made vehicles in the Utility Vehicle Modernisation Programme, assured House Speaker Martin Romualdez in a message to local manufacturers of modern jeepneys
Asia Pakistan Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, Imran Khan's party in crisis, is facing difficult times ahead of the elections and the party's official website 'Insaf. pk' has been blocked; the party has asked the relevant authorities to explain why its site has been blocked
Asia Azerbaijan Only a month after the first UN climate summit, Azerbaijan, the next host, announced a 28-strong organising committee without a single woman; after criticism, it added 12 women to the committee
Asia Bhutan Bhutan presented the masterplan for the Gelephu City of Awareness, which proposes a low-density urban destination for business, culture and spirituality that will be located near the border with India
Asia Sri Lanka The Government Medical Association yesterday started an indefinite strike, as the government temporarily suspended the disturbance, availability and transport allowance, which had been increased by Rs 35.000 ($110) from January, as previously promised
Asia Thailand Asset managers will soon be able to create funds to invest in forestry and tree planting projects, after regulators are seeking to diversify capital markets and provide funding to sectors that support the goal of carbon neutrality
Asia Turkmenistan The World Trade Organisation reported that the country intends to finalise its Memorandum on Foreign Trade Regime by mid-2024; the submission of this document is one of the conditions for WTO accession
Asia Yemen Turbulence in Red Sea caused tanker prices to soar 182%, changing the dynamics of global shipping, according to Bloomberg; tanker industry revenues are soaring to unprecedented levels with rates on some routes rising by the most in a single day since 2022
Asia United Arab Emirates UAE residents stuck in daily traffic are estimated to lose the equivalent of one day a month, according to motorists who spoke to Khaleej Times
Asia Japan A Japanese court has sentenced to death Shinji Aoba, the man behind the 2019 attack on Kyoto Animation, one of Japan's most important animation studios; Aoba, now 45, set fire to the studio's headquarters, causing 36 deaths and several injuries
Asia Kazakhstan The number of measles cases in Europe skyrocketed in 2023, to the point that WHO called for an urgent vaccination effort to stop the spread: Kazakhstan and Russia had the worst of it, with around 10.000 cases each from January to October last year