Asia Philippines A bill to protect women and children from all forms of electronic violence, including those involved in the manipulation of technology, was passed on third and final reading by the House of Representatives
Asia Oman Registration is now open for the 10th National Prize for Scientific Research, as announced by the Ministry of Higher Education
Asia North Korea A large-scale memorial event for the late military officer Hyon Chol Hae was held in the country in a ceremony described as "surprising" by analysts, with honours typically reserved exclusively for members of the Kim family
Asia Uzbekistan According to a new study by the Asian Development Bank, the adoption of artificial intelligence and other disruptive technologies could create more than 430.000 net new jobs in just two key sectors in Uzbekistan by 2025
Asia Cambodia The sale and consumption of alcohol will be banned for two days, 22 and 23 July, when national elections will be held in the country - the announcement came from the Minister of Tourism
Asia Iraq UN officials urged the country to push ahead with planned political and economic reforms, preserve women's rights and continue talks with Kuwait for compensation of Kuwaitis who disappeared in 1990 Iraqi invasion
Asia India A three-day synchronised elephant census took place in Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu after an interval of six years; as elephant habitats often span two states, synchronization was decided to avoid double counting
Asia Cyprus Nicosia will host three distinct book bazaars this May, one coming up this weekend and the other two taking place just before the month ends
Asia Afghanistan In western Farah province construction has begun on the Bakhsh Abad Dam; expected to be completed in five phases, the major project will be able to irrigate more than 100.000 hectares of land, as well as generate electricity for the population
Asia Mongolia As the Mining Exchange Law will come into force on 1 July, the identification of parties involved in the online coal trade of the Mining Exchange has begun
Asia Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia's first female astronaut to travel to space, Rayyanah Barnawi, a breast cancer researcher, will depart for the International Space Station today on the Axiom Space 2 mission, according to US space agency NASA
Asia Georgia Hundreds of Georgians took to the streets to protest the rapprochement after Russia restored visa-free travel for Georgian citizens on 10 May and lifted the ban on direct flights between the two countries imposed in 2019
Asia East Timor Parliamentary elections in East Timor are scheduled for today 21 May 2023; the President is directly elected by absolute majority vote in up to two rounds