World Briefs

TAIWAN’s government will take international media on a tour of its largest island holding in the South China Sea in a bid to reinforce its territorial claims. A government official says that the visit aims to counter the Philippine’s claims that the island is merely a rock and is not entitled to territorial waters.

INDONESIA Thousands of taxi drivers caused traffic chaos in the Indonesian capital yesterday in a violent protest against what they consider to be unfair competition from ride-hailing apps such as Uber.

SINGAPORE Two maintenance staff working on elevated tracks in Singapore’s mass transit system were hit and killed by a train yesterday, an official said, marking another incident in a string of disruptions in recent years.

SOUTH KOREA reported yesterday the country’s first case of the Zika virus in a 43-year-old man who recently returned from Brazil, according to a statement from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

PAKISTAN A police officer in Pakistan says at least 17 Hindus have died after consuming illegally-made alcohol during religious celebrations in the south of the country.

TAJIKISTAN‘s president, Emomali Rahmon, has suggested three new public holidays on consecutive days to honor wrestlers, horse riders and the planting of flowers. According to Asia-Plus, a national wrestling tournament was held in the country’s capital yesterday.

EU A UK exit from the European Union would cause a “serious economic shock”, potentially costing the country 100 billion pounds and nearly one million jobs, according to a report commissioned by the Confederation of British Industry.

AGHANISTAN The new commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan apologized yesterday to the people of Kunduz for the deadly attack on a hospital in the city last year that killed 42 people.

CONGO Former Congolese rebel leader Jean-Pierre Bemba has been found guilty of war crimes in a landmark trial at the International Criminal Court. The once vice-president of the Democratic Republic of Congo will remains in custody until sentencing.