TAIPEI, May 21 — Thousands of people thronged the streets around Taiwan’s parliament today, protesting measures to give lawmakers more oversight over the government, pushed by opposition parties over the ruling party’s objections.

SEOUL, May 21 — Global leaders and officials taking part in an artificial intelligence (AI) summit being hosted by South Korea and the United Kingdom are expected to strike new agreements focused on how to practically regulate the rapidly evolving technology, government and industry sources said.

WASHINGTON, May 21 — United States President Joe Biden strongly defended Israel yesterday, saying Israeli forces are not committing genocide in their military campaign against Hamas militants in Gaza in a rejection of criticism from pro-Palestinian protesters.

ANKARA, May 21 — International tourism reached 97 per cent of pre-pandemic levels in the first quarter of this year, United Nations Tourism said today.

BANGKOK, May 21 — A Singapore Airlines flight from London made an emergency landing here today due to severe turbulence, officials said, with one passenger dead and local media reporting multiple injuries.

HAMBURG, May 21 — The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea in Hamburg will present a legal opinion today on the extent to which states are obliged by international law to take stronger measures in the fight against climate change, reported dpa.

TEHRAN, May 21 — Iran has begun investigating the helicopter crash that resulted in the death of President Ebrahim Raisi and his accompanying team.

SEATTLE, May 21 — Microsoft on Monday debuted a new category of personal computers with AI features as it rushes to build the emerging technology into products across its business and compete with Alphabet and Apple.

BENGALURU, May 21 — AstraZeneca plans to build a US$1.5 billion (RM7 billion) manufacturing facility in Singapore to produce a promising category of cancer-killing drugs called antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), the Anglo-Swedish drugmaker said on Monday.

BEIJING, May 21 — Apple has launched an aggressive discounting campaign on its official Tmall site in China, offering discounts of up to 2,300 yuan (RM1,490) on select iPhone models.

TAIPEI, May 21 — Taiwan President Lai Ching-te asked China on Monday to stop its military and political threats, saying in his inauguration speech that peace was the only choice and that Beijing had to respect the choice of the Taiwanese people.

THE HAGUE, May 21 — The International Criminal Court's prosecutor said on Monday he had requested arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his defence chief and three Hamas leaders over alleged war crimes.

PARIS, May 20 — Wars and conflicts should not influence participation in the Games, which need to convey a message of hope and support, and Israel should not be sanctioned, said Andrew Parsons, the head of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).

KUALA LUMPUR, May 20 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today expressed condolences to Iran over the helicopter crash that killed President Ebrahim Raisi and several government officials in northwest Iran yesterday.

BALI, May 20 — The 10th World Water Forum, with the theme “Water for Shared Prosperity”, officially opened in Bali today, reported Xinhua.

SINGAPORE, May 20 — The Singapore Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) expects “very heavy traffic” at both Woodlands and Tuas checkpoints before and during the entire holiday period from May 21 to June 23, due to Wesak Day on Wednesday and the June school holidays.

IMOLA (ITALY), May 20 — World champion Max Verstappen returned to winning ways with victory from pole at the Emilia Romagna Formula One Grand Prix on Sunday, after surviving a spirited late challenge from McLaren's Lando Norris.

DUBAI, May 20 — Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his foreign minister were killed in a helicopter crash in mountainous terrain and icy weather, an Iranian official said on Monday, after search teams located the wreckage in East Azerbaijan province.

TOKYO, May 20 — Japan and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) plan to create their first joint strategy on automobile production and sales within the Southeast Asian bloc to counter China's increasing presence in the electric vehicle market, Nikkei newspaper reported on Monday.

TAIPEI, May 20 — Lai Ching-te takes office as Taiwan's new president on Monday facing an angry and deeply suspicious China which believes he is a "separatist", and a fractious parliament with an opposition chomping at the bit to challenge him.