Hong Kong: one year and nine months in prison for former Stand News editor-in-chief

Today's news: Israel intercepts Yemen-launched missile, new air raids and deaths also in Gaza; Fiji protests at UN over intercontinental ballistic missile test launched by China into the Ocean; At least 46 dead including many children in India from ritual bathing at a Hindu festival despite swollen rivers; Work accidents rise in South Korea with immigrants as victims.

HONG KONG

One year and nine months in prison has been handed down to the former editor-in-chief of Hong Kong's independent news organization Stand News for publishing "seditious" material, while a second editor was immediately released only because of a rare illness. Former Stand News editor-in-chief Chung Pui-kuen, 55, and former acting editor-in-chief Patrick Lam, 36, were sentenced by the Wan Chai District Court after being found guilty last month of "conspiracy to publish and reproduce seditious publications." These are the first convictions of journalists since the former British colony returned under Chinese rule in 1997.

ISRAEL-LEBANON-YEMEN

Israeli air defense said it intercepted this morning a ballistic missile launched from Yemen headed toward Tel Aviv. The missile was reportedly shot down "outside the country's borders." Alongside the conflict in Lebanon, meanwhile, Israeli raids on Gaza also continue: according to Palestinian sources, 36 people have died in the Strip in the past 24 hours as a result of shelling.

INDIA

At least 46 people-including 37 children and seven women-drowned during the celebration of a Hindu religious festival in several districts of the Indian state of Bihar. The victims reportedly died while performing ritual bathing in rivers and ponds swollen by recent floods. The three-day Jivitputrika festival celebrates the welfare of children every year. According to local functionaries, many people allegedly ignored dangerous water levels in the rivers to celebrate it.

FIJI-CHINA

Fiji's President Ratu Wiliame Katonivere called for "respect for our region" and an end to missile testing in the Pacific Ocean after China returned after more than 40 years to carry out a launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile that sank near French Polynesia's Special Economic Zone. Speaking at the U.N. General Assembly in New York, Katonivere recalled the Pacific Ocean's history as a testing ground for nuclear weapons and called for "respect for our region and an end to such actions."

SOUTH KOREA

Workplace accidents affecting migrant workers, especially at small manufacturing and construction sites, are increasing in South Korea, and are expected to hit 10,000 cases this year, according to a Ministry of Labor report released. From January to August, 6,715 applications for injury recognition were filed. South Korea has seen a steady increase in workplace accidents involving foreign workers, with 8,054 cases in 2019, 8,062 in 2020, 8,555 in 2021, 8,886 in 2022 and 9,543 in 2023.

RUSSIA

The Russian government has drawn up a "Security Infrastructure Development" plan to spend more than 11 billion rubles (more than 100 million euros) to protect Russia's 31 major civilian airports, 20 state-owned and 11 private, from drone attacks, for which specific regulations and highly complex technological solutions are needed.

KAZAKISTAN

Kaspi Bank, Kazakhstan's second-largest bank, suffered a drop of more than 20 percent in the value of its shares on financial markets after the publication of an investigation by the Culper Research project into its dealings with Russian oligarchs who are under Western sanctions, although authorities deny the allegations against the bank.