This afternoon's briefing covers 29 stories selected from issue 24 of Biguan (毕观天下), weighted towards Asia. China's Communist Party Fifth Plenum is under way in Beijing, Interpol will hold its first General Assembly in Hong Kong, Singapore found geothermal potential of over 60 times its annual power use, Japan indicted a US Marine for murder in Okinawa, and Australia's Parliament paused to honour Helen Haines. Elsewhere, Lula won a fourth term as Brazil's president, Serbia celebrated the student list's victory, Zelensky confirmed November talks with Russia, Israel votes on Tuesday, and the Houthis claimed a new attack on Riyadh airport.
The Fifth Plenary Session of the Chinese Communist Party's 20th Central Committee opened in Beijing on Oct 26 and runs until Oct 29, attended by about 300 Central Committee members. Japanese media and several news agencies report that the meeting, held ahead of the 21st Party Congress, centres on party building, discipline and anti-corruption, and several provinces changed their party secretaries or governors beforehand. A communique is usually released after the meeting closes.
Interpol will hold its General Assembly in Hong Kong next month, the first time the organisation's annual meeting takes place in the city. Interpol's Secretary General said in Hong Kong that the meeting will seek approval for a new 'Silver Notice' mechanism to trace criminals' assets and speed up cross-border financial investigations. Hong Kong's Commissioner of Police said financial investigations and fraud will be priority topics for discussion with overseas counterparts.
The head of Hong Kong's new Centre for Medical Products Regulation said the new drug regulator aims to build a fully capable system trusted worldwide that acts as a catalyst for medical innovation, rather than simply copying a 'mini version' of models elsewhere. He noted that mainland China, Singapore and Japan set up similar agencies long ago. The centre's remit covers approval of drugs and medical devices, market surveillance and international cooperation.
After independent MP for Indi Helen Haines was hit by a car outside her electorate office in Wangaratta last week and had both legs amputated, federal Parliament resumed on Monday, Oct 26, and suspended normal business to pay tribute to her. The independent MP for Wentworth relayed that Haines's husband said her first words after waking were to ask whether her staff were safe and to thank the bystanders and doctors who helped her. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and other leaders spoke, security in public areas of Parliament House has been tightened, and police are still investigating it as a deliberate attack.
An investigation by the Commonwealth Ombudsman found that the algorithm the federal government uses to decide the level of care older people receive is 'unreasonable and unfair' and lacks effective human oversight, and said the 'black box' technology had not implemented the transparency recommendations of the Royal Commission into the Robodebt scheme. The Ombudsman called for the law to be changed so that automated decisions can be overridden by a human. The Labor government faces pressure to respond on transparency and accountability.
Singapore's National Environment Agency expanded its investigation into haze from land-clearing fires, issuing notices to 10 Singapore-registered palm oil and forestry-related companies requiring documents on their overseas land concessions, firefighting and fire-prevention measures, and links with related companies. The NEA said the 24-hour PSI across the island on Oct 26 was forecast at 70 to 100, with normal PM2.5 readings and good to moderate air quality.
Singapore's Energy Market Authority published results of a non-invasive geophysical survey showing high-temperature geothermal resources several kilometres underground, with estimated potential of more than 60 times the country's annual electricity consumption that could be used for power generation. Minister Tan See Leng said the government will carry out deeper drilling and assessment to judge whether geothermal is a viable option for electricity. Authorities stressed the project is still at the resource-exploration stage and there is no timetable for commercial generation.
The Straits Times reported that leadership renewal in Singapore's ruling People's Action Party is entering its next stage, with attention on how four vacant seats will be filled by co-option. The report said the appointments affect the line-up of the next Cabinet and grassroots arrangements, and the names and timetable have not been formally announced. Analysts note that co-option has historically been used to bring in professionals and grassroots representatives.
A man died after a landslide struck a two-storey house in Penang, Malaysia. Local authorities said in a preliminary investigation that a leaking water pipe at a nearby hillside construction site may have triggered the landslide, and a stop-work order has been issued for the project. The Penang state government asked the contractor to cooperate with the investigation and ordered checks on drainage and slope protection at similar hillside sites ahead of the rainy season.
