A Philippine nationalist youth group is accusing the government of China of poisoning large swathes of the South China Sea to prevent Philippine and other foreign fishermen from benefiting from the waters’ resources, in an attempt to cement its control over the region.
Newly surfaced video footage reportedly released by the Filipino jihadist group Abu Sayyaf purportedly shows three hostages pleading for their life and the decapitation of a fellow captive.
The Chinese government has sent folk singer Song Zuying to Fiery Cross Reef, a disputed territory in the South China Sea, to perform patriotic songs and begin a tour of the region titled “The People’s Army Advances.”
Contents: Israel to open another truck crossing to the Gaza Strip; Report: Hamas, Israel and Egypt in alliance fighting ISIS; Laos sides with China in South China Sea dispute
The Philippine Star reports that a large number of government and corporate websites were hacked and vandalized by a group calling itself the “Indonesian Defacer Team,” which replaced the normal web pages with messages praising itself.
China is making at least one gesture to de-escalate tensions in the South China Sea: it announced on Thursday that it would send a missile destroyer, and a dozen special-forces troops, to joint exercises with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, India, and the United States.
“Relax. I am not the man portrayed to be by some,” Philippines presidential frontrunner and Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte told a room full of business leaders before offering details of his Viagra use and vowing a “bloody” presidency.
Pentagon officials confirmed to The Wall Street Journal that they had canceled a “freedom of navigation” exercise planned for April that was intended to make a statement against China’s growing colonization of the region.
Philippine President Benigno Aquino revealed Wednesday that the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) affiliate group Abu Sayyaf had planned to abduct his sister, Kris Aquino, and boxing star and Congressman Manny Pacquiao.
A number of jihadist groups in Southeast Asia have pledged loyalty to the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) and up to 1,000 people have left Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines to join the terrorist organization in Iraq and Syria, reports BBC.
The Japanese destroyer Ise made port in Subic Bay on Tuesday, paying a training visit to the Philippines, and sending an unmistakable message to China.
Rodrigo Duterte, the frontrunner in this year’s Philippine presidential election, promised voters in a debate Sunday night that he would ride into the disputed territories of the South China Sea on a jet ski and plant the flag of the Philippines on the Spratly Islands, where China has built advance military infrastructure.
A Chinese state-run newspaper is touting the development of “maritime nuclear platforms” for use in the South China Sea, where China is claiming most of waters belonging to five other nations.
Kidnappings by the Islamic State-linked Abu Sayyaf group have prompted Indonesia to call for joint maritime patrols with the Philippines and Malaysia.
Rodrigo Duterte, currently the frontrunner in this year’s Philippine presidential elections, has vowed to “sever” ties with the United States over their criticism of a joke he made about an Australian rape victim. The threat comes at a time of high tensions in the South China Sea, where the U.S. is aiding the Philippines in keeping China from usurping much of its territory.
China is looking for Russia’s help to press its claims in the South China Sea, as the Philippines argues an important territorial dispute before the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague.
Philippines presidential candidate Rodrigo Duterte has refuted a report claiming he apologized for discussing the attractiveness of an Australian victim of gang rape, saying he will “never” apologize.
The Chinese government is fighting off protests from American officials that it landed a military plane on Fiery Cross Reef, a disputed territory both Vietnam and the Philippines claim, alleging the flight was necessary to save a worker having a medical emergency.
Two Canadian hostages have surfaced in a video to make a “final urgent appeal” for their government to save them from imminent decapitation by the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL)-linked jihadist group Abu Sayyaf in the Philippines.
A YouTube video has emerged that shows Philippine presidential candidate Rodrigo Duterte joking about a rape in 1989.
Defense Secretary Ashton Carter paid his second visit in five months to the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis, on station in the South China Sea, this time in the company of Philippine Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin.
