30/10/2025

THURSDAY | OCT 30, 2025

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Vietnam floods leave 9 dead, 5 missing

Photos circulating on state media showed that much of Hoi An remained inundated by flood water, with several houses submerged up to their roofs. In Hue, 32 out of 40 communes were hit by flood waters with depths of one to two metres. The government said in Danang, water in most reservoirs have reached maximum depths, while water levels in rivers also continue to rise. “Widespread flooding continues in low-lying areas along rivers and in urban areas, with high risks of flash floods and landslides in mountainous areas of Danang.” The national disaster agency said landslides have occurred in several areas, cutting off traffic and disrupting power grids, adding that the country’s state-run railwa has not yet been able to resume services between capital Hanoi and business hub Ho Chi Minh City following a suspension on Tuesday. According to the government’s weather forecast agency, heavy rain is expected to continue. – Reuters

Tibet suspends Everest access BEIJING: A notice showed unseasonally heavy snow has prompted authorities in the Tibet side of Mount Everest to halt visitor access to the world’s highest mountain, as a cyclone moving across India affected weather changes far up in the Himalayas. Ticket sales to the area were suspended from Tuesday afternoon, as a county meteorological bureau warned of snowstorms. The tourism department in Tingri, Tibet’s most populous county on China’s border with Nepal, said the conditions were unsuitable for vehicle passage. It was unclear if there were tourists trapped inside the Everest region in Tibet. The press office of the Tibetan government did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Cyclone Montha was forecast to bring strong winds and heavy rains to India’s east coast as it intensified over the Bay of Bengal, forcing authorities to move 50,000 people to relief camps on Monday. Earlier this month, a blizzard stranded hundreds of trekkers near the eastern face of Mount Everest in Tibet as unusually heavy snow and rainfall pummelled the Himalayas. Rescuers guided the hikers to the small township of Qudang. Weather forecast data shows temperatures in Tingri are expected to dip further below freezing in the coming days. Across the border in Nepal’s western and northern Himalayan regions, media reported heavy snowfall and rain that was severely affecting trekking activities. Nepal’s disaster authorities have warned of rain and snow through Friday. Nepalese media reported officials have shut the trail to Annapurna Base Camp and advised trekkers to remain in lodges or to descend. – Reuters capital Hue after rainfall in the area hit a record high in the 24-hour period ending late on Monday, exceeding 1,000ml. HANOI: Vietnamese government said yesterday floods triggered by record heavy rains have killed at least nine people and left five others missing in its central region. It also said six of the fatalities were in Danang, home to one of the country’s most popular beaches, and the ancient town of Hoi An, adding that the floods have also inundated more than 103,000 houses, mostly in the country’s top tourist sites. Vietnam is prone to storms and flooding that cause widespread property damage, especially during the storm season from June until October. Heavy rains continue to lash the Unesco-listed former imperial o More than 100,000 houses affected The

A resident navigates a boat along a flooded road following heavy rainfall in Hoi An. – AFPPIC

India to repatriate citizens stranded in Thailand BANGKOK: Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said yesterday India plans to send an airplane to repatriate about 500 of its nationals who fled over the border into Thailand following a military raid on a scam centre in Myanmar. According to a statement by Thai authorities, more than 1,500 people from 28 countries have fled and are now being looked after in Thailand. Charnvirakul said the Indian ambassador would meet with the head of immigration to discuss speeding up the legal verification process for the nationals ahead of their flight back to India. these victims up. The plane will land directly in Mae Sot.“ India earlier this year sent a plane to repatriate its nationals after thousands were freed from cyberscam centres along the Thai-Myanmar border following a regional crackdown.

