Mount Elbrus, Russia. Photo by Aleksandr Markin KUALA LUMPUR / PETALING JAYA: A Malaysian climber has tragically passed away while attempting to summit Europe’s highest peak, Mount Elbrus in Russia, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Wisma Putra confirmed that the individual was part of a three-member Malaysian mountaineering team taking part in an expedition organized by a local tour operator. Located in the Caucasus mountain range of southern Russia, Mount Elbrus

Straits of Hormuz. Photo: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC WASHINGTON / DUBAI, 12 July 2026 (Reuters)— A fragile, weeks-old ceasefire between the United States and Iran has collapsed after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) declared the vital Strait of Hormuz closed "until further notice." The declaration followed a direct Iranian naval strike on a civilian container ship, triggering immediate, widespread U.S. retaliatory bombing across five major Iranian

Aung Sang Suu Kyi (Wikipedia) BANGKOK, 12 July 2026 (Reuters) — In a milestone meeting marking the first direct engagement between regional diplomats and Myanmar's junta leadership since the 2021 coup, Myanmar's military-appointed Foreign Minister, Tin Maung Swe, assured Southeast Asian leaders that ousted civilian icon Aung San Suu Kyi remains in good health. During the closed-door talks held in Bangkok, Tin Maung Swe sought to downplay rising international concern over the

Monsoon flooding and muddy terrain in Cox's Bazar. Source: USA for UNHCR / Deadly floods and landslides hit Rohingya camps in Bangladesh COX'S BAZAR, Bangladesh — Heavy monsoon downpours have triggered a series of devastating landslides in southeastern Bangladesh, killing at least eight Rohingya refugees and one local resident, officials confirmed. The disasters occurred overnight as torrential rains destabilized the steep, deforested hillsides of the sprawling refugee settle