Top Asian News 4:22 a.m. GMT

South Korea’s governing party head supports suspending Yoon’s powers, making impeachment more likely

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s governing party chief showed support Friday for suspending the constitutional powers of President Yoon Suk Yeol for imposing martial law this week, in a bombshell reversal that makes Yoon’s impeachment more likely. Opposition parties are pushing for a parliamentary vote on Yoon’s impeachment on Saturday, calling his short-lived martial law declaration an “unconstitutional, illegal rebellion or coup.” But they need support from some members of the president’s People Power Party to get the two-thirds majority required to pass the impeachment motion. The turmoil resulting from Yoon’s nighttime martial law decree has frozen South Korean politics and caused worry among neighbors, including fellow democracy Japan, and Seoul’s top ally, the United States, as one of the strongest democracies in Asia faces a political crisis that could unseat its leader.

Who is the South Korean president who imposed martial law?

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Decades of achievement led Yoon Suk Yeol to the pinnacle of political power in South Korea, but his legacy may now rest on a single, baffling decision to send out troops under martial law over vague claims that one of Asia’s leading democracies was under threat. Was there any clue in Yoon’s background that this was coming? Yoon, a staunch conservative and longtime prosecutor, went from political novice to president of South Korea in 2022, ending five years of liberal rule that saw failed efforts to resolve the North Korean nuclear crisis and a slackening economy.

What to know about martial law and the effort to impeach South Korea’s president

TOKYO (AP) — South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is facing possible impeachment for sending heavily armed soldiers into Seoul’s streets with a baffling declaration of martial law that reminded many of the country’s past military-backed dictatorships. Lawmakers began impeachment proceedings against Yoon just hours after parliament unanimously voted to cancel martial law, forcing the president to lift his order about six hours after it began. Opposition parties are pushing for a vote on Saturday on the impeachment motion, which would need support from two-thirds of the National Assembly to advance to the Constitutional Court, which would decide whether to remove Yoon from office.

Trump names former Sen. David Perdue of Georgia to be ambassador to China

WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump said Thursday he has selected former Sen. David Perdue of Georgia to serve as his ambassador to China, leaning on a former business executive turned politician to serve as the administration’s envoy to America’s most potent economic and military adversary. Trump said in a social media post that Perdue “brings valuable expertise to help build our relationship with China.” Perdue lost his Senate seat to Democrat Jon Ossoff four years ago and ran unsuccessfully in a 2022 primary against Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp. Perdue pushed Trump’s debunked lies about electoral fraud during his failed bid for Georgia governor.

Australian leader blames antisemitism for arson that extensively damaged a Melbourne synagogue

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Arsonists extensively damaged a Melbourne synagogue on Friday in what Australia’s prime minister condemned as an antisemitic attack. A witness who had come to Adass Israel Synagogue to pray saw two masked people spreading an accelerant inside the building at 4:10 a.m., Victoria Police Detective Inspector Chris Murray said. About 60 firefighters with 17 fire trucks responded to the blaze, which Murray said caused extensive damage. Investigators have yet to identify a motive, but Prime Minister Anthony Albanese blamed antisemitism. “This is an outrage. The violence and intimidation and destruction at a place of worship is something that we should never see in Australia,” Albanese told Australian Broadcasting Corp.

3 climbers from the US and Canada are believed to have died in a fall on New Zealand’s highest peak

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Three mountain climbers — two from the U.S. and one from Canada — missing for five days on Aoraki, New Zealand’s tallest peak, are believed to have died in a fall, the authorities said Friday. The men’s bodies were not found. But based on footprints glimpsed in the snow during an aerial survey, and items believed to belong to them retrieved from the slopes this week, the search for them has ended, Police Area Commander Inspector Vicki Walker told reporters. The Americans — Kurt Blair, 56, from Colorado and Carlos Romero, 50, of California — were certified alpine guides, according to the website of the nonprofit American Mountain Guides Association.

Paraguay kicks out a visiting Chinese envoy for urging its lawmakers to turn their backs on Taiwan

ASUNCIÓN, Paraguay (AP) — Paraguay on Thursday kicked out a Chinese envoy for allegedly interfering in its domestic affairs and urging the South American nation to break off ties and long friendship with Taiwan. The Chinese diplomat was given 24 hours to leave the country. In a curt statement, Paraguay’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it had revoked the visa of Xu Wei, a senior Chinese envoy to Latin America who was in Paraguay for an annual UNESCO meeting, declaring him persona non grata “over interference in internal affairs.” The day before, Xu skipped the UNESCO session and instead turned up at Congress in Paraguay’s capital of Asunción, where he caused a diplomatic stir by calling on Paraguay to ditch Taiwan, the self-governing democratic island of 23 million people that China claims as its territory.

Taiwanese President Lai has phone talks from Guam with US Congress leaders

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te held phone calls with U.S. congressional leaders on Thursday while visiting Guam, his second U.S. stop on a Pacific Island trip. Lai said in a post on X that he had spoken with Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson and House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries to discuss security and economic cooperation. He also spoke with U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, the post said. “#Taiwan is grateful for the bipartisan #US Congressional support as we advance peace & prosperity in the Indo-Pacific,” he wrote. China, which considers Taiwan a renegade province, opposes any official interaction between the island’s government and the United States.

US judge rejects Boeing’s plea deal in a conspiracy case stemming from fatal plane crashes

DALLAS (AP) — A federal judge on Thursday rejected a deal that would have let Boeing plead guilty to a felony conspiracy charge and pay a fine for misleading U.S. regulators about the 737 Max jetliner before two of the planes crashed, killing 346 people. U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor in Texas said that diversity, inclusion and equity or DEI policies in the government and at Boeing could result in race being a factor in picking an official to oversee Boeing’s compliance with the agreement. The ruling creates uncertainty around criminal prosecution of the aerospace giant in connection with the development of its bestselling airline plane.

Pakistani court indicts former Premier Imran Khan over May 2023 attacks on military posts

ISLAMABAD (AP) — A Pakistani court on Thursday indicted imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan and dozens of his associates on charges of inciting people to attack military and government installations last year, officials and his party said. Khan pleaded not guilty when charges were read out to him in court in the garrison city of Rawalpindi, according to officials and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, or PTI. Khan and the others will go on trial under anti-terrorism laws that carry punishments up to life in prison. PTI said that top party official Omar Ayub Khan, the current opposition leader in Parliament, also was arrested by police on Thursday.