24/03/2026

TUESDAY | MAR 24, 2026

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Hong Kong adds password rule HONG KONG: People in Hong Kong now face a year in jail if they refuse to give police their phone or computer passwords in investigations involving the city’s national security law, the government said yesterday. The new rules apply to the implementation of Hong Kong’s national security law, which was imposed by Beijing in 2020 after huge pro-democracy protests in the financial hub. One of the amendments that came into effect yesterday requires people to provide “any password or other decryption method” necessary to allow police to access electronic equipment that is believed to hold evidence. Anyone who fails to comply faces a year in prison and a fine of HK$100,000 (RM50,314). Previously, refusal to give police a password to unlock a phone or other electronic device did not constitute obstruction. The new rule applies to people under investigation for endangering national security and people who own or possess the equipment involved, as well as those authorised to access the equipment and anyone who knows the password or decryption method. They were drawn up by Chief Executive John Lee in conjunction with the National Security Commission. They are designed to ensure that “activities endangering national security can be effectively prevented, suppressed and punished, and at the same time the lawful rights and interests of individuals and organisations are adequately protected”, a government spokesperson said. – AFP Turkiye detains journalist ISTANBUL: A journalist from a Turkish newspaper critical of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government was placed in pre-trial detention on Sunday for “spreading false information”, his publication said. Ismail Ari, a journalist for left-wing newspaper Birgun , was arrested on Saturday in the northern province of Tokat, his paper said. He was then taken to the capital Ankara for questioning and placed in pre-trial detention, Birgun said. “I was arrested because of a three month-old video,” Ari said in a statement sent by his lawyers, without giving details. “They’ve been looking for a pretext to arrest me for the past year.” The Istanbul-based paper, known for its investigations into the Turkish government, did not specify what articles led to Ari’s arrest. “Ismail has never lied to the people,” the newspaper posted on X. At a protest in Ankara in support of Ari, Birgun editor Yasar Aydin vowed: “We will not be silent. We will continue to write, speak and express ourselves.” “Journalism is not a crime. Ismail Ari must be released immediately,” the Turkish Journalists’ Union wrote on X. In late February, a Turkish journalist from Germany’s Deutsche Welle public broadcaster was likewise arrested and detained for the crime of allegedly “insulting the president”, prompting Berlin to demand his immediate release. Rights group Reporters Without Borders ranks Turkiye 159 out of 180 countries on its Press Freedom Index, between Pakistan and Venezuela. – Reuters

ICC prosecutor cleared

AMSTERDAM: of sexual misconduct against the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court are still under review by the court’s executive branch, said an internal memo shared with staff on Sunday and seen by Reuters. ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan, who investigates war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, has stepped aside temporarily pending an investigation into accusations of a non-consensual sexual relationship with a lawyer in his office. He rejects allegations of wrongdoing. Khan’s lawyers said in a o But internal memo says allegations still under review Allegations

speculation,” Assembly’s president, Paivi Kaukoranta said in a memo to court staff, which Reuters reviewed. The investigation into Khan coincided with US sanctions against him and other court prosecutors and judges for their role in investigating allegations of Israeli war crimes in Gaza, which led to the indictment of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The ICC is the world’s court of last resort for international crimes and has 125 member countries. It has been thrust into an existential crisis by the sanctions and loss of the prosecutor, who is its most prominent official. Its membership does not include China, Russia or the United States, which have opposed Khan’s issuing of arrest warrants for sitting leaders, including President Vladimir Putin and Netanyahu. – Reuters the

States Parties did not respond to emails seeking comment, which were sent on Sunday outside of normal working hours. A news report in the Middle East Eye on Saturday said Khan had been cleared. After a year-long investigation, the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services submitted its

response after Reuters published its report on Sunday that the ICC’s governing body is expected to meet today to consider the advice and conclusions of an outside panel of judges, which has not been made public. “The judges produced a lengthy, reasoned analysis, unanimously

Khan ... factual findings do not establish misconduct.

confidential fact-finding report in December to the ICC’s executive branch, known as the Bureau of the Assembly of States Parties. “The disciplinary process before the bureau is ongoing and remains confidential. No decisions have been taken, and no weight should be given to recent media

concluding that the factual findings do not establish misconduct or breach of duty. What remains is for the politicians in the bureau to confirm the assessment of the panel,” the lawyers for Khan wrote in an email. The court, the office of the prosecutor, and the Assembly of

Kim (centre front) at the Supreme People’s Assembly on Sunday. – KCNA HANDOUT/REUTERSPIC

Kim reappointed president of state affairs SEOUL: North Korea’s legislature has re-elected Kim Jong Un as president of state affairs. activity of its 15th term, on March 22,” KCNA reported. The report said the decision to re

constitutional amendments that could include formally codifying inter-Korean relations as those between “two hostile states”. The language Kim uses to describe his stance towards South Korea in his assembly speech will be a “barometer” of his inter-Korea plans, said Hong Min, a senior analyst at the Korea Institute for National Unification. The gathering follows a five yearly meeting of the ruling party last month. – AFP

two giant statues of his father Kim Jong Il and grandfather. Before the event, 687 deputies were elected to the SPA, with North Koreans over 17 given the choice of approving or rejecting the sole candidate put forward by the ruling party. The new deputies were duly approved with 99.93% of votes in favour and 0.07% against, KCNA reported earlier, with turnout at 99.99%. Analysts say the assembly session may also take up possible

elect Kim to the “top post” reflected “the unanimous will and desire of all the Korean people”. Kim is the third-generation ruler of the nuclear-armed state founded by his grandfather Kim Il Sung in 1948. He has ruled the country since his father’s death in 2011. Photos released by KCNA show Kim dressed in a formal western suit and seated at the centre of a stage, flanked by top officials in front of

Kim’s reappointment as head of the authoritarian nation’s highest policymaking and governing body, the State Affairs Commission, was announced by the state news agency KCNA. “The Supreme People’s Assembly of the DPRK re-elected Comrade Kim Jong Un as president of the state affairs of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea at the First Session, the first state affairs