China

MANILA, Philippines — Typhoon Yinxing battered the northern Philippines with floods and landslides before blowing away from the country on Friday, leaving two airports damaged and aggravating a calamity caused by back-to-back storms that hit in recent weeks. There were no immediate reports of casualties from Yinxing, the 13th major storm to hit the disaster-prone Southeast Asian archipelago this year. The typhoon, locally called Marce, was …

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Yemen’s Houthi rebels shot down what bystanders described as an American drone early Friday, potentially the latest downing of a U.S. spy drone as the militants continue their attacks on the Red Sea corridor. The U.S. military acknowledged the videos circulating online showing what appeared to be a flaming aircraft dropping out of the sky and a field of burning debris …

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is sometimes at odds with Western leaders but has made no secret of what he says were his warm dealings with President-elect Donald Trump during the U.S. leader’s first term. Observers say he is now looking to those warm ties as an opportunity to end regional conflicts, but also to ask for greater U.S. cooperation against Kurdish separatists, as Dorian …

Israeli forces carried out airstrikes Thursday targeting Beirut’s southern suburbs, a day after strikes in eastern and southern Lebanon killed at least 40 people. Thursday’s attacks included a strike near Lebanon’s international airport, which came after the Israeli military issued an evacuation order telling people to leave the area. Israel’s military said Thursday it had conducted airstrikes against Hezbollah headquarters and military infrastructure in Beirut. …

sydney — The Australian government will legislate for a ban on social media for children under 16, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Thursday, in what it calls a world-leading package of measures that could become law late next year. Australia is trying out an age-verification system to assist in blocking children from accessing social media platforms, as part of a range of measures that include …

Both Israelis and Palestinians on Wednesday welcomed Donald Trump’s U.S. presidential election victory. Israelis hope he will support them in their conflicts with Hamas and others; Palestinians hope he will offer new statehood ideas. Linda Gradstein reports from Jerusalem. Camera: Ricki Rosen. …

Israeli airstrikes hit multiple towns in southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley on Wednesday, killing and injuring dozens, as the new head of Hezbollah warned that his forces will battle Israel until it is forced to appeal for peace. “We will make the enemy seek to demand an end to the aggression,” Naim Kassem said in a prerecorded speech from an undisclosed location. He said …

Jerusalem — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Tuesday, sparking protests around Israel. Some say the move could endanger the country’s security, as Israel continues to fight in both Gaza and Lebanon.    After Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the dismissal of his popular defense minister, thousands of Israelis took to the streets, blocking roads — including the main highway between Tel …

Washington — Judicial investigators in Taiwan have indicted a couple affiliated with a small political party on charges of receiving millions of dollars from Chinese authorities to promote the Chinese government’s political agenda and influence Taiwan’s elections and referendums. Taiwan’s Chiayi District Prosecutors’ Office said Monday it has charged Chang Meng-chung and his wife, Hung Wen-ting, with violating Taiwan’s Anti-Infiltration Act and election laws by making …

AMMAN, JORDAN — Arab leaders quickly congratulated Donald Trump on his U.S. presidential election victory. Some are hopeful he could bring an end to conflicts raging in the Middle East while others are looking for a stronger stance against Iran. Saudi Arabia’s King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, United Arab Emirates leaders, and Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad, all congratulated Donald Trump on …

Ho Chi Minh City — Vietnam is taking a more outspoken and transparent approach in response to China’s recent detention of Vietnamese fishermen in the South China Sea, analysts tell VOA. Hanoi is also moving forward with the construction of a new airstrip on a reef in its exclusive economic zone to further assert its sovereignty and challenge Beijing’s claims. Late last week, deputy spokesperson for …

Foreign adversaries used increasingly sophisticated meddling operations to target the November 5 U.S. presidential race between Democratic party candidate Vice President Kamala Harris and her Republican party opponent, former President Donald Trump. Iran has sought to influence and interfere with the results of the poll by promoting disinformation narratives favorable to its own foreign policy goals. The societal division in the U.S. and predictions of …

