| ISRAEL – PALESTINE

The cardinal is visiting Christian communities in Gaza, ravaged by more than two years of war. Tomorrow, the traditional solemn Mass will be celebrated, with a focus on rebuilding and healing hearts. The patriarchs and heads of Christian Churches in Jerusalem have issued an appeal to Israeli authorities for Gaza’s sick children, asking for them to be cared for at the Augusta Victoria Hospital.


President Marcos strongly rejected reports of the Sydney attack linking the two perpetrators' 28-day stay in the country to training at some militia camp. Investigations reveal that the two men booked in at a hotel during their stay in Davao where they may have spoken to someone but did not engage in any activities. For Climate Conflict Action, “restraint and caution against hasty conclusions” are needed. But Dawla Islamia in Mindanao is not defeated and is still recruiting.

| 19/12/2025
| PHILIPPINES - AUSTRALIA

At least three people were killed and five wounded at the city's main station in an attack whose motives are still unclear. The perpetrator, a 27-year-old Taiwanese man known to law enforcement, was killed in a scuffle with police. President Lai Ching-te said that  security was tightened across the island.

| 19/12/2025
| TAIWAN

Hadi, 32, founder of the Inqilab Moncho movement and one of the main players in the protest movement that ousted Sheikh Hasina, died in Singapore from a gunshot wound to the head. The suspect reportedly fled to India. Hundreds vandalised the offices of Prothom Alo and the Daily Star in Dhaka. For Muhammad Yunus, this was “an assault on independent media and democratic progress.”

| 19/12/2025
| BANGLADESH

The Indian government has approved the Shanti Bill: a reform set to change the nuclear sector, which has remained under public control for decades. New Delhi is betting on private capital, technology and new reactors to strengthen energy security and green transition. The goal is 100 gigawatts of nuclear energy by 2047 (compared to 8 today).

| 19/12/2025
| INDIAN MANDALA

In the third instalment of AsiaNews’ report from the Gulf, Monsignor Bernardi reflects on the richness each person brings to the celebrations of Catholic communities composed of people from many different backgrounds. There are numerous challenges: from internal disputes among the Syro-Malabars to the need for formation that prevents faith from slipping into mere devotionalism. Local and universal jubilees are experienced with “dynamism and creativity”.

| 19/12/2025
| BAHRAIN - VATICAN
by Gregory

The regime has ordered churches in the northern state, home to a large Christian community, to celebrate Christmas Mass by 20 December. Any public event related to the holiday is prohibited on the 25th. Officials justify the measure citing logistical difficulties. Anger and frustration are widespread among the faithful. “They oppress us with weapons, and now they try to oppress our spirit,” said one.

| 19/12/2025
| MYANMAR
Editor's choices
 
by fr. Gabriel Romanelli
The parish priest of the Holy Family shares a video testimony of these days of Advent with AsiaNews. Life has ‘slightly improved’ after the ceasefire, but the war ‘continues’. The humanitarian emergency remains current in a climate ...
| 17/12/2025
| ISRAEL - PALESTINE
 
After five years in prison and a one-sided trial lasting 156 hearings, the “exemplary” sentence was handed down today to the Catholic entrepreneur, publisher of the pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily. The sentence has yet to be determined, ...
| 15/12/2025
| HONG KONG
 
The border dispute is not the only factor in restarting clashes. Scores of online scam centres operate along the border, run by criminal networks linked to Cambodian elites. Thailand considers them strategic military targets and is using the war to build ...
| 11/12/2025
| THAILAND – CAMBODIA
 
by A priest from China’s underground community
Yesterday's episcopal ordination in Henan is opening new wounds rather than healing old ones. The underground bishop whose resignation Rome accepted is still under strict surveillance, unable to attend "his" ceremony, and not even his family can ...
| 06/12/2025
| CHINA – VATICAN
 
by Mathias Hariyadi
The Ministry of the Environment has launched an investigation into corporate responsibility for the devastation caused by violent floods and landslides. Some 50,000 of the 340,000 hectares of forest have been logged. For Environment Minister Hanif, there ...
| 04/12/2025
| INDONESIA
 
Leo XIV has arrived in Beirut, where he delivered his first address to the authorities, speaking about the resilience of the Land of the Cedars and the challenge of achieving reconciliation that goes beyond a mere balance of interests. “A culture ...
| 01/12/2025
| LEBANON - VATICAN
 
by Giorgio Bernardelli
A mandate entrusted to over 800 delegates to make Jesus present through their lives in their own countries brought to a close the Great Pilgrimage of Hope, which saw the Churches of the continent gather in Malaysia. Cardinal David: ‘Evangelisation ...
| 30/11/2025
| ECCLESIA IN ASIA
 
by Giorgio Bernardelli
In Penang, 800 delegates from churches across the continent gathered for a ‘pilgrimage of hope’ in the Jubilee year. Cardinal Tagle: like the Magi, we reject the despair of today's Herods. Archbishop Simon Poh of Kuching: ‘We are ...
| 28/11/2025
| MALAYSIA - ASIA
“L’Asia: ecco il nostro comune compito per il terzo millennio!” - Giovanni Paolo II, da “Alzatevi, andiamo”