Asia Pacific

New research shows how catnip and silver vine trigger euphoric feelings in cats and helps them ward off mosquitoes.

The families of 18 people taken by the military last March are still waiting for news of their loved ones – and justice.

Numbers slumped to just 229 last year, far below the 1,047 in 2019, as Pyongyang shut down its border in the face COVID.

Ma’s appearance in a livestream on Wednesday marks his first public comments since he disappeared from view last year.

The move on the last day of Trump’s term, has no immediate effect but is likely to further strain ties with China.

At least 12 of the 22 workers have been located, but the whereabouts of the others remains unknown.

Joe Biden’s cabinet nominee says policy review is aimed at reviving stalled talks over N Korea’s nuclear programme.

Woman sentenced for posting audio clips to Facebook and YouTube with comments deemed critical of the monarchy.

Drills come as Beijing announced sanctions on US officials for ‘nasty behaviour’ over Taiwan.

Island moves to stamp out spread after cluster of cases emerges at hospital in Taoyuan.

Some 134 vehicles involved in incident that forced closure of Tohoku Expressway, as snowstorms pummel country’s north.

Beijing says its initial response to the outbreak was adequate after experts said it could have acted more rapidly.

Reuters tally finds 280 people arrested for ‘anti-state’ activities in the five years since the last party congress.

People took refuge in makeshift camps in hills around Mamuju after the quake, but now supplies are running out.

The 23-member crew of Jag Anand vessel reaches Tokyo from where they will fly to India after clearing COVID procedures.

US trade representatives have asked Australia to develop a voluntary code and suspend the proposed laws.

Footage obtained by Al Jazeera shows the early days of the COVID-19 outbreak and Chinese government censorship attempts.

Note says 12 workers still alive after explosion in the gold mine last week; fate of remaining 10 is unclear.

US says interviews of those who worked on front lines at start of crisis crucial for credibility of WHO investigation.

Interim report says Chinese officials could have applied public health measures more forcefully, WHO took too long.

Health authorities say caution is necessary because it is now known whether the vaccines will prevent transmission.

Rescue efforts continue in Sulawesi with 81 people now confirmed dead following Friday’s earthquake.

China is likely to have been the only large economy to grow last year as it rebounded from COVID lockdowns.

DVI teams work closely with families of those on board to identify the remains recovered from the sea.

Two days after the disaster, it is unclear if there are people still trapped but alive under the debris on Sulawesi.

Tennis Australia says Grand Slam will begin on February 8 despite anger from players forced into hard quarantine.

Young activists now in exile tried to flee to the self-ruled island of Taiwan in late July.

Death toll rises to 45 as 190 people are treated for injuries and 15,000 residents have sought temporary shelters.

The pigeon, which was declared a biosecurity risk, may get a lifeline after a US bird body said its leg band was fake.

Display of military might at Pyongyang parade follows party congress at which Kim Jong Un admitted country’s failures.

At least 42 killed, several trapped in collapsed buildings after a magnitude 6.2 quake.

Factories offer higher pay, incentives to dissuade people from travel for Lunar New Year, an important holiday in China.

US commission says new evidence has emerged that ‘crimes against humanity – and possibly genocide – are occurring’.

At party Congress, Kim pledges to expand weapons programmes with the aim of ‘making a preemptive nuclear strike’.

Experts suspect the pigeon named Joe hitched a ride on a cargo ship to cross the Pacific Ocean.

The charges are linked to former CNRP president Sam Rainsy’s unsuccessful attempt to return to the country in 2019.

First death since May announced as WHO team in Wuhan to start long-awaited investigation into origins of the virus.

Latest arrests are related to a group picked up by the coastguard as they fled in a speedboat, and now jailed in China

Top court’s ruling brings an end to Park Geun-hye’s legal process, clearing the way for a special presidential pardon.

Gang Chen did not disclose his connections to China as is required on federal grant applications, US authorities said.

The past seven years have been the seven warmest years on record since 1880, scientists reported.

Image of a wild pig discovered in 2017 inside the Leang Tedongnge cave is estimated to be at least 45,500 years old.

Secretive Shincheonji Church of Jesus was target of public anger over a surge in cases last year linked to its members.

US Customs and Border Protection alleges the goods are made with forced labour from detained Uighur Muslims.

In new document, US says it wants to counter China’s ‘predatory economic practices’ and ‘accelerate India’s rise’.

Indonesia starts mass vaccination on Wednesday, but experts say inoculating young people first will not reduce deaths.

Authorities in Hebei, Heilongjiang provinces impose lockdowns, mass testing in effort to curb spread.