JAKARTA, Indonesia — The Indonesian government plans to permanently relocate thousands of residents after a series of eruptions of Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki volcano which killed nine people and damaged thousands of houses, officials said. Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki, located on Flores Island in East Nusa Tenggara province, erupted on Sunday night, followed by smaller eruptions on Monday and Tuesday, and remains on the highest volcanic alert status. …

LONDON — Russia is “flagrantly violating” its agreements with the OPEC oil cartel by concealing the true amount of oil it is producing and selling, according to a new report that says the profits are funding Moscow’s war on Ukraine. The investigation by the Ukrainian Center for Defense Reforms asserts that Russia is breaching an OPEC agreement to cut oil production. The think tank is chaired …

Russia is “flagrantly violating” its agreements with the oil cartel OPEC by concealing the true amount of oil it is producing and selling, according to a new report that says the profits are funding Moscow’s war on Ukraine. Henry Ridgwell reports. …

In countries experiencing war or internal conflict, attacks on journalists are happening with impunity. Watchdog groups say most killings of journalists in recent years have gone unresolved. With Liam Scott, Cristina Caicedo Smit has the story. …

DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES — An Iranian official claimed Tuesday that Iranian-German prisoner Jamshid Sharmahd died before Tehran could execute him — directly contradicting the country’s earlier announcement he had been put to death. The comment by Asghar Jahangir came after Germany shut down all three Iranian consulates in the country over Sharmahd’s death, leaving only the embassy in Berlin open. Germany later disputed Jahangir’s remark. …

As the wars in both Gaza and Lebanon drag on, the burden on Israeli reservist soldiers is growing. Some say they don’t believe the government has their best interests at heart and are choosing not to show up for reserve duty. Linda Gradstein reports from Jerusalem. Camera: Ricki Rosen …

Palestinian health officials said Tuesday a series of Israeli airstrikes killed at least 30 people in the Gaza Strip. One strike late Monday hit a house where displaced families were sheltering in Beit Lahiya, killing at least 20 people, the officials said. Other deadly strikes took place in Gaza City, Zuweida and Deir al-Balah. Israel’s military said Tuesday its forces had killed militants and militant …

Ukraine’s military said Tuesday it shot down two Russian guided missiles as well as 48 of the 79 drones that Russian forces used in overnight attacks. The intercepts took place over the Cherkasy, Chernihiv, Khmelnytskyi, Kyiv, Odesa, Poltava, Sumy and Zhytomyr regions, the Ukrainian air force said. Ivan Fedorov, governor of the Zaporizhzhia region, said Tuesday a Russian attack killed at least six people and …

KYOTO, JAPAN — The world’s first wooden satellite, built by Japanese researchers, was launched into space on Tuesday, in an early test of using timber in lunar and Mars exploration. LignoSat, developed by Kyoto University and homebuilder Sumitomo Forestry, will be flown to the International Space Station on a SpaceX mission, and later released into orbit about 400 km (250 miles) above the Earth. Named after …

BEIJING — In an unusual warning, China’s navy told young officers and personnel that they could get ensnared by online dating scams and virtual gambling if they let down their guard, exposing themselves to security risks and undermining the military. Addressing those born from 1990 who are “becoming the core of the army,” the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy said in a social media post that …

[[ Near-universal concern and condemnation has followed Israel’s formal announcement to the United Nations that it will not cooperate with the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, after Israel’s parliament voted to cut ties last week. In Washington, at the U.N. and on the ground, officials and residents are raising alarms over the disintegrating humanitarian situation in Gaza and elsewhere. VOA White House correspondent Anita Powell …

TAIPEI, TAIWAN — Jasmine Chen has been married for two years, but the idea of having children is not part of her plans. The 28-year-old bank teller who lives in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou said raising children in China is just too expensive. “Even though anyone can raise children, regardless of their economic situation, I would want to make sure that I could give …