Taiwan leader says island will not bow to ChinaTaiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen has said the island will not bow to Chinese pressure. TAIPEI: Taiwan will not bow to pressure by Beijing and will defend its democratic way of life, President Tsai Ing-wen said Sunday, following a spike in incursions by Chinese warplanes into its air defence zone. "The more we achieve, the greater the pressure we face from China," Tsai said in a speech marking Taiwan's National Day, adding: "Nobody can force Taiwan to take the path China has laid out for us." There has been another flare-up with a significant uptick in flights by Chinese fighter jets and nuclear-capable bombers into Taiwan's air defence identification zone (ADIZ). Tsai, who has won two elections, is loathed by Beijing because she regards Taiwan as an "already independent" country, not part of "one China".

84 Covid deaths, 10,817 new casesAunty Tin shop in Pathum Thani provides 200 food boxes for people affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. (Photo: Apichit Jinakul)Thailand logged 84 new Covid-19 fatalities and 10,817 new cases during the previous 24 hours, the Public Health Ministry announced on Sunday morning. Bangkok registered 11 out of 84 fatalities, followed by six in Samut Prakan and five each in Narathiwat and Saraburi. Since the pandemic started early last year, there have been 1,710,884 Covid-19 cases, with 1,582,313 complete recoveries so far. Global Covid-19 cases rose by 349,956 in 24 hours to 238,351,150.

Iraqis head to polls for early election shunned by activistsIraq holds early elections Sunday two years after anti-government protests but analysts say the vote is unlikely to deliver major change while disillusioned voters say they will boycott the pollsBAGHDAD - Iraq on Sunday is set to hold an early election billed as a concession to anti-government protests, but expected to be boycotted by many voters who distrust official promises of reform. Dozens of election observers deployed by the European Union and the United Nations were set to monitor the vote. This election will be won by the same factions that people protested against," bemoaned Baghdad day labourer Mohammed Kassem, vowing not to vote. The electoral commission said it expects to publish preliminary results within 24 hours of the close of polls. The Fatah Alliance, the bloc representing many Iran-backed Shiite militias, is expected to retain its share of seats.

Michael Keaton confronts US opioid crisis in 'Dopesick'US actor Michael Keaton stars in "Dopesick," a television drama about America's newest drug epidemic: the opioid crisisLOS ANGELES - Before he became Batman, Michael Keaton made his dramatic film debut in "Clean and Sober," an unflinching look at drug addiction during the United States' 1980s cocaine craze. Ahead of next year's superhero movie "The Flash" -- in which Keaton plays an older version of Batman -- he stars in "Dopesick," a television drama about America's newest drug epidemic: the opioid crisis. The series, streaming on Hulu from October 13, is based on Beth Macey's non-fiction book "Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors and the Drug Company that Addicted America." It explores how Purdue Pharma aggressively pushed OxyContin, a highly addictive prescription painkiller blamed for the country's opioid crisis that has caused half a million US overdose deaths since 1999. In the television series, Keaton plays a doctor in a small mining town, and Dawson a government narcotics agent, who each begin to uncover the scale of the burgeoning crisis.

Colombian nun kidnapped by Mali jihadists in 2017 freedThe archbishop of Bamako, Jean Zerbo, confirmed Narvaez's release, adding that she was 'doing well'BAMAKO - A Franciscan nun from Colombia kidnapped by jihadists in Mali in 2017 was freed Saturday, Mali's presidency said. Sister Gloria Cecilia Narvaez was taken hostage on February 7, 2017 in southern Mali near the border with Burkina Faso where she had been working as a missionary for six years. "I am very happy, I stayed healthy for five years, thank God," the nun said, smiling and wearing a yellow robe. Archbishop Zerbo said Sister Gloria was "doing well". "She is in good health, thank God.

Top-seeded Pliskova eases into third round at Indian Wells, Muguruza upsetLean in: Australian Ajla Tomljanovic on the way to a second-round victory over fifth-seeded Garbine Muguruza of Spain at the WTA and ATP Masters Indian Wells hard court tournamentLOS ANGELES: Top-seeded Karolina Pliskova rolled into the third round of the WTA and ATP Masters at Indian Wells on Friday, as fifth-seeded Garbine Muguruza was toppled by Ajla Tomljanovic. Pliskova, ranked third in the world, needed 80 minutes to get past 23-year-old Polish qualifier Magdalena Frech 7-5, 6-2. Pliskova fired six aces to take her WTA-leading tally to 387 for the season, converting five of six break chances against Frech. It was the 106th-ranked Frech who grabbed the first break of the match, taking a 4-3 lead in the opening set. Muguruza appeared to have turned things around when she pocketed the second set to level the match -- aided by a rise in errors from the Aussie.

All in the family, novice thief messes up, please jail meLao 'grandad' betrays trustAn Udon Thani man is facing serious charges after allegedly raping a 15-year-old girl whom he regarded as a relative. The pair's return to the family home appears to have sparked tension between Taonok and the family. "He was a slippery operator who liked to speak sarcastically, causing divisions in the family," Ms Su said. He told the girl at the hut that he intended to kill the rest of the family. It is unclear what happened to the women, as when police found him early the next morning at the hut, Taonok was alone.

