Top Asian News 3:57 a.m. GMT

South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol removed from office over declaration of martial law

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s Constitutional Court removed impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol from office on Friday, ending his tumultuous presidency and setting up an election to find a new leader, four months after he threw South Korean politics into turmoil with an ill-fated declaration of martial law. The unanimous verdict capped a dramatic fall for Yoon, a former star prosecutor who went from political novice to president in 2022, just a year after he entered politics. In a nationally televised verdict, the court’s acting chief Moon Hyung-bae said the eight-member bench upheld Yoon’s impeachment because his martial law decree seriously violated the constitution and other laws.

What to expect in South Korea now that Yoon has been removed from office

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The South Korean Constitutional Court’s decision to formally unseat President Yoon Suk Yeol is another test for the country’s democracy after the conservative-liberal divide deepened over his imposition of martial law and subsequent impeachment. The court’s ruling Friday triggers a by-election for a new president. Yoon still faces criminal charges of rebellion, but he’s unlikely to fade into the background. He is likely to thrust himself onto the political agenda, rallying his hard-core supporters and influencing the choice of the next leader of his party, which has made intensive efforts to regroup around calls for his reinstatement.

A look at the turbulent life of the South Korean leader who has been ousted over martial law

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Yoon Suk Yeol’s political rise was fast: the former star prosecutor clinched South Korea’s presidency only a year after he entered politics. But his downfall was even faster: The Constitutional Court removed him from office on Friday, about four months after he made a deeply baffling decision to declare martial law and send troops to Seoul’s streets. Yoon’s style — highly assertive and strong-willed, but often uncompromising and inflexible — worked for a prosecutor standing up to higher-ups, but not for a president forced to work with an opposition-dominated legislature on an array of contentious issues.

South Korea’s ousted president belongs to a long line of troubled leaders

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Three years after becoming president of South Korea, Yoon Suk Yeol was formally removed from office on Friday as the Constitutional Court upheld his impeachment over an ill-fated December decision to impose martial law. Yoon’s self-inflicted downfall continues a trend of troubled presidencies. Yoon’s ouster comes eight years after the same court dismissed another conservative president, Park Geun-hye over an explosive scandal involving bribery, extortion, leaking state secrets and abuse of power. Several former presidents, their family members, or top aides have been embroiled in corruption scandals near the end of their terms or after leaving office.

A look at the events leading up to South Korean President Yoon’s removal from office

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has been removed from office over his imposition of martial law in December. The unanimous ruling Friday triggers a presidential election to be held in two months that is likely to be one of the tensest South Korea has seen. Yoon also faces a criminal trial on rebellion charges that are punishable by a death sentence or life in prison. Here is a timeline of events: According to the criminal indictment, Yoon meets with Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun to discuss gridlock in the National Assembly as opposition lawmakers use their majority to impeach senior officials and prosecutors and cut government budgets.

Post-earthquake ceasefires in Myanmar offer rare opportunity for disaster diplomacy

BANGKOK (AP) — Temporary ceasefires announced by warring groups in Myanmar in the wake of last week’s devastating 7.7 magnitude earthquake represent a rare de-escalation of a conflict that since 2021 has taken thousands of lives and uprooted more than 3 million people. Experts suggest that if the ceasefires -- announced first by the opponents of military rule and then matched by the army -- can hold, they could provide an opportunity to work toward peacemaking. A report released Wednesday by the Institute for Strategy and Policy – Myanmar said that the disaster could act as “a catalyst to foster cooperation among adversaries, reduce conflict, and lay the groundwork for peace.” “At the very least, if there’s agreement to tactically de-escalate the conflict and cease hostilities, it could be regarded as a positive precedent,” said the Thailand-based think tank.

Myanmar earthquake death toll rises to 3,145 as more bodies found

BANGKOK (AP) — The death toll from the earthquake that hit Myanmar nearly a week ago rose Thursday to 3,145 as search and rescue teams found more bodies, the military-led government said, and humanitarian aid groups scrambled to provide survivors medical care and shelter. Information Minister Maung Maung Ohn also announced at a meeting in the capital, Naypyitaw, that 4,589 people were injured and 221 others were missing, state television MRTV reported. The epicenter of the 7.7 magnitude quake on March 28 was near Mandalay, Myanmar’s second-largest city. It brought down thousands of buildings, buckled roads and destroyed bridges in multiple regions.

Crew of New Zealand navy ship that sank off Samoa lacked training and experience, inquiry finds

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — A lack of training, qualifications and experience among the crew on board a New Zealand navy ship that ran aground, caught fire and sank off the coast of Samoa have been identified by a military Court of Inquiry in a final report released Friday as contributing to the disaster. The deficiencies were among a dozen failings of the crew, ship and New Zealand’s Navy that contributed to the loss of the HMNZS Manawanui in October 2024, the 120-page report said. An interim report last November had already divulged that the ship’s crew didn’t realize the vessel was on autopilot and believed something else had gone wrong as it plowed toward a reef.

Head of Myanmar’s military government visits Thailand in rare trip abroad

BANGKOK (AP) — The head of Myanmar’s military government arrived in Thailand on Thursday for a regional summit, making a rare international trip as his country recovers from a devastating earthquake that killed thousands. Senior General Min Aung Hlaing has been shunned by much of the West for overthrowing the democratically elected government of Aung Saan Suu Kyi and subsequent brutal repression. He has not been allowed to participate in meetings of another regional organization, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, since the army seized of power in February 2021 and began violently suppressing opposition. He is one of several regional leaders visiting Bangkok for a three-day summit of nations in the Bay of Bengal region.

No more cheap skirts: Trump ends tax exemption for low-value Chinese imports

A notice to customers dazzled by the low-priced products on Chinese shopping apps: the days of getting trendy clothing, tools and gag gifts that cost less than lunch delivered to your door in 10 days are probably numbered. President Donald Trump is ending a little-known but widely used exemption that has allowed as many as 4 million low-value parcels — most of them originating in China — to arrive in the U.S. every day tax-free. An executive order the president signed Wednesday will eliminate the “de minimis provision” for goods from China and Hong Kong on May 2. The tax exemption, which applies to packages valued at $800 or less, has helped China-founded e-commerce companies like Shein and Temu to thrive while cutting into the U.S.