WASHINGTON, May 12 — Elon Musk announced on Thursday (May 11) that Twitter would have a new CEO in about six weeks, as he moves to an executive chairman role.

MANILA, May 12 — A Philippine court on Friday acquitted former senator Leila De Lima, one of the fiercest critics of ex-President Rodrigo Duterte, of a criminal charge stemming from allegations that as a cabinet minister, she received money from drug dealers.

BANGKOK, May 12 — Thai university student Supawut Presangeiam is eager to vote for the first time in a general election on Sunday (May 14), hoping that his support for a rising youth-led opposition party will change the country by moving away from old patronage politics.

NEW DELHI, May 12 — Pakistan's Supreme Court on Thursday ordered former prime minister Imran Khan's immediate release after calling his arrest by a paramilitary force from the Islamabad High Court premises on Tuesday (May 9) illegal.

LABUAN BAJO, May 11 — To facilitate regional economic integration, leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) made a declaration on advancing regional payment connectivity and promoting local currency transactions on Wednesday (May 10), during the two-day Asean Summit.

LABUAN BAJO, May 11 — The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) demonstrated its confidence in becoming the world's new economic powerhouse, reflected at a summit held this week in the Indonesian town of Labuan Bajo.

LABUAN BAJO, May 11 — Myanmar's ruling military has made no significant progress on implementing a peace plan agreed with Asean two years ago and the bloc must show unity in deciding how to address the escalating crisis, Indonesia's president said on Thursday.

MANILA, May 10 — Philippine President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos on Wednesday urged developed countries to fulfil their longstanding commitments on climate change, vowing the Philippines will take bold steps to transition to renewable and alternative energy technologies in a secure and sustainable manner.

SINGAPORE, May 10 — Asean must press on with its regional integration efforts as the global environment is increasingly troubled, though the world has come through the Covid-19 pandemic, said Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

LABUAN BAJO, May 10 — Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr has said the prospect of tensions escalating over Taiwan was a 'grave concern' to Southeast Asian leaders and discussions about it were inevitable at this week's summit in Indonesia.

LABUAN BAJO, May 10 — Southeast Asian leaders meeting in Indonesia will on Wednesday wrangle over an escalating crisis in military-ruled Myanmar, with patience in the Asean bloc wearing thin as its junta shows no intent to end hostilities and pursue a peace plan.

LABUAN BAJO, May 10 — The 42nd Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Summit officially kicked off in the town of Labuan Bajo in eastern Indonesia on Wednesday, with Indonesian President Joko Widodo urging Asean unity and economic integration for the regional bloc to play a central role in regional peace and development.

BANGKOK, May 9 — Former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who has been in self-exile, must still serve his jail sentence if he returns home, warns Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam.

BEIRUT, Lebanon, May 9 — The United Nations' World Food Programme (WFP) fears a current food crisis in the Middle East could further destabilise the region, reported German news agency dpa.

TOKYO, May 9 — Japan's lower house of Parliament during a plenary session on Tuesday passed a contentious bill to amend an immigration law allowing authorities to deport foreign nationals who apply for refugee status multiple times, reported Xinhua.

BANGKOK, May 9 — Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said in a Tweet that he has decided to return to Thailand by July, and would follow the legal process.

NEW DELHI, May 9 — Thousands of people who fled deadly rioting and ethnic clashes in northeast India last week are returning home, escorted by security personnel, officials said on Monday (May 8).

KHARTOUM, May 9 — Armed clashes still raged in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum on Monday as negotiations between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have so far yielded no major progress.

NEW YORK, May 9 — The Washington Post and The New York Times newspapers and the AP news agency were awarded the Pulitzer Prize on Monday for their reporting on US abortion rights restrictions and the Ukraine war, reported the German News Agency (dpa).

BANGKOK — Kavita Wongyakasem runs a small business in Bangkok, owns a two-storey house on the outskirts of the Thai capital, drives a pick-up truck, and sends her two daughters to good schools.