Despite Stiffer Penalties, Acid Attacks Continue

Five months back, a scorched 26-year-old Ruqqaiya Perween was brought to the Civil Hospital's Burns Centre in the southern Pakistani port city of Karachi.

Australia Sends First Refugees to Papua New Guinea

The first asylum-seekers sent to Papua New Guinea (PNG) under Australia's tough new refugee policy have arrived in the Pacific nation, to be detained at the Australian-run processing centre.

Ex-Envoy’s Account Clarifies Iran’s 2003 Nuclear Decision

Newly published recollections by the former French ambassador to Iran suggest that Iran was not running a covert nuclear weapons programme that it then decided to halt in late 2003, as concluded by U.S. intelligence in 2007.

Fukushima Fallout Hits Farmers

Life for Yoshihiro Watanabe and his wife Mutsuko, mushroom and rice farmers from Fukushima, has changed drastically since the disastrous meltdowns in the Dai Ichi nuclear plant that was hit by a massive tsunami after a 9.0 strong earthquake struck on Mar. 11, 2011.

Positive Signals Between Iran and U.S. Intensifying

Within days of the inauguration of Hassan Rouhani as Iran’s new president, both Tehran and Washington appear to be sending positive signals to each other.

Is Chinese Investment in Kyrgyzstan Really Win-Win?

With Westerners now leery of investing in Kyrgyzstan, it is perhaps inevitable that officials in Bishkek turn to China as they try to attract capital for infrastructure development.

Cambodian Youth Look for Change

As Cambodia readies for general elections Sunday Jul. 28, the youth, who make up 36 percent of the country have signaled they are eager for ‘change.’

Will Prayers Save Farmers in the Land of the Gods?

Over a month after flash floods in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand in north India left 1,000 dead and 6,000 missing, the government has yet to release a full agricultural impact assessment, sparking fears about the extent of damage to the region’s farmland.

Nepal Moves to Curb Child Labour

Last December, Pradeep Dongol, child protection officer at the Kathmandu-based Children and Women in Social Service and Human Rights (CWISH), received an urgent call from one of the NGO’s many offices in Nepal’s sprawling capital city.

BOOKS: China’s March to “Wealth and Power”

The China pavilion is a red, inverted pyramid in Shanghai that was built for the city’s bustling 2010 World Expo. While the pavilion pays some homage to China’s ancient past, it mostly shows off China’s 21^st century ambitions, with as much swagger as the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Thailand Brings Same-Sex Marriage Debate to Asia

A draft law being readied for parliament that seeks to offer lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ) couples the same legal rights as heterosexual couples could make Thailand the first country in Southeast Asia to legalise gay marriage.

Where Sports Replace Terror

Pakistanis are no strangers to sports-related violence; in fact, many have come to expect scuffles and conflict, especially following a major cricket match. In the country’s northern Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), however, cricket has become a tool to promote peace.

Rouhani Faces Tests at Home and Abroad

The successful campaign of Iran’s President-elect Hassan Rouhani may have been built on the persistence of hope among Iranian voters for a better future.

Indonesia Comes under Fire for Fires

With a propensity to devour everything in their path and spiral quickly out of control, leaving behind swathes of scorched earth, forest fires are considered a hazard in most parts of the world. In Indonesia, however, fires are the preferred method for clearing large areas of land for massive plantations of commercial crops.

Running Away from TB Treatment

Twenty-three-year-old Haleema (not her real name) was not the first female patient at Srinagar’s Chest Diseases Hospital in the Indian state of Kashmir to try to run away.

Challenges and Opportunities Await Iran’s Rouhani

The transition team of Iran’s President-elect Hassan Rouhani was busy last week lowering expectations for a quick economic recovery, saying that things are far worse than they had thought.

/CORRECTED REPEAT*/River Diversion Project Spells Disaster

Tsetseghkorol, a Mongolian herder, stares out nostalgically at the Orkhon River, the longest in the country.

BOOKS: Iran’s Coup, Then and Now

Ervand Abrahamian, a leading historian of modern Iran, has recently explored the 1953 Anglo/American-sponsored coup that overthrew Iranian Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddeq.

Japan’s Uneven Conservation Efforts

Efforts to protect the critically endangered Iriomote wildcat, a spotted, shy, feral creature native to the tiny Iriomote Island that forms part of the Okinawa Prefecture in southern Japan, are becoming a highly respected model of conservation here, where the government’s uneven track record in protecting imperiled species has frustrated wildlife activists for decades.

Protests in India over School Meal Tragedy

At least 22 people in northern India, mostly children, have died and dozens were hospitalised in critical condition after apparently being poisoned by a primary school meal.

OP-ED: Iran in the Era of Moderation and Reform

Do you expect a miracle from Rouhani? You are heading down the wrong road. Please take it easy!