MMIA denied the allegations. “MMIA categorically rejects any suggestion that the Company has breached applicable sanctions or engaged in conduct designed to circumvent them. “For clarification, MMIA does not provide, and has never knowingly provided, P&I (protection and indemnity) insurance to vessels transporting sanctioned Iranian or Russian energy products in contravention of New Zealand, UK, EU, US, or other applicable sanctions regimes.” – AFP of journalists in 2024. Rights groups have said the election cannot be legitimate with democratic figurehead Aung San Suu Kyi deposed and jailed in the coup, and her popular National League for Democracy party dissolved. Protesting against the poll has been made punishable by up to a decade in prison. Diplomatic sources have told AFP the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) would not send election observers for the vote. Numerous rights groups lobbied the 11-nation bloc to hold back monitors. – AFP and others nearby are run primarily by Chinese criminal gangs and guarded by local militia groups aligned to Myanmar’s military. The border areas between Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia have become hubs for online fraud since the Covid-19 pandemic, and the United Nations says billions of dollars have been earned from the trafficking of hundreds of thousands of people forced to work in the compounds. – Reuters

Starting last week, the Myanmar military has conducted a series of military operations against the KK Park cybercrime compound, driving a large number of people, mostly foreign nationals who worked there, into the Thai border town of Mae Sot.

Myanmar’s KK Park is a notorious enclave known to international law enforcement and diplomats for its involvement in transnational cyberscams. The sprawling KK Park compound

“India has asked for cooperation from Thailand, they do not want this to burden us. “They will sent a plane to pick

Myanmar invites international media to cover polls YANGON: Myanmar election authorities said yesterday

internationally.” Insurance journal Lloyd’s List has previously reported that Maritime Mutual insured tankers shipping Iranian oil. Reuters said this week the New Zealand insurer helped tankers carrying Russian and Iranian oil to avoid Western sanctions by providing them with insurance. It said New Zealand, Australia, Britain and the United States were investigating the insurer over alleged violations of sanctions and financial laws, citing an unnamed source. It is not clear what that process would entail and which media outlets would be approved for access to a country which has been largely cut-off by the military coup. Myanmar’s media landscape blossomed during its decade-long democratic thaw, with new domestic outlets springing up and foreign journalists rushing in. Since the military took back power, many of those outlets have shut, moved to rebel-held areas or operate from exile in neighbouring Thailand. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, Myanmar ranked third among the world’s leading jailers

seized records on Oct 16 at company offices in Auckland and Christchurch, also searching a house in Auckland. “Three people were detained and spoken to during the search warrants. At this point, no criminal charges have been filed.“ Police acted on warrants related to alleged breaches of New Zealand’s Russia Sanctions Act. “As this is an active investigation, NZ Police are not in a position to provide further details, however, we are being assisted by partner agencies, both domestically and The junta has touted polls starting Dec 28 as a path to peace, but the vote would be boycotted in rebel-held enclaves and monitors are dismissing it as a ploy to disguise continuing military rule. The junta-stacked Union Election Commission said in a statement “both local and international news media will be allowed to cover” the election, due to unfold in phases over a matter of weeks. A notice in state newspaper The Global New Light of Myanmar said the junta-run information ministry “will scrutinize and endorse eligible international media organizations”.

SYDNEY: New Zealand police said yesterday they raided a shipping insurer’s offices over allegations it offered cover to tankers breaking Russian sanctions. The company was not named, but the searches followed allegations against New Zealand-headquartered Maritime Mutual Insurance Association (MMIA). The insurer denies breaching or trying to circumvent any sanctions, including against Russia and Iran. Detective Inspector Christiaan Barnard said financial crimes officers international media will be allowed to cover upcoming junta-run polls, an apparent invitation for foreign press to scrutinise the deeply disputed vote. Reporters Without Borders says Myanmar’s junta has “shattered the media landscape” with censorship and intimidation since staging a 2021 coup that sparked a civil war. Local journalists bore the brunt of the crackdown while foreign media quit the country en masse, with AFP being the only international news agency maintaining a full in-country bureau.

NZ cops raid shipping insurer over skirting of Russian sanctions