World

MANILA, Philippines - A leading terror suspect who has been linked to beheadings of hostages, including two Canadians and a Malaysian, has surrendered after being wounded in battle, officials said Friday. National police chief Gen. Archie Gamboa said Thursday night that Abu Sayyaf commander Anduljihad Susukan gave up after negotiations with police in southern Davao city, where he was served warrants for at least 23 cases of murder, 6 for attempted murder and 5 for kidnapping. He is the highest-ranking commander of the small but brutal Abu Sayyaf group to be taken into custody so far this year. The military has been waging a years-long offensive against the Abu Sayyaf, which has been blacklisted by the United States and the Philippines as a terrorist organization for past bombings, ransom...

BANGKOK—All across Bangkok, fruit juice is dripping off chins, dribbling down arms and splashing onto the city’s sidewalks. This is peak fruit season in Thailand, when the rising mercury concentrates the sugars in the tropical bounty that is native to Southeast Asia. The region’s fruits are like no other. There is a fruit encased in prickly armour that smells of a deep, dank rot. There is a fruit that emits a sticky sap when peeled and another that stains fingernails mauve for those craving its succulent flesh. And there is the rambutan, which means “hairy thing” in Malay. With its crimson skin studded with green feelers, the egg-sized fruit bears more than a passing resemblance to a coronavirus. It is yummy. With pandemic travel bans in place, Thailand’s economic mainstay, tourism, ha

Thrill seekers take note. Canada’s Wonderland will remain closed at least until the entire province enters Stage 3 — along with the amusement park portions of other attractions — because of the risks of spreading the novel coronavirus, Tourism Minister Lisa MacLeod says. “The chief medical officer of health has advised our government, and we have accepted his science, that theme parks and water parks of those nature still pose a significant threat as a result of COVID-19 and therefore will not be able to open at this time,” she said Wednesday at a news conference with Premier Doug Ford. “We recognize the seasonal nature. That is why when all of Ontario does move into Stage 3 we will continually reassess this … we are doing the same type of work with our meeting and convention centres.”

China aims to double high-speed rail network by 2035 People wearing face masks are seen inside a high-speed train on July 8, 2020 at Hangzhou station in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, following the coronavirus outbreak in China. (Reuters photo) China's unprecedented railway spending boom will continue for at least another 15 years and see its high-speed network nearly double in length, China Railway Group, the state-owned railway builder, said in a new blueprint published on Thursday. Under the plan, China will construct about 200,000 kilometres of railways by 2035, a milestone year in which the nation is set to achieve President Xi Jinping's vision for a "modern socialist country". That will mean a 41% increase in rail lines criss-crossing the country, up from the 141,400km today, inclu...