Hello Kitty firm apologises, scraps Japan TV tie-up after China anger
Sanrio, the Japanese company that owns the popular Hello Kitty character, apologised Thursday over its tie-up with a TV spy drama criticised as anti-China, cancelling a merchandise collaboration with the show.
Read more
TotalEnergies profit hits record on high oil prices
French oil and gas giant TotalEnergies said Thursday that its net profit hit a new record in the third quarter as the war in the Middle East pushed up hydrocarbon prices.
Read more
Taiwan says Pakistan briefly closed airspace to Taiwanese flights
Pakistan briefly closed its airspace to Taiwanese cargo and passenger flights, Taiwan said on Thursday, suspecting China of being behind the unprecedented move.
Read more
Key of seethe: I.Coast row with Sahel juntas spills into concert halls
Ivorian reggae star Alpha Blondy abruptly interrupted his concert's chilled-out vibes to wade into a far less laid-back subject -- the coups in his country's unrest-riven Sahel neighbours.
Read more
'My blood was spilled here': a year on, Tanzania unable to mourn election violence
A year after Tanzania's bloody election, many remain traumatised by the violence, while government critics live in fear of abduction and arbitrary arrest, or facing treason and terrorism charges.
Read more
Romanian writer Cartarescu hails books as balm in turmoil
In an age of "overwhelming evil" and "generalised lies", Romanian novelist Mircea Cartarescu, a weaver of literary fantasies born from a childhood under a totalitarian regime, bets on writing to resist.
Read more
Afghanistan opium poppy cultivation surges despite Taliban govt ban: UN
Opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan more than quadrupled in 2026 despite a Taliban government ban, the United Nations said Thursday, urging that impoverished farmers needed alternatives to the lucrative crop.
Read more
Mbappe, Real Madrid and La Liga face long road to redemption in China
Kylian Mbappe, Real Madrid and La Liga have apologised for the superstar striker's comments about Mao Zedong, but the damage to their reputation in China won't be easily or quickly repaired, experts say.
Read more
No World Series miracle for weary Rays
After defying expectations with an American League-best 98 regular-season wins, sweeping the New York Yankees and besting Cleveland, the Tampa Bay Rays endured an all-too familiar World Series finish.
Read more
North Korea fires 'around a dozen' ballistic missiles into East Sea
North Korea fired "around a dozen" short-range ballistic missiles off its east coast on Thursday, Seoul's defence ministry said, less than a week after South Korea proposed talks over a growing border row.
Read moreIn The News
