Top Asian News 3:59 a.m. GMT

Malaysia approves a new search for MH370 more than a decade after the plane disappeared

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Malaysia’s government has given final approval for a Texas-based marine robotics company to renew the search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, which is believed to have crashed in the southern Indian Ocean more than a decade ago. Cabinet ministers agreed to terms and conditions for a “no-find, no-fee” contract with Texas-based Ocean Infinity to resume the seabed search operation at a new 15,000-square-kilometer (5,800-square-mile) site in the ocean, Transport Minister Anthony Loke said in a statement Wednesday. Ocean Infinity will be paid $70 million only if wreckage is discovered. The Boeing 777 plane vanished from radar shortly after taking off on March 8, 2014, carrying 239 people, mostly Chinese nationals, on a flight from Malaysia’s capital, Kuala Lumpur, to Beijing.

30 years after deadly Tokyo subway gassing, survivors and victims’ families still seeking closure

TOKYO (AP) — Thirty years on from the fatal sarin nerve gas attack in Tokyo’s subway network, survivors and families who lost loved ones are still seeking justice. Thirteen people were killed and thousands were sickened when cult members released sarin nerve gas in the capital’s subway trains on March 20, 1995. The attack remains one of the most shocking atrocities in Japan, a country known for its low crime rates. The cult, Aum Shinrikyo or Supreme Truth, has since disbanded. Its founder, Shoko Asahara, and 12 of his disciples were executed in 2018. But 1,600 former members still operate under renamed groups and have ignored an order to pay damages to survivors and bereaved families.

Muslims with tattoo regrets flock to a free removal service during Ramadan

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Teguh Islean Septura groans in pain as each staccato rat-a-tat-tat of the laser fires an intense beam at the elaborate tattoos on his arm. But the former musician’s determination to “repent” in the holy month of Ramadan is enough to keep him going. The 30-year-old guitarist got his back, arms and legs tattooed to “look cool” when he was performing in a band. But these days Septura has a newfound zeal for Islam, including the conviction that Muslims should not alter the body that God gave them. “As humans, sometimes we make mistakes. Now I want to improve myself by moving closer to God,” Seputra said, as a health worker aimed the white laser wand at Septura’s skin, blasting the red, green and black pigments with its penetrating light.

Canada says China executed four Canadians earlier this year

TORONTO (AP) — China executed four Canadians in recent months, Canada’s foreign affairs minister said Wednesday. Such executions of Westerners are relatively rare. Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly said she and former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asked for clemency in the drug-related accusations involving the dual citizens. Beijing’s embassy in Ottawa said the executions were due to drug crimes and noted that China does not recognize dual citizenship. “We strongly condemn the executions,” Joly told reporters in Ottawa. “I asked personally for leniency ... They were all dual citizens.” Joly said Canada consistently asks for clemency for Canadians facing the death penalty abroad.

USAID cuts jeopardize Agent Orange cleanup and other efforts critical to ties with Vietnam

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — At a former American air base in southern Vietnam, work abruptly stopped last month on efforts to clean up tons of soil contaminated with deadly dioxin from the military’s Agent Orange defoliant. The Trump administration’s broad cuts to USAID also halted efforts to clear unexploded American munitions and landmines, a rehabilitation program for war victims, and work on a museum exhibit detailing U.S. efforts to remediate the damage of the Vietnam War. In addition to exposing thousands of people to health hazards, the cuts risk jeopardizing hard-won diplomatic gains with Vietnam, whose strategic importance is growing as the U.S.

Takeaways from the AP’s report on how USAID cuts are imperiling Agent Orange cleanup

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — At a former American air base in southern Vietnam, work abruptly stopped last month on efforts to clean up tons of soil contaminated with deadly dioxin from the military’s Agent Orange defoliant. The Trump administration’s broad cuts to USAID also halted efforts to clear unexploded American munitions and landmines, a rehabilitation program for war victims, and work on a museum exhibit detailing U.S. efforts to remediate the damage of the Vietnam War. In addition to exposing thousands of people to health hazards, the cuts risk jeopardizing hard-won diplomatic gains with Vietnam, which is strategically increasingly important as the U.S.

Bangladesh security officials arrest commander of Rohingya armed group

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Security officials in Bangladesh arrested the leader of a Rohingya insurgent group on charges of illegal entry, sabotage and terrorist activities in the South Asian nation, where there are more than 1 million Rohingya refugees from neighboring Myanmar. Police said that a team of the Rapid Action Battalion arrested Ataullah Abu Ammar Jununi, known as the commander-in-chief of Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army in a raid Tuesday in Narayanganj district near the capital, Dhaka. Jununi, a Pakistani-born Rohingya who grew up in Mecca, leads a group that has conducted attacks on officials in Myanmar as part of what it describes as “a defensive war with the brutal Burmese military regime” on behalf of the Rohingya, who face discrimination and violence in Myanmar.

Trade resumes as Pakistan and Afghanistan reopen key Torkham border crossing after nearly a month

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — Trade between Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan resumed on Wednesday at a key border post following a dispute that turned into exchanges of gunfire, officials and local elders said. The northwestern Torkham border crossing — just one of two main trade routes between the neighbors — had been shut for nearly a month because of the dispute over Afghanistan’s construction of a border post. The Torkham crossing is in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where Pakistani Taliban militants frequently target security forces. It has been closed a number of times in recent years, mainly following clashes between security forces for reasons including Pakistan’s repairs of the border fence.

Rights group says Pakistan steps up pressure on Afghans to return home where they risk persecution

ISLAMABAD (AP) — A leading rights group said on Wednesday that Pakistan’s authorities have intensified pressure on Afghan refugees to go back to neighboring Afghanistan, where they risk persecution by the Taliban and face dire economic conditions. “Pakistani officials should immediately stop coercing Afghans to return home and give those facing expulsion the opportunity to seek protection,” said Elaine Pearson, Asia director at New York-based Human Rights Watch. “The Taliban authorities in Afghanistan should prevent any reprisals against returning Afghans and reverse their abusive policies against women and girls,” she said. Pakistan set a March 31 deadline for the deportation of all foreigners living illegally in the country.

Hong Kong’s leader swipes at Trump but avoids criticism of tycoon’s deal to sell Panama Port assets

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong’s leader has waded into a controversy over a prominent conglomerate’s decision to sell its Panama Canal port assets to a consortium including American investment bank BlackRock Inc., a deal that has angered Beijing and highlights how escalating tensions between Beijing and Washington can leave the Chinese financial center’s business leaders trapped in the middle. Chief Executive John Lee told reporters at a weekly news briefing that CK Hutchison Holdings’ in-principle agreement to sell its controlling stake in a company operating ports at both ends of the Panama Canal was being discussed extensively and concerns raised about the deal deserve serious attention.