Contents: Nigeria’s Boko Haram releases ‘proof of life’ video of abducted Chibok girls; Russians brag about ‘aerobatic skills’ of Russian pilots buzzing US ship; US Navy conducting joint patrols with Philippines in South China Sea
The Pentagon has announced that American forces will conduct surveillance patrols with the Philippines “regularly” in the South China Sea, as Defense Secretary Ashton Carter concludes his trip to Manila to assert America’s commitment to protect the Philippines from Chinese expansionism in the region.
New satellite images show the Chinese government has added fighter jets to its fleet in the Paracel Islands, a South China Sea chain that Vietnam and the Philippines claim. This development comes as U.S. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter lands in Manila to show his support for the Philippines against Chinese expansionism in the region.
At least 13 Islamic State-linked jihadists were killed by the Philippine Army this past weekend during a major offensive in the southern part of the country.
Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter will visit a U.S. military site near disputed territory in the South China Sea this week, according to a senior U.S. official that described the visit as “a message to the region about our commitment to peace and stability there.”
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippine military suffered its largest single-day combat loss so far this year when 18 soldiers were killed in fierce fighting with Abu Sayyaf extremists that also left five Islamic militants dead, including a Moroccan fighter, the military said Sunday.
Chinese media outlet Xinhua has confirmed that a third illegally constructed lighthouse in the South China Sea is now fully operational. The lighthouse is located on the artificial island formerly known as Subi Reef and equipped with “automatic identification systems” that significantly expand China’s surveillance capabilities.
Vietnamese officials have seized a Chinese ship and arrested its crew after it wandered into Vietnamese waters in the South China Sea, the latest in a string of similar seizures of trespassing Chinese ships around the globe. In addition to not being able to justify their presence in Vietnam, the Qiong Yangpu’s crew refused to identify the origin of their cargo: 100,000 liters of diesel fuel.
A Chinese defense ministry spokesman warned the United States to “be careful” in the South China Sea following declarations from American Deputy Secretary of Defense Robert Work that the U.S. would not respect a unilaterally imposed exclusion zone in the disputed territory.
On Tuesday, Indonesia announced that ten of its citizens, sailors working aboard a coal barge, had been kidnapped, with a ransom demand made by the Islamist militant group Abu Sayyaf in the Philippines. Wednesday brought reports that elite Indonesian counter-terrorist units are standing by to assist in a possible rescue operation.
The nations in the community of the South China Sea have begun to take growing action against China’s intrusions into their waters. The latest country to arrest Chinese fishermen present illegally in their territory is Taiwan, which has announced the arrest of 41 fishermen in possession of illegal turtles and coral in their territorial waters.
In graphic reenactments of the crucifixion of Jesus on Good Friday, at least 17 men have been nailed to wooden crosses in the Philippines in an extreme act of devotion, one of whom said he offered his penance for peace
Following the arrest of the crew of a Chinese ship allegedly fishing illegally in its waters, the government of Indonesia is facing regional criticism for shooting at two Taiwanese ships that it also alleges had trespassed into Indonesian territory. The recent incidents are helping to raise Indonesia’s profile as a formidable player in growing tensions in the South China Sea.
Contents: China’s coast guard warship rams vessel in Indonesian waters; US and Philippines agree on access to five military bases
In response to China’s assertive moves in the South China Sea, the U.S. State Department struck a deal with the government of the Philippines to permit American military forces to operate from five Philippine bases. The Chinese seem more annoyed than intimidated by the increased American military presence in the region.
China is accusing a group of Philippine fishermen of attacking Chinese Coast Guard ships with fire bombs after the Chinese ships chased them out of disputed waters in the South China Sea, waters the Philippines considers its sovereign territory.
After a dramatic incident at sea that resulted in the arrest of a Chinese fishing crew trespassing in the waters of Indonesia, China protested Indonesia had no right to intervene on what has long been a “traditional Chinese fishing ground.”
Legislators in Japan’s Ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) are urging Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to bring a case against China to an international tribunal to settle once and for all ownership over disputed islands in the East China Sea.
The Malaysian government is seeking to expand cooperation with Australia to combat China’s expansive construction projects in the South China Sea, suggesting Beijing’s behavior in the region demands “pushback” from relevant parties.