Asia

In a move seen as the culmination of the government’s campaign to “sinicize” Islamic architecture across the country, the last major mosque in China with distinctly Arabic features has undergone a dramatic transformation, the Guardian reported today. The Grand Mosque…

A massive landslide has devastated a remote village in northern Papua New Guinea, burying over 300 people and more than 1,100 houses, Reuters reported today. The landslide occurred around 3 a.m. on Friday in the Enga Province, approximately 600 km…

Armenia has returned four border villages to Azerbaijan, a crucial step in the efforts to normalize relations between the long-time rivals, Al Jazeera reported yesterday. The villages of Baghanis, Voskepar, Kirants, and Berkaber have been handed back to Azerbaijan, which…

Archaeologists have uncovered evidence of ancient human habitation in East Timor dating back 44,000 years, shedding new light on the region’s rich cultural heritage, Al Jazeera reported today. A team of researchers from Australian and UK universities excavated a deep…

Amman, Jordan, inaugurated its first smart mosque, “Makkah Khamees,” as part of a broader initiative to enhance mosque services through modern technology, MSN reported yesterday. According to the article, the Jordanian government aims to extend this smart system to mosques…

According to leaked internal documents, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has declined Thailand’s request to help nearly 50 Uyghur asylum seekers who have been held in the country’s detention centers for a decade, RFA reported yesterday. The UNHCR…

Vietnam’s Communist Party has named minister of public security To Lam as the new president in an unprecedented reshuffle of the country’s leadership, Anadolu Agency reported yesterday. Lam has been public security minister since 2016 and has taken a hard…

Five Pakistani medical students were injured in a mob attack on foreign students in the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek, Arab News reported today. The violence appears to have been sparked by the online sharing of videos depicting a brawl between…

Dubai’s Warsan Waste Management plant is revolutionizing waste management by converting 45% of the city’s trash into electricity, CNN reported yesterday. Processing 2 million metric tons of waste annually, the world’s largest waste-to-energy facility generates enough power to supply around…

In a sweeping effort to reduce foreign influence and strengthen the Chinese Communist Party’s control, the Chinese government has been aggressively pushing for the “sinicization” of Islam across the country. More details in the following report: China has been pursuing…