Category: BBC

President Xi Jinping urged unity on a surprise visit to Tibet, appearing before 20,000 people to mark 60 years since China created the autonomous region after annexing it. In what is only his second presidential visit to the tightly-controlled region, Xi praised the local government for “engaging in a thorough struggle against separatism” – a reference to decades-old Tibetan resistance to Beijing. The visit to Lhasa, which sits at an altitude that could pose health problems for the 72-year-old, suggests a desire to stamp his authority over the region. His…

India and China should view each other as “partners” rather than “adversaries or threats”, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Monday, as he arrived for a two-day visit to Delhi. Yi met with Indian Foreign Minister S Jaishankar – only the second such meeting between the two sides since 2020 – when deadly clashes in the Galwan valley in Ladakh, a disputed Himalayan border region, led to a complete breakdown of ties between the countries. Relations are now on a “positive trend” towards cooperation, Yi said ahead of a…

Swiss watchmaker Swatch has apologised and pulled an ad featuring a model pulling the corners of his eyes, after the image prompted uproar among Chinese social media users. Critics said the pose resembled the racist “slanted eye” historically used to mock Asians. Calls for a boycott of Swatch products grew on Chinese social media as the ad went viral. Swatch said it had “taken note of the recent concerns regarding the portrayal of a model”. “We sincerely apologize for any distress or misunderstanding this may have caused,” the company said…

The first World Humanoid Robot Games are underway in Beijing, China, with participants from 16 countries including the US, Germany and Japan. Robots athletes will attempt to compete across a range of events including athletics, football, dance and martial arts. Organisers say the purpose of the event is to trial and refine current robotics. They say sports are a way to test a robot’s decision-making, motor skills and controllers that could be later applied in real-life settings like factories and homes. It’s all part of China’s push to become a…

Jailed Hong Kong pro-democracy tycoon Jimmy Lai could die in in prison if found guilty, his son told the BBC. Sebastien Lai was speaking to the BBC’s Danny Vincent ahead of the final stage of his father’s trial for national security offences. The 77-year-old British citizen is accused of colluding with foreign forces, which he denies. He faces life in prison if convicted. He has been in jail since December 2020, serving time for other convictions related to his role in the city’s pro-democracy protests. He was due in court…

A Chinese man has pleaded guilty in a US district court to exporting around 850 protected turtles wrapped in socks and falsely labelled as toys, the US Department of Justice said. Between August 2023 and November 2024, Wei Qiang Lin exported to Hong Kong more than 200 parcels containing the turtles, according to a Justice Department statement on Monday. The boxes packed with the turtles had been labelled as “containing ‘plastic animal toys’, among other things”, the authorities said. Lin primarily shipped eastern box turtles and three-toed box turtles. Both…

A Chinese warship ploughed into its own coast guard vessel on Monday while the latter was chasing a Philippine vessel in the South China Sea, Manila said. Philippine coast guard officials were distributing aid to fishermen in the disputed Scarborough Shoal, Commodore Jay Tarriela said, when the Chinese coast guard “performed a risky manoeuvre” which inflicted “substantial damage” on the Chinese warship’s forward deck. China confirmed that a confrontation took place and accused the Philippines of “forcibly intruding” into Chinese waters, but did not mention the collision. The South China…

A school bullying incident in southern China has sparked a series of protests and calls for more justice for the 14-year-old victim. A video of the girl being slapped, kicked and forced to kneel by three other minors went viral in the Jiangyou city in Sichuan province last week. The police said the three suspects are all female, aged 13, 14 and 15 – and two of them had been sent to “specialised schools for corrective education”. As news of the incident spread on social media, many felt the punishment…

Flooding killed 31 residents at a care home for elderly people on the outskirts of Beijing this week, local officials have said. Footage showed emergency teams wading through chest-high water trying to rescue those trapped in the home in the Miyun District. Many of those who died were reportedly immobile. Local officials have admitted there were “loopholes in emergency planning” and said the incident was a painful lesson that served as “a wake-up call”. A total of 44 people have died in the Beijing floods, which have come during a…

At least 30 people have died in Beijing as northern China experiences days of heavy rain and flooding. The BBC’s Stephen McDonell is in Miyun, northeast of Beijing, where authorities have mobilised the People’s Armed Police to assist in the mountain areas affected by the severe weather. China’s leader Xi Jinping has called for an “all-out” search and rescue for those missing in the floods, as almost 80,000 people have been relocated from across China’s capital. BBC