Phnom Penh shutters 200 “scam centres” in crackdown on online fraud

Today's headlines: Jakarta ready to send 8,000 soldiers to the international peacekeeping force in Gaza; Delhi imposes a three-hour limit on web giants for removing illegal content on social media; January sees boom in Taiwan exports, highest monthly figure in 16 years; A stone from the Porziuncola donated to the Apostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia; Record number of Russian tourists in North Korea in 2025.

CAMBODIA

In recent weeks, Phnom Penh has closed nearly 200 “scam centres” - centres for online fraud - in a crackdown on transnational fraud. This information was released by a government source, according to which 173 people were arrested and 11,000 workers deported as part of the crackdown launched at the end of last year. “There are about 190 places that we have sealed,” said Chhay Sinarith, a member of the Commission Against Online Scams. Doubts remain about this sudden change of direction in a sector that has long been tolerated by the Cambodian authorities, as well as suspicions about the real intention to target those who have benefited most from it.

GAZA - ISRAEL - INDONESIA

Jakarta is preparing around 8,000 soldiers to deploy to Gaza as part of phase two of the US-brokered ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas at the end of last year. Army Chief of Staff Gen. Maruli Simanjuntak reports that training for the soldiers has already begun and that they will focus on medical and engineering roles in the Strip. Indonesia is part of President Donald Trump's Peace Council, announced last month, with a mandate from the UN Security Council to establish an International Stabilisation Force (ISF).

INDIA

Delhi yesterday imposed a new maximum limit of three hours from notification on social media giants to remove content deemed illegal, further reducing the previous threshold of 36 hours and posing a further challenge to Meta, YouTube and X. The rule amends the 2021 IT Act, which had already contributed to fuelling tension between Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government and global technology companies. The new regulations will come into force on 20 February and reinforce India's position as one of the world's most aggressive regulators of online content.

TAIWAN

Taiwan's exports rose much more than expected in January, reaching their highest monthly growth in 16 years amid continued demand for chips and technology that powers artificial intelligence applications. Exports showed a 69.9% year-on-year increase, settling at .77 billion. The escalation in exports is also confirmed by the 27th consecutive month of gains.

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - ITALY

A sign of communion between the city of the saint of Assisi and the Apostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia: on the eighth centenary of the death of St. Francis, the Friars Minor of the Seraphic Province of Umbria and Sardinia donated a stone from the Porziuncola to the Church of the Gulf. The precious gift was received by Vicar Monsignor Paolo Martinelli during a conference ‘on the presence of St Francis and his charisma in the Arab world’. The stone comes from the presbytery of the Porziuncola and was preserved after restoration work following the 1997 earthquake, when the floor level of the chapel was lowered and several stones were preserved as relics.

SOUTHEAST ASIA - CHINA

China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand have launched the 162nd joint patrol of the Mekong. Three Beijing naval police vessels - nos. 53106, 53107 and 53108 - departed on 9 February from a pier in Yunnan (south-west), marking the official launch of the operation. After meeting, the law enforcement vessels of the four countries will form a joint flotilla to carry out coordinated patrol and crime-fighting operations.

RUSSIA - NORTH KOREA

Last year, Russians set a record for visits to North Korea, with over 10,000 people travelling there, the highest number since 2010, when this statistic began to be recorded.

This is a significant increase compared to 2024, when there were 6,649, and only 1,238 in 2023, thanks in part to the direct flights launched last year between Moscow and Pyongyang. In addition to tourists, there were 1,156 business trips, 666 “private trips” and also study trips as part of exchange programmes, with the transport of technicians and crews of over 3,000 people and 3,500 train journeys.

ARMENIA - UNITED STATES - IRAN

The Armenian authorities are working with the United States to assess the possibility of imposing 25% tariffs on the commercial operations of countries that trade with Iran, as revealed during the meeting between Prime Minister Nikol Pašinyan and US Vice-President J. D. Vance in Yerevan. The aim is to prevent tariffs on Armenia from rising from 10% to 25%, which would hinder competitive relations in what has so far been a very limited market for Armenians with the US.

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