
SCMP selected seven Asia stories from the past week, including Bangkok declaring a flood disaster after severe rains inundated neighborhoods, submerged roads and cars, and forced thousands to flee their homes.
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SCMP selected seven stories from its Asia coverage over the past week that resonated with readers and highlighted topical issues.
From young Filipinos warming to China to Malaysians’ nettle bed joke, here are a few highlights from SCMP’s recent Asia reporting
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Published: 12:45pm, 29 Sep 2026
We have selected seven stories from the SCMP’s coverage of Asia over the past week that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing.
1. Bangkok declares flood disaster across city as thousands flee from homes
Entire Bangkok neighbourhoods were inundated on Saturday as the city government declared a flood disaster after the worst rains in years overwhelmed the Thai capital, submerging roads, cars and forcing thousands to leave their homes.

The human rights organization's Transformation Justice Working Group reported that North Korean hacker Bae Yong-joo tried to defect after being sent to China to perform a hacking mission. He was arrested by the Chinese authorities and transferred to the North Korean Consulate General in Shenyang and the Embassy in Beijing. He was tortured in a secret cell in the basement for about a year. He was later repatriated with a full-body plaster in August 2023 when Pyongyang-Beijing flights resumed, and eventually died.

Ukrainian President Zelensky stated at the United Nations General Assembly that Ukraine had sent two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea. South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs immediately summoned the Ukrainian charge d'affaires in South Korea, emphasizing that the two sides had never reached a confidentiality agreement and demanding that Ukraine formally clarify and apologize to repair bilateral mutual trust and friendly relations.

British police are investigating whether five suspects were ordered by a foreign government to plot an attack on U.S. troops at RAF Fairford. The suspect was released on bail, and Trump said he was surprised and suggested the incident may be related to Iran. Iran denies the accusations.

Ukrainian President Zelensky confirmed on the 28th that North Korea is preparing to send an additional 10,000 officers and soldiers to Russia in exchange for Russian technical support and the development of attack drones. There are currently more than 8,000 North Korean troops stationed in Russia.

Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako are scheduled to visit Kumamoto prefecture on Tuesday to meet with residents affected by the July 28 magnitude 7.1 earthquake, as travel companies in southern Japan seek to revive tourism through government subsidies and reassurance campaigns after visitor numbers dropped sharply following the disaster.

The municipal engineering project of the Shenzhen Huanggang Port Joint Inspection Building has recently successfully passed the completion acceptance and is ready to be opened to traffic. The project, undertaken by China Construction Fifth Engineering Group South China Company, includes a new joint inspection building and peripheral municipal projects. It aims to improve the transportation network in the Shenzhen-Hong Kong border inspection area and enhance port customs clearance capabilities. The Huanggang Road node project includes new bridge ramps, ground auxiliary roads and underground tunnels, connecting the Guangzhou-Shenzhen Expressway and Huanggang Road to achieve a seamless connection between the port and the expressway network. BIM virtual pre-assembly, finite element simulation and other technologies were applied during construction to ensure progress and quality. The North Plaza area and the Lok Ma Chau Bridge have passed the acceptance inspection first. The rebuilt Huanggang Port will be positioned as the most important 24-hour passenger land port in Hong Kong and Shenzhen, implementing the "one place, two inspections" and "cooperative inspection, one release" customs clearance models.