Asia Bangladesh Local authorities opened criminal proceedings against British Treasury Minister Siddiq, allegedly abusing her position as an MP to gain influence and illegally acquire land together with her aunt Hasina, the ousted prime minister; Ms. Siddiq resigned
Asia Indonesia Plans have been proposed to set a minimum age for social media use; experts urge careful study and public input to balance safety and access: concerns include enforcement challenges and impacts on digital rights, education, and information access
Asia Lebanon Newly elected Lebanese President Joseph Aoun has appointed the head of the International Court of Justice, Nawaf Salam, as Prime Minister, a position vacant for two years due to Lebanon's political stalemate
Asia Israel Israeli historian Ilan Pappe said he believes there are many factors, from the Trump presidency to international isolation, that show that Zionism is entering its 'last phase' before its collapse
Asia Azerbaijan An Azerbaijan Trade Centre in Lahore,Pakistan and a Pakistani-Azerbaijani Chamber of Commerce will soon be established to bring business communities of both countries closer together and open new avenues for cooperation, said the Azerbaijani ambassador
Asia Bahrain Bahrain is planning a $30 billion increase in infrastructure projects, which include 22 large developments including five artificial islands
Asia Brunei The signing ceremony of the Haj management agreement for Brunei Darussalam pilgrims for the 2025 season took place recently in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, with the Minister of Religious Affairs representing the country
Asia Kuwait The country is considering the introduction of Value Added Tax as other Gulf Cooperation Council countries, such as Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, have increased VAT rates to 15% and 10% respectively
Asia Kyrgyzstan The Kyrgyz Parliament's Committee on Budget, Economic and Fiscal Policy adopted at first reading amendments that will allow the National Bank of Kyrgyzstan to launch a pilot project on the prototype of the national digital currency 'digital som'
Asia Maldives The Maldives Immigration, referring to the Henley Passport Index, announced that the Maldivian passport was again ranked as the strongest in South Asia
Asia Armenia Figures by EU source show a 400% increase in Armenia-EU air transport passenger flow since 2018; in the first 6 days of 2025, arrivals have registered a 19,4% increase on same days of 2024
Asia North Korea Ukraine released the first testimony of North Korean soldiers captured while fighting for Russia in the Kursk region: two wounded North Korean soldiers were captured and taken to Kiev for treatment and later interrogation
Asia Qatar The Warif Academy has been launched: it is the first government academy of its kind for students with multiple disabilities in Qatar, upon initiative of the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, in cooperation with the Qatar Foundation