Invasion of Ukraine: A couple takes refuge in Gaza

Today's headlines: a well-known blogger arrested in Vietnam; South Korea reopens to Russians, but not for tourism; in Laos, two villages demand compensation for dam construction; in India, the release of a young activist is denied; search continues in China for a second black box from recent plane crash.

PALESTINE - UKRAINE

A young couple fleeing Ukraine have found refuge in Gaza: Viktoria Breij chose the homeland of her husband, Ibrahim Saidam, to escape the war after the Russian invasion. The two, married for two years, met in Kyiv when she was a pharmacy student and he was a medical student, originally from Bureij, a refugee camp in the Gaza Strip.

RUSSIA - BELARUS

 Russians are offering various incentives in addition to money, including free military training, to attract Belarusians to join the fighting in Ukraine. Members of the Russian services are directly targeting Belarusian soldiers, offering to join the Russian army with a salary of ,000-1,500 a month, who for the moment do not seem very motivated to jump into the fighting.

SOUTH KOREA - RUSSIA

South Korea will reinstate visa-free entry to the country for Russians from 1 April, which was restricted in April 2020 due to Covid. It will be sufficient to register with the K-Eta (Korea Electronic Travel Authorisation) system. Travel for study, medical treatment and humanitarian reasons is permitted, but not for tourism.

KYRGYZSTAN

Two demonstrations were held at the same time in Biškek, one for and one against the Russian war in Ukraine. Only the participants of the second one were fined, while no one took responsibility for the first one.

LAOS

Inhabitants of two villages in northern Laos will be relocated to make room for the construction of a dam in Luang Prabang (a Unesco heritage site) on the Mekong River, and are demanding more compensation than the local authorities have already granted. The USD 3 billion project will be carried out by a Vietnamese and a Thai company.

CHINA

Rescue teams are searching for a second black box from the China Eastern Airlines plane that crashed with 132 passengers on board in Guangxi, southern China. Yesterday, a first black box was found in good condition and is believed to contain cockpit recordings.

INDIA

An Indian court denied bail to an activist arrested 18 months ago on charges of inciting riots in the capital Delhi. Umar Khalid is accused of being a "key conspirator" in the clashes in which 53 people, mostly Muslims, died in February 2020. Khalid denies the charges, saying he took part in a peaceful protest.

VIETNAM

A court in Vietnam sentenced a 51-year-old well-known commentator, Le Van Dung, to five years in prison for "insulting the honour and prestige of the Communist Party and state leaders".  Before his arrest in June, Dung had been broadcasting daily videos on his social channels. Despite openings in recent years, the Communists continued to control society with censorship and repression of activists.

• AsiaToday