Top Asian News 3:41 a.m. GMT

Commuter traffic gives way for whales on Australia’s humpback highway

PORT STEPHENS, Australia (AP) — The ferry was late, but not because of the usual traffic. Sydney commuters watched from an idling boat this month as humpback whales the size of buses surfaced nearby, halting the vessel’s passage across the harbor. The curious mammals seemed to be watching them back. In June and July, it’s not uncommon for whales to stop water traffic in Sydney. Winter heralds the opening of the so-called humpback highway, a migratory corridor along Australia’s east coast used by about 40,000 of the massive creatures as they travel from feeding grounds in freezing Antarctica to tropical breeding areas off Queensland state.

North Korea opening a tourist site on its east coast next week that’s key to its tourism hopes

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea next week will open a signature tourist site on its east coast that it called a prelude to a new era in its tourism industry, though there is no word on when the country will fully reopen its borders to foreign visitors. The Wonsan-Kalma coastal tourist zone has hotels and other accommodations for nearly 20,000 guests who can swim in the sea, play sports and other recreation activities and eat at restaurants and cafeterias on site, state media said. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un toured the site and cut the inaugural tape at a lavish ceremony Tuesday, the official Korean Central News Agency reported Thursday.

POWs, abductees, defectors and separated families are the legacy of the Korean War

GIMPO, South Korea (AP) — Prisoners of war held for decades after the fighting stopped. Civilian abductees. Defectors. Separated families. They are Koreans who symbolize the decades of division and bitter animosities between North and South Korea, which have been split by a heavily fortified border since the 1950-53 Korean War. North and South Koreans aren’t allowed to exchange visits, phone calls or letters with their loved ones on the other side. Wednesday is the 75th anniversary of the war’s beginning. The Associated Press spoke with Koreans whose pain and sorrow likely won’t be healed anytime soon as diplomacy between the Koreas remains dormant.

Thailand banning cannabis sales without a prescription 3 years after decriminalization

BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand is further tightening control of cannabis by banning sales of the plant to those without prescriptions. Thailand became the first country in Asia to decriminalize cannabis in 2022, in a move that boosted Thailand’s tourism and farming, and spawned thousands of shops. But the country has faced public backlash over allegations that under-regulation has made the drug available to children and caused addiction. Health Minister Somsak Thepsutin signed an order Monday that bans shops from selling cannabis to customers without a prescription. It also seeks to reclassify cannabis buds as a controlled herb. Phanurat Lukboon, secretary-general of the Office of the Narcotics Control Board, said Wednesday that his agency is ready to study and implement the change in regulations.

Jakarta volunteers hit the road to sweep away sneaky nail traps

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Clad in reflective vests and waving traffic control sticks, a spirited crew on a main road in central Jakarta cheerfully waved to people as they cleared hidden hazards with iron bars and circle magnets tied to ropes. The volunteer team covered half a kilometer (0.3 miles) and scooped up a haul of sharp metal including nails, threaded bolts and scraps of umbrella frames during what they considered a good Saturday morning’s work making the streets of Indonesia’s capital safer from “nail traps.” Jakarta’s main roads are notorious for the patches of sharp metal pieces that are believed to be spread by vandals intent on damaging the tires of cars and motorbikes, usually on main roads where traffic moves fast.

‘Not something to celebrate': As it turns 80 and faces dwindling global clout, can the UN survive？

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations, a collaborative global dream built into reality out of the ashes of World War II, marks its 80th anniversary this month. There’s little to celebrate. Its clout on the world stage is diminished. Facing major funding cuts from the United States and others, it has been forced to shed jobs and start tackling long-delayed reforms. Its longtime credo of “multilateralism” is under siege. Its most powerful body, the Security Council, has been blocked from taking action to end the two major wars in Ukraine and Gaza. And as the latest conflict between Israel, Iran and the United States flared, it watched from the sidelines.

Japanese court convicts a US Marine in sexual assault, sentencing him to 7 years in prison

TOKYO (AP) — A Japanese court has found a U.S. Marine guilty of sexually assaulting a woman on Okinawa and sentenced him to seven years in prison, in a case that has triggered anger and safety concerns on Japan’s southern island, which has a heavy American troop presence. The Naha District Court said Lance Cpl. Jamel Clayton, 22, of Ohio, was sentenced in the case on Tuesday. Clayton was found guilty of attacking the woman in her 20s in the Yomitan village on the main Okinawa island in May, 2024, choking her from behind, sexually assaulting her and causing her injuries.

Bipartisan bill aims to block Chinese AI from federal agencies

WASHINGTON (AP) — Legislation introduced Wednesday in Congress would block Chinese artificial intelligence systems from federal agencies as a bipartisan group of lawmakers pledged to ensure that the United States would prevail against China in the global competition over AI. “We are in a new Cold War, and AI is the strategic technology at the center,” said Republican Rep. John Moolenaar of Michigan, chairman of the House Select Committee on China, as he opened a hearing on the matter. “The future balance of power may very well be determined by who leads in AI.” About five months ago, a Chinese technology startup called DeepSeek introduced an AI model that rivaled platforms from OpenAI and Google in performance, but cost only a fraction to build.

Rescuers retrieve body of Brazilian hiker who fell from Indonesian volcano

SEMBALUN, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesian rescuers on Wednesday retrieved the body of a Brazilian hiker who died after falling from the ridge of a volcano, officials said. The 26-year-old Juliana Marins fell on Mount Rinjani on the island of Lombok. The retrieval took at least five hours due to the rocky and steep terrain and foggy weather. “With this stretcher, it takes quite a long time,” said Mohammad Syafii, head of Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency. Indonesian authorities confirmed her death on Tuesday after the rescuers reached and examined the body, which was found using a thermal drone after four days of intensive searches complicated by terrain and weather.

Astronauts from India, Poland and Hungary blast off on a privately funded trip to the space station

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — India, Poland and Hungary launched their first astronauts in more than 40 years Wednesday, sending them on a private flight to the International Space Station. The three countries shared the tab for the two-week mission. Axiom Space, the Houston company that arranged the deal, put the ticket price at more than $65 million per customer. SpaceX’s Falcon rocket blasted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center two weeks late because of space station leak concerns. The capsule on top carried not only the three newcomers to space — none of whom were alive when their countries’ first astronauts launched — but America’s most experienced astronaut, Peggy Whitson.