Top Asia Pacific Breaking News Stories

ISLAMABAD (AP) – A Pakistani court convicted and sentenced imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi on Saturday to 17 years in prison after finding them guilty of retaining and selling state gifts, officials and his party said. The couple pleaded not guilty when they were indicted last year. They were accused of selling the gifts, including jewelry from Saudi Arabia’s government, at prices far below their market value while he was in office. Prosecutors said Khan and his wife declared the value of the gifts at a little over $10,000, far below their actual market value of $285,521, allowing them to purchase the items at a reduced price.

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) – The white dome of Boudhanath rises like a silent guardian over the chaotic sprawl of Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu, crowned by a golden spire that pierces the sky. Painted on each of the spire’s four sides are the benevolent eyes of the Buddha – wide, calm, and unblinking – said to see all that unfolds below. Those eyes have served as a symbol of sanctuary for generations of Tibetans fleeing the Chinese crackdown in their homeland. But today, Tibetan refugees are also watched by far more malevolent eyes: Thousands of CCTV cameras from China, perched on street corners and rooftops to monitor every movement below.

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) – In Nepal, the unseen eye has changed Tibetan life. The cameras are not just machines perched on the thick bundles of wires that twist through narrow lanes of Kathmandu in Nepal. They are a presence, an unseen watcher that Tibetans have learned to fear. In the city’s refugee settlements, once a haven for the community, every lens is a warning. Men draw their curtains before speaking. Prayer rooms remain locked, their devotions muted behind wood and cloth. The flags that once fluttered freely now cling in tatters to barbed wire. Nepal is one of at least 150 countries where Chinese companies now sell surveillance tools.

SYDNEY (AP) – The Australian state of New South Wales is proposing to ban public displays of Islamic State group flags or extremist symbols after a mass shooting driven by antisemitism killed 15 people at Sydney’s Bondi Beach. Under draft laws to be debated by the state Parliament, publicly displaying the IS flag or symbols from other extremist groups will be offenses punishable by up to two years in prison and fines. The state’s premier, Chris Minns, also said chants of “globalize the intifada” will be banned and police would be given greater powers to demand protesters remove face coverings at demonstrations.

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) – Taiwanese authorities said Saturday the suspect who killed three people and injured 11 others in knife and smoke-grenade attacks in the island’s capital had planned the assaults and set fires at other locations earlier in the day. The suspect, identified as a 27-year-old man named Chang Wen, fell to his death from a department store building in Taipei after the attack on Friday. The assaults shocked Taiwan, where violent crime is rare, prompting authorities to step up security at crowded spots and big events, including its New Year’s Eve celebration that usually attracts many locals and tourists to an outdoor countdown.

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) – Hundreds of thousands of people attended the funeral Saturday of a leading Bangladeshi activist who died of gunshot wounds sustained in an attack in Dhaka earlier this month, as political tensions gripped the country ahead of elections. Sharif Osman Hadi, who took part in last year’s political uprising that ended former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s 15-year rule, died in a hospital in Singapore on Thursday after being shot Dec. 12 in Dhaka. Police said they had identified suspects and that the shooter had most probably fled to India, where Hasina has been in exile. The development sparked a new diplomatic squabble with India and prompted New Delhi this week to summon Bangladesh’s envoy.

Christmas is a Christian holiday that observes the birth of Jesus. But did you know that the earliest followers of Jesus did not annually commemorate his birth? Or that Santa Claus is inspired by the acts of kindness of a fourth-century Christian saint? And have you heard about the modern-day Japanese tradition of eating Kentucky Fried Chicken on Christmas? Since the early 20th century, Christmas has evolved from a religious holiday to a hugely popular cultural holiday observed by Christian and secular people across the globe who gather with families, exchange gifts and cards and decorate Christmas trees. Here’s a look at the history, beliefs and the evolution of Christmas: Early followers of Jesus did not annually commemorate his birth but instead focused on commemorating their belief in his resurrection at Easter.

GUWAHATI, India (AP) – Seven wild Asiatic elephants were killed and a calf was injured when a high-speed passenger train collided with a herd crossing the tracks in India’s northeastern state of Assam early Saturday, local authorities said. The train driver spotted the herd of about 100 elephants and used the emergency brakes, but the train still hit some of the animals, Indian Railways spokesman Kapinjal Kishore Sharma told The Associated Press. Five train coaches and the engine derailed following the impact, but there were no human casualties, Sharma said. Veterinarians carried out autopsies on the dead elephants, which were to be buried later in the day.

SYDNEY (AP) – In the first full day of opening since a mass shooting driven by antisemitism killed 15 people at Australia’s famed Bondi Beach on Sunday, thousands of people returned to the waterfront Friday to commemorate the losses and try to heal through a sense of community. In a hastily organized event, people gathered shoulder to shoulder on Bondi’s pristine crescent of sand and then formed an enormous circle in the ocean in an expression of solidarity among Sydney’s residents and support for the Jewish community. Police reopened parts of the beach Thursday, sparking a return to one of the country’s beloved landmarks five days after two shooters attacked a Hanukkah celebration at a park near the shore, killing 15 people.

HONG KONG (AP) – Hong Kongers offered flowers and bowed outside a funeral parlor on Friday to pay tribute to a firefighter who was among the 160 people killed by the city’s deadliest fire in decades. Ho Wai-ho lost his life battling the massive blaze that engulfed seven buildings of a housing complex on Nov. 26. He was 37. The fire services department has posthumously awarded him the title of senior fireman. An array of wreaths lay outside the Universal Funeral Parlour, with thank-you cards from residents put up on its wall. Top officials, including Hong Kong leader John Lee, were among the funeral attendees.