The 2026 Seoul International Buddhism Expo was an unprecedented success, with more than 250,000 visitors in four days, mostly young men and women aged 20 to 30, nearly half self-identifying as non-religious. While official data point to a decline in Buddhism in Asia, the festival turned temples into true cultural and entertainment venues making the faith more accessible.
New Beijing-mediated talks took place today in Xinjiang to halt fighting along the Pakistan-Afghan border. Meanwhile, Islamabad is positioning itself as a mediator in the war between the United States, Israel, and Iran, after presenting a tentative ceasefire initiative, with Chinese backing.
In a message released today, the Buddhist leader endorses the pope's appeal on Palm Sunday for nonviolence and disarmament, emphasising the values common to all religions – “love, compassion, tolerance” as the basis for conflict resolution, from the Middle East to Ukraine.
He was convicted for "inciting subversion of state power" after a trial marked by serious procedural breaches of Chinese and international law. Xie, who has handled several sensitive cases, including religious persecution cases, and has been imprisoned and tortured in the past for his work. The human rights community is calling for his immediate release.
President Lai Ching-te announced plans to restart the Guosheng and Ma-anshan nuclear plants due to growing energy demand and the war in the Middle East, marking a turning point after the country's nuclear phase-out. Last year, a referendum had already called for the restart of one plant but failed because it fell short of the threshold of eligible voters.
The activist and former trade unionist spoke at his subversion trial regarding his role in the Hong Kong Alliance, which organised vigils in memory of the victims of the Tiananmen Square massacre. He faces up to 10 years in prison. In his defence, he quoted Mao Zedong and former Chinese Premier Zhao Ziyang opposing one-party rule.