Japanese prosecutors indicted a 20-year-old US Marine on a murder charge, accusing him of strangling a 39-year-old woman from Naha with a telephone cord in a hotel in Okinawa. The case has heightened local concern over discipline among US forces in Japan and how the Japan-US Status of Forces Agreement is applied. The Okinawa prefectural government asked the US side to cooperate with the investigation and prevent similar cases, and US Forces Japan said it would cooperate with Japanese judicial procedures.
After a string of cyberattacks in Japan affecting internet services and foreign exchange trading, GMO Internet and other companies announced compensation for users. GMO said it would cover losses caused by unauthorised access to forex trading and would first give all customers 5,000 yen as a goodwill payment. The Prime Minister's Office arranged a meeting of relevant cabinet ministers on the evening of Oct 26 to discuss responses and information sharing, and the Financial Services Agency asked affected firms to submit reports.
Tomoka Nishiyama, who holds four women's shogi titles, announced at a news conference that she will exercise the qualification she has earned to become a professional shogi player. Once the procedures are completed, she will be the first woman to become a professional player in Japanese shogi. Women's title matches and the professional ranks have long been separate tracks, but recent rule changes allow women who meet the criteria to apply to join professional play.
'Doctor S', the successor to the Tokaido-Sanyo Shinkansen inspection train 'Doctor Yellow' that was retired last year, made its first run on JR Central's section on Oct 26, taking over inspections of track, overhead lines and signalling equipment. JR Central said the inspection functions have been fully handed over, and that the schedule will not necessarily be announced in advance for safety and operational flexibility.
South Korea and North Korea exchanged accusations at the UN Security Council over a landmine explosion near the Military Demarcation Line that injured South Korean soldiers. Seoul linked the blast to mines laid by the North, while the Korean Central News Agency reported that North Korea's ambassador to the UN wrote to the Security Council saying the South had 'fabricated' the border landmine blast. There is no timetable for whether the Security Council will formally discuss the matter.
South Korea's Supreme Court upheld a reduced four-year prison sentence for the former chief executive of Aricell over the fire at its lithium battery plant in Hwaseong. The 2024 fire killed 23 workers, including 17 Chinese nationals and one other foreign worker. Victims' families criticised the sentence as too lenient and questioned whether Korean law deters major industrial accidents.
The cyber investigation unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said it has booked seven people, led by a 32-year-old man, on suspicion of violating the Information and Communications Network Act and of intimidation. Police said that from September last year to this month the group used generative AI and other methods to break into about 90 companies and institutions, including affiliates of large conglomerates, private academies and hospitals, stealing more than 8.2 million pieces of personal data. Police are still tracing whether the data was resold or used for fraud or extortion.
South Korean badminton player Ahn Se-young won the French Open again, completing a hat-trick at the event and her fourth title there, and taking her 10th trophy of the season while extending her winning streak to 50 matches. Her record this season is about 66 wins and 1 loss, one title short of her own record of 11 titles in a season. After the final she said she had 'poured everything' into it.
Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense said that from 6am on Oct 25 to 6am on Oct 26 it detected 6 Chinese navy ships and 9 official ships, as well as 1 Chinese military aircraft that crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait and entered airspace to the south-west and east. The military said it used aircraft, ships and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor and respond. Such reports are routine readiness disclosures by Taiwan and do not mean any exchange of fire took place.
Oct 25 marked the 81st anniversary of the Republic of China government taking over Taiwan from Japanese colonial rule in 1945, and the first anniversary of mainland China officially designating it 'Taiwan Retrocession Day'. Mainland officials held a commemorative forum in Fuzhou, Fujian, where a former Kuomintang chair criticised the Democratic Progressive Party for pushing 'de-Sinicisation', remarks widely reported by mainland media. Taiwan's government and opposition differ on how to view the date, and the DPP authorities stress the sovereignty of the Republic of China.
