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Japan says one of two nationals detained in Iran has safely returned home in good health, officials confirmed after the foreign minister announced the release.

The South China Morning Post reports President Trump has moved from diplomacy and sanctions changes to threats against Iran’s civilian infrastructure over the Strait of Hormuz crisis, prompting concerns about escalation.

Al Jazeera reports Israeli settlers staged a second night of attacks in West Bank towns amid Israel’s broader push to expand control over Palestinian territories, escalating tensions in the occupied territory.

Hong Kong activist and barrister Chow Hang-tung told a West Kowloon court that China’s 2018 constitutional amendment enshrining Communist Party leadership represented a ‘regression’ away from constitutional democracy.

Japan coach Nils Nielsen said his team will need “different tools” to win next year’s World Cup in Brazil despite sweeping to the Asian Cup title, scoring 29 goals and conceding one.

Israel and the United States launched extensive strikes across Iran, including Tehran, as President Donald Trump’s 48-hour ultimatum neared expiry. The actions raise risks of wider regional escalation and global economic impacts.

Sebastian Korda upset world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 at the Miami Open, handing Alcaraz a surprising third-round exit; Aryna Sabalenka advanced to face Zheng.

Attacks on Middle East energy infrastructure last week pushed diesel and jet fuel prices higher and prompted investor concern over prolonged supply disruptions; experts say Asia’s property markets may prove resilient to related interest-rate shocks.

The Pentagon has requested $200 billion in new funding, a move many see as indicating the associated conflict will be prolonged, with wide fiscal and strategic implications.

Rising energy and fertiliser prices tied to the war against Iran by the US and Israel are driving inflation across Africa, threatening fragile recoveries still coping with shocks from the Russia–Ukraine war.

Regal Hotels and affiliates sold the 494-room Regal Kowloon Hotel for about HK$1.52bn (US$194m) to Centaline Group’s real estate arm, which plans to convert the property into a student hostel.

Hawaii’s National Guard has been mobilized to assist recovery after Oahu suffered its worst flooding in 20 years, supporting local emergency efforts and relief operations.

Han Shen Lin, director of the China Office at the Asia Consultative Group, says China is likely to stay neutral in the Iran conflict, pursuing a cautious, long‑term strategy to protect its strategic and economic interests.

Tensions have spiked as Donald Trump’s deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz — or face strikes on power plants — approaches, with US-Israel military action now in its 24th day.

Customs data show China cut exports of gallium and germanium to Japan to zero in early 2026 while increasing rare-earth magnet shipments, a move that could signal targeted trade pressure amid diplomatic friction.

Celebrity posts and influencer hype have pushed at‑home LED face masks into the mainstream. The devices sell out rapidly, but questions remain about what they actually deliver.

A US-led initiative is proposing an ammunition production facility in the Philippines under PIPIR, prompting critics to warn it could make Manila a logistics hub for US military activity.

President Prabowo said Indonesia will not pay the reported US$1 billion joining fee for permanent membership of the Trump-linked “Board of Peace,” pledging instead to contribute peacekeeping troops amid domestic criticism.

Hong Kong prosecutors have added a terrorism-related conspiracy charge under the national security law against two men accused in an alleged three-year-old bomb plot and moved to transfer the case to the High Court.

EIN Presswire reports that Li Ka-shing’s firm is in a dispute with Panama over ports along the Panama Canal, including Balboa Port, amid a reported US-backed effort by Panama to assert control.