The fee, 500 baht, will be collected by the Tourism and Sports Ministry to "transform" the hard-hit tourism industry. An earlier proposal had set the fee at 300 baht with the money to be used to maintain tourist sites, provide insurance benefits, and even free treatment to those who fall sick or are injured. They are forced to pay much higher price for entering tourist sites such as museums, temples and historic sites, not to mention national parks. As the world begins to enter a post-Covid era, the international tourism market is poised for a sharp realignment. Unfortunately, there's no such thing as having your cake and eating it too and this fee could be the final nail in the coffin for an already struggling industry.

Enjoying the delicate sound of thunderSomething you get accustomed to in Bangkok at this time of the year is the distant sound of thunder, Mother Nature's way of reminding us of her power and also not to forget the umbrella if we are going out. Last weekend on Saturday afternoon there was an extended period of rolling thunder which felt like it was surrounding the entire city. With sporadic lightning accompanying the thunder there was a free "light and sound" show for the best part of an hour. When it had all quietened down it seemed only right to conclude the afternoon listening to The Delicate Sound of Thunder, Pink Floyd's classic live album at the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island. Scotland is also the source of the splendid "thunder plump" meaning a sudden heavy shower accompanied by thunder and lightning.

IMF board to hear from law firm accusing Georgieva of misconductKristalina Georgieva, pictured in October 2019, has denied a report's conclusion that she manipulated data in favor of China while at the World Bank. WASHINGTON: The IMF executive board will meet Sunday to hear from a law firm whose investigators concluded that managing director Kristalina Georgieva manipulated data in favor of China while she held a senior role at the World Bank, a source close to the case said Saturday. Time is of the essence with the IMF and the World Bank to begin their fall meetings on Monday. Georgieva, a Bulgarian national and economist by training, spoke to the IMF board on Wednesday. Following the accusations, the World Bank scrapped its Doing Business report, which ranked nations based on their investment climate.

"If they go scot-free, the tortures and enforced disappearances will never end," she said. She said core principles of the bill must be kept intact, including that the statute of limitation in crimes of torture and enforced disappearances must be infinite. Section 11 outlaws acts of torture and enforced disappearances regardless of national emergencies, war or security situations. Between 2017 and 2020, the Justice Ministry received 258 complaints of torture and five complaints of enforced disappearances. These include what criminally constitutes torture and enforced disappearances; the lack of stipulation of actions deemed as cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment.

Coronavirus curve flattens in PhuketCovid-19 infections are falling in Phuket, with barely more than 100 new infections reported each day now, according to the Phuket Provincial Public Health Office (PPHO). However, the tally had since stabilised, with daily Covid-19 cases steady over the month of September. Meanwhile, Thailand logged 73 Covid-19 fatalities and 10,630 new cases during the previous 24 hours, the Public Health Ministry said yesterday. Of them, 480,064 were first doses, 489,043 were second shots and 40,965 were boosters. Single-day fatalities peaked at 312 on Aug 18 while the most cases in a day was 23,418 on Aug 13.

Five more provinces to welcome touristsThe government is set to reopen five more provinces to foreign tourists next month after the Phuket sandbox pulled in more than 2 billion baht during the past three months. Government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said yesterday Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has hailed the success of the sandbox scheme. The Phuket sandbox, which was launched on July 1, was followed by Samui Plus and the Phuket Extension, all of which had contributed 2.33 billion baht to the economy as of Sept 27, he said. As of last Thursday, a total of 43,026 foreign tourists have visited the island province and 779,502 nights of room bookings between July and February next year were made, he said. The spokesman said the government will also go ahead with a plan to reopen five more provinces to foreign tourists on Nov 1.

Alarm bells ring as South sees spikeA spike in Covid-19 infections in Songkhla and Pattani has sounded the alarm over limited treatment capacity and the possible return to a strict lockdown. Deputy Interior Minister Niphon Bunyamanee said the prime minister has ordered agencies to work together more closely in tackling the surge of infections in the far South. Local public health authorities said 883 beds were available at local hospitals but they were running out. Many residents feared the surge in infections would force the province into another strict lockdown. Several new clusters of infections broke out, traced to a barbecue restaurant and a wedding banquet.

Kids face random testing for on-site classes in new termStudents receive a dose of the Pfizer vaccine at Surasak Montree School in Bangkok on Wednesday. (Photo: Arnun Chonmahatrakool)Random antigen testing will be carried out among school children before the new term begins next month, says deputy government spokeswoman Rachada Dhnadirek. Ms Rachada said the antigen test would boost the confidence of students and parents ahead of on-site classes resuming on Nov 1. Since the launch of nationwide Pfizer inoculations for people aged 12-18 on Oct 7, 150,190 have received their first dose and 1,825 have had both injections. Pfizer-BioNTech is seeking approval from the US's Food and Drug Administration for the use of its vaccine on children aged 5-11, said Ms Rachada.