Top Asian News 4:48 a.m. GMT

South Korea’s Yoon defends martial law as an act of governance and vows to ‘fight to the end’

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s president defended his martial law decree as an act of governance and denied rebellion charges, vowing Thursday to “fight to the end” in the face of attempts to impeach him and intensifying investigations into last week’s dramatic move. Yoon Suk Yeol’s televised statement came hours before the main liberal opposition Democratic Party submits a new impeachment motion against Yoon to put it on a floor vote this weekend. Yoon’s Dec. 3 martial law declaration, the first of its kind in more than 40 years in South Korea, has generated political chaos and large protests calling for his ouster.

Papua New Guinea gains a team in Australian rugby league in diplomatic push aimed at curbing China

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Papua New Guinea will gain its own team in Australia’s rugby league in a soft diplomacy deal announced Thursday linked to limiting Chinese influence in the South Pacific. The Australian government will spend 600 million Australian dollars ($380 million) over a decade to add a team from its nearest neighbor to the National Rugby League from 2028. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his Papua New Guinea counterpart James Marape announced the deal at a Sydney news conference. They also announced that a bilateral security deal struck a year ago had officially come into force. China has pursued its own bilateral security pact on policing with Papua New Guinea and with other South Pacific island nations which U.S.

Australia plans to tax digital platforms that don’t pay for news

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — The Australian government said Thursday it will tax large digital platforms and search engines unless they agree to share revenue with Australian news media organizations. The tax would apply from Jan. 1 to tech companies that earn more than 250 million Australian dollars ($160 million) a year in revenue from Australia, Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones and Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said. They include Meta, Google, Alphabet and ByteDance. The tax would be offset through money paid to Australian media organizations. The size of the tax is not clear. “The real objective ... is not to raise revenue -- we hope not to raise any revenue.

An explosion in the Afghan capital kills the Taliban refugee minister

ISLAMABAD (AP) — A suicide bombing in the Afghan capital on Wednesday killed the Taliban refugee minister and two others, officials said, in the most brazen attack on a member of the Taliban inner circle since they returned to power three years ago. The explosion struck inside the ministry, killing Khalil Haqqani, officials said. His last official photo showed him at a meeting chaired by the deputy prime minister, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, earlier Wednesday. Khalil Haqqani is the uncle of Sirajuddin Haqqani, the acting interior minister who leads a powerful network within the Taliban. Haqqani was the most high-profile casualty of a bombing in Afghanistan since the Taliban returned to power and the first Cabinet member to be killed since the takeover.

Taiwan demands that China end its military activity in nearby waters

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwan demanded Wednesday that China end its ongoing military activity in nearby waters, which it said is unilaterally undermining peace and stability and disrupting international shipping and trade. Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement on its website that it was responding in part to the activities of a “large number” of Chinese ships in the first-island chain, the Pacific archipelago off the Asian continental mainland that includes Japan, Taiwan and part of the Philippines. “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs solemnly demands that the Beijing authorities immediately stop military intimidation and all irrational activities that endanger regional peace and stability,” the statement said.

Australian police launch a special operation to investigate increased antisemitic attacks

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Australian federal police launched a special operation to investigate an increase in antisemitic threats and violence since the war between Israel and Hamas began last year. Jewish leaders say prejudice against their community has reached unprecedented levels, with most incidents reported in Sydney and Melbourne, Australia’s largest cities where 85% of the nation’s Jewish population live. Almost 117,000 Jewish people live in Australia, according to the last census in 2021, or 0.46% of the 25.4 million residents. The government says only Israel is home to more Holocaust survivors than Australia on a per capita basis. Here’s a look at some of the main cases investigated by Special Operation Avalite: Police are looking for two male suspects, estimated to be aged between 15 and 20, seen running from Magney St.

Supporters of Bangladesh Nationalist Party hold protest march as tensions continue with India

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Thousands of members of youth and student bodies belonging to the Bangladesh Nationalist Party on Wednesday held a road march procession from Bangladesh’s capital toward its eastern border with India to protest against an attack on a diplomatic mission earlier this month and alleged desecration of Bangladeshi flags in India. They drove in cars to reach a border point at Akhaura in Brahmanbaria district to register their protest. Before starting for the border area, they rallied briefly in Dhaka where leaders criticized what they called “Indian aggression” against Bangladesh. The party headed by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia has been protesting against the attack by a mob of Hindus in the northeastern Indian state of Agartala on Dec.

AP PHOTOS: In India’s northeast, Nagas showcase traditional culture at Hornbill Festival

KOHIMA, India (AP) — The men were dressed like warriors as they stabbed their spears in the air, reenacting a form of tribal warfare their ancestors used in battles. Many others, wearing tribal costumes, sang and danced, keeping alive customs that have passed down through generations. These were among the scenes at the 10-day Hornbill Festival in Kohima, the capital of India’s remote Nagaland state, which borders Myanmar. Nagaland, which was a frontier during World War II and where Allied troops fought against the Japanese, is home to Nagas, an Indigenous people who inhabit several northeastern Indian states. The festival, which ended Tuesday, brought together a collection of traditional arts, cuisine and folklore, spotlighting the diverse Naga heritage.

US defense chief observes drills with Japan, Australia, says he’s confident about greater capability

CAMP ASAKA, Japan (AP) — U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin expressed confidence about enhanced military capabilities among the United States, Australia and Japan as he observed joint exercises Wednesday showcasing their closer cooperation as tensions grow in the region. Austin is in Japan to reaffirm the importance of their alliance and Washington’s commitment to regional security. Austin noted as he observed the trilateral Yama Sakura 87 exercises held at the Japanese army’s Camp Asaka on the outskirts of Tokyo that the necessary equipment, munitions and people are in place and “these are the things that will guarantee success if we ever get challenged on the battlefield.” Japan, under a security strategy introduced in 2022, is pursuing a rapid military buildup to increase its deterrence against growing threats from China, North Korea and Russia, and has bolstered defense cooperation, especially with the United States and Australia.

Philippine vice president skips hearing into threats she made against the president

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippine vice president on Wednesday skipped the first hearing into threats she made against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., saying she did not believe the investigation will be fair. Vice President Sara Duterte was subpoenaed to appear before the National Bureau of Investigation but instead sent her lawyer, who submitted a letter saying their client vehemently “denies having made any threat constituting grave threat” under the law. Duterte has tried to walk back her comments in a Nov. 23 online news conference where she publicly threatened Marcos, his wife and House Speaker Martin Romualdez with death. She later said it was rather an expression of concern for her own safety, claiming to have received death threats.