After Sunday's snap parliamentary election in Serbia, President Aleksandar Vučić conceded his ruling camp had lost, and celebrations continued across the country on Monday, with several media calling the expected end of his 12 to 14 years of dominance 'historic'. Preliminary results suggest the student movement's 'Student List - Students Win' could take a majority in the 250-seat parliament, on the highest turnout since the 1990s, and voices in the EU said 'the door to the EU is open'. The election was triggered by nearly two years of anti-corruption protests after a station canopy collapsed in Novi Sad in 2024.
Following Storm Austen, named storm Boelo continued to batter the UK and parts of northern Europe. Police said two men were killed by falling trees on Sunday: a 60-year-old man in south-west Scotland and a man in his 20s in London. The Met Office recorded gusts of up to about 84mph, more than 160,000 properties across the UK lost power at one point, and parts of France and Germany were also affected.
Thousands of people across Italy joined youth-led protests against the rising cost of living, also challenging the government's tough public-order measures. In Rome, marchers broke into the area around the Colosseum and scuffled with police, while marches were held in several other cities. Organisers said the action echoes a wave of youth protests in other European countries, and the interior authorities said storming the monument and violence would be dealt with according to law.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that Kyiv and Moscow will hold talks in November with US mediation, stressing that territorial issues must be discussed directly at leaders' level while other matters can go to technical groups. The Kremlin had said the three-way contacts were planned for the Gulf region. After US envoy Steve Witkoff met Zelensky and Vladimir Putin in recent days, both sides signalled willingness to resume direct talks; the agenda, level of attendance and whether a ceasefire is included have not been announced.
About six months before France's 2027 presidential election, far-right leader Marine Le Pen held her first large campaign rally outside Orléans on Sunday, with organisers saying more than 8,000 supporters attended amid heavy police security and traffic restrictions in the city. Le Pen promised to lead a 'revival' of France, 'restore the rule of law' and protect its language, traditions and way of life. She still faces existing court cases that could affect her eligibility to run.
Brazil's Superior Electoral Court confirmed after the count that President Lula won 51.79% of valid votes in the Oct 25 runoff, defeating right-wing senator Flávio Bolsonaro on 48.21% to win a fourth term. It is the first time since direct elections returned in 1989 that a candidate who lost the first round went on to win the runoff. Lula, 80, called the result 'a defeat of denialism', while Flávio's camp reportedly refused to concede and said it would seek to annul the election; Lula turns 81 this week and his new term begins in January.
Israel holds its first parliamentary election since the Oct 7, 2023 attack on Tuesday, Oct 27. Former military chief of staff Eisenkot held his final rally on Sunday, stressing accountability for the war and social unity, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's camp kept the Iranian threat at the centre of its campaign and painted his rival as soft on Iran. Several polls show Likud trailing, tens of thousands of Israeli expats flew home to vote, and the military had announced it would close land crossings in the West Bank during the election.
Yemen's Houthis said they launched another attack on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport within hours of flights resuming, and the Saudi-led coalition then said it intercepted a ballistic missile. The airport had earlier been disrupted by explosions and 'hostile aerial threat' warnings before Saudi Arabia reopened it to passenger traffic. The Houthis also claimed strikes on pipelines and oil facilities in Saudi Arabia, raising market concerns about oil price swings.
Gunmen opened fire on a funeral procession at St George Orthodox Church in a village in Karak governorate, southern Jordan, on Friday, Oct 23, killing at least 9 people and injuring about 40, in what authorities called a terrorist attack by extremists. King Abdullah II vowed the 'harshest retaliation', the prime minister declared 3 days of national mourning, and security services said on Oct 26 that 3 suspects had been arrested. On the same day Singapore's president and prime minister wrote to Jordan's king and prime minister condemning the deliberate attack on civilians at a place of worship.
Kenyan authorities said a bus carrying church members crashed on the Nairobi-Mombasa highway, killing at least 24 people, most of them passengers returning from a religious event. The crash came weeks after another on the same stretch killed 17, and the government said it will step up road safety enforcement and inspections of long-distance coaches. Local road safety groups criticised long-standing overloading and inadequate vehicle checks on long-distance buses.