Muslims took to the streets in huge protests around Asia after Friday prayers, sparked by remarks about the Prophet Mohammed by an Indian ruling party official that embroiled the country in a diplomatic storm.Anger has engulfed the Islamic world since last week, when a spokeswoman for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling party commented on the relationship between the prophet and his youngest wife on a TV debate show.Around 20 countries have since called in their Indian ambassadors and

For the first time in 33 years, church services to commemorate the Tiananmen crackdown will not be held in Hong Kong, erasing one of the last reminders of China's bloody suppression of the 1989 protests.Since Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law in 2020 to snuff out pro-democracy demonstrations, once-packed candlelit vigils have been banned, a Tiananmen museum has been forced to close, and statues have been pulled down.The annual Catholic masses were one of the last ways for

The only post on Tan Mei Qian's Instagram profile is a picture of her and two friends delivering a letter to Singapore's President.The letter contained a request to spare the life of Datchinamurthy Kataiah, a 36-year-old man who has been languishing on death row for the past seven years.His crime – trafficking 44 grams of heroin, around three tablespoons worth, into Singapore."The media is heavily censored.

Hundreds of students at an elite Beijing university have protested against strict COVID-19 curbs on campus, in a rare show of defiance as anger mounts over virus controls.China is the only major country adhering to a rigid zero-COVID policy and its restrictions have prompted frustration with lockdowns, spartan quarantine facilities and heavy-handed enforcement.In Beijing – which has reported more than 1,000 infections in recent weeks – most restaurants and public spaces have been shut and mil

Since early April protesters had been demanding that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Mahinda, his prime minister, quit for leading the country to economic ruin – but this week saw a decisive turning point.First, Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned after his supporters attacked anti-government protesters, triggering deadly clashes across the country.

April was, by all accounts, a cruel month for the residents of Shanghai.As an Omicron-induced outbreak of COVID-19 swept across China’s biggest city, millions of people were confined to their homes.

At about noon last Tuesday, Yu Wenming, an 82-year-old man in Shanghai, called his local residential committee for help. “I’ve used up my medicines. Nor do I have anything to eat. I’m feeling awful,” Yu, who had tested positive for COVID, told the party secretary, Zhang Zhen.Zhang listened patiently, saying he had already referred the case to his superiors and there was nothing he could do. “Do you mean I should just wait here until I die, then?” Yu asked.

Street protests gripped Sri Lanka Friday as demonstrators blocked main roads across the country, a day after hundreds tried to storm the president's home in anger over an unprecedented economic crisis.The South Asian nation is facing severe shortages of essentials, sharp price rises and crippling power cuts in its most painful downturn since independence from Britain in 1948.Police reimposed a night-time curfew Friday in the Western Province, which includes the capital Colombo, slightly

Pro-Ukraine protests erupted across the world on Saturday, as thousands took to the streets from London to Rome to Barcelona to denounce Russia's assault on its neighbour.Moscow's invasion has sparked global outcry and prompted punishing sanctions from the West, including some against Russian President Vladimir Putin himself.On Saturday, rallies were held in cities across the world to join the chorus of condemnation and urge an end to the bloodshed.Switzerland saw thousands of peopl

Hundreds of headbanging metalheads rock out to the roaring guitars and thundering drums of Thai band Defying Decay, chanting along to their latest politically charged tune.The group's single "The Law 112: Secrecy and Renegades" is a raucous, defiant anthem with a taboo-defying message – challenging Thailand's draconian lese majeste laws.Criticising the royal family is punishable by up to 15 years in jail, but calls for royal reform – once completely off-limits – spilled in