United States (US) President Donald Trump ramped up his attacks on Silicon Valley giants on Thursday with a call for "regulatory and legislative solutions" to what he described as unfair treatment of conservatives by major online platforms.At a White House social media "summit," Trump excluded internet firms from the gathering of conservative activists who have been curbed on social media.But he said he would invite those companies in the coming weeks for "a big meeti

The United States (US) Department of Justice's mushrooming investigation into the scandal-ridden Malaysian state fund 1MDB has extended to Deutsche Bank, two people familiar with the matter said on Thursday.The big German bank, which announced deep job cuts earlier this week and is embroiled in other high-profile government probes, says it is cooperating with the investigation and maintains that it is a victim in the scandal.The Justice Department is looking into whether Deutsche Bank br

Thailand's new civilian government will retain the power to arbitrarily detain critics despite the imminent easing of junta-era security controls, prompting warnings from rights groups of enduring "martial law".Nearly 2,000 people have been tried in military courts since now-prime minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha seized power in a 2014 coup.The junta eased a ban on political activities last year in the run-up to national elections and the former army chief phased out dozens of additi

China demanded Tuesday that the United States (US) "immediately cancel" a potential sale of US$2.2 billion in arms to self-ruled Taiwan, including battle tanks and anti-aircraft missiles, adding fuel to tensions between the two powers.The US later shrugged off China's complaints, responding that the equipment would contribute to "peace and stability" in Asia.The sale would be the first transfer of big-ticket US military gear to the democratically-governed island in de

More than 60 people were found stranded near a boat in Myanmar's Rakhine state, an official said Monday, as a trafficking route for persecuted Rohingya Muslims appears open for business despite a crackdown.Each year thousands of Rohingya and stateless Bangladeshis try to reach Malaysia or Indonesia by sea.But boatloads commonly wash up on the shores of Myanmar or Thailand, especially in the treacherous conditions brought by the monsoon season.63 "Muslims" were found early Sunda

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's narcotics crackdown has become a "systematic" campaign of killing, Amnesty International alleged on Monday, urging the United Nations (UN) to launch a probe into thousands of deaths.The drug war is Duterte's signature initiative and is heavily supported by many Filipinos, but the nightly slaying of suspects by police and masked gunmen has provoked international condemnation.In a speech just hours after Amnesty issued its report attack

Thrown off a motorbike as her parents blew themselves up, nine-year-old Mila was the sole survivor of a family suicide bombing, part of a wave of such attacks involving children that rocked Indonesia.Orphaned and radicalised, there were concerns for her future after the Islamic State (IS)-inspired strike, but a renewed focus on rehabilitating the children of terror suspects may offer Mila, and others like her, a chance at normality.She is among a small group who are being treated at a Jakarta

A Philippine senator who initially led President Rodrigo Duterte's deadly drug war sparked outrage Thursday when he dismissed the killing of a toddler in a police anti-narcotics operation with an expletive and as collateral damage.Ex-Philippine police chief Ronald Dela Rosa, who won a senate seat in May, made the comments as police burned 1.4 tonnes (over 3,000 pounds) of seized narcotics while warning the nation still faced a flood of illegal drugs.Authorities said a three-year-old girl

“This is no longer an apology, but a threat.” That was what Chaturon Chaisang, a leader of the now-defunct Thai Raksa Chart Party, wrote online in response to a statement Thailand Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha released earlier this week.In a letter released to the media on Monday, Prayut apologised for an ongoing fight among coalition parties to secure key cabinet posts.

Over 200 guests fell ill with suspected food poisoning Wednesday after a meal at a birthday party for 90-year-old Imelda Marcos, the notorious former first lady of the Philippines.Ambulances rushed vomiting friends and supporters from a sports stadium in Manila where around 2,500 people gathered to honour the widow of late dictator Ferdinand Marcos.Although Marcos was chased from power by a 1986 peaceful uprising, the family is still revered by many in the Philippines and has made a political