Given the ongoing fighting in Gaza, the downing of another Malaysian Airlines flight by a surface-to-air missile and the refugee crisis that’s happening within U.S. borders, news out of Asia is kind of on the back burner, at least for news outlets in the States. Never fear, here is a round-up of news from Asia.
Even though the plane was shot down in a disputed area of Ukraine, this marks another disaster for Malaysian Airlines, four months after Flight 370 went missing. The loss of so many lives should not be overlooked, but the fact that several* of the world’s top AIDS researchers perished in the crash just adds to the blow. As many have stated, the cure for the disease may have been on that plane. (*Initial numbers placing that total above 100 have since been revised.)
Additionally, many wonder if the airline will survive this latest tragedy, though this opinion piece says we shouldn’t blame the airline for this.
Elsewhere, Afghanistan began an audit of the presidential election. That’s eight million ballots to go through.
There was an attack on the Kabul International Airport by militants. The attack was described as audacious. It included rocket-propelled grenades and lasted about four hours.
This story contains a trigger warning for rape: two employees of a prominent school in Bangalore have been accused of raping a six-year-old girl. Parents held a protest outside the school and demanded that more be done to protect their daughters.
In better news, India’s Health Minister, Dr. Harsh Vardhan, said it is the government’s job to protect LGBT rights.
Thailand’s ousted prime minister, Yingluck Shinawatra, says she will not flee corruption charges.
The Japanese government claims that two nuclear reactors have met more stringent safety standards put in place after the 2011 Fukushima disaster and are ready to go live.
The oil rig that was placed in disputed waters off the coast of Vietnam and which sparked an international incident has completed work and has been moved, according to Chinese authorities. Well, that was nice of them, I guess.
A US drone strike has killed 20 militants in Pakistan’s North Waziristan region. So basically (terrible) business as usual.
Ending on a lighter note, at least six Pakistani kabaddi players will participate in India’s first kabaddi professional league. Kabaddi is a form of wrestling that originated in India.
