A $6 billion Chinese-built railway in Laos is transforming a small town on the border of China, easing transportation and promising new products for export. The 262-mile rail line is a key part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative, aimed at upgrading trade and transport networks from Africa to the Pacific. China is looking to link its companies with new overseas markets while Laos has hopes of growing a robust export market. But what are the costs of developing this massive infrastructure? WSJ explores the ambition behind China’s envisioned rail network, the economic implications for Laos and challenges as other railways eye development.

Israel is pounding densely-packed Gaza with airstrikes and militant group Hamas has launched barrage after barrage of rockets toward Israeli cities.

October 10, 2023 – 08:31

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Urgent action is needed to breath new life into Cửa Vạn and Vung Viêng fishing villages.

A view of conservation area of Vung Viêng fishing village in Hạ Long Bay. VNA/VNS Photo

QUẢNG NINH – Cửa Vạn and Vung Viêng, two renowned fishing villages located in Hạ Long Bay in northern Quảng Ninh Province, are facing severe deterioration, with some structures slowly sinking into the sea.

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Phần lớn người khuyết tật Việt Nam sống ở vùng nông thôn, có cuộc sống rất khó khăn, đặc biệt là người khuyết tật bị ảnh hưởng bởi chất độc da cam/dioxin trong chiến tranh

Lễ kỷ niệm 30 năm Ngày Quốc tế về người khuyết tật (3/12). (Ảnh: Hoàng Hiếu/TTXVN)

Hiện nay Việt Nam có khoảng 7 triệu người khuyết tật, chiếm hơn 7,06% dân số từ 2 tuổi trở lên, trong đó người khuyết tật nặng và đặc biệt nặng chiếm khoảng 28,9%, khoảng 10% người khuyết tật thuộc hộ nghèo. Số liệu này cho thấy, Việt Nam là một trong những nước có tỷ lệ người khuyết tật khá cao so với tổng dân số trong khu vực châu Á-Thái Bình Dương.

October 09, 2023 – 08:44

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An 87-year-old man came to the Bình Thạnh District Police in HCM City last Monday morning to report a fraud related to bonds allegedly committed by one of Việt Nam’s largest property developers.

Trần Bữu Nữu, an officer belonging to the Bình Thạnh District police in HCM City, helps a victim make a complaint against Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB) where she had bought the bonds. VNS Photo Bồ Xuân Hiệp

VNE – By Minh Minh   October 7, 2023 | 07:00 am GMT+7

Two children are on a bus with the elderly as they are evacuated from storm Noru in Vietnam’s central province of Quang Nam in September 2022. Photo by VnExpress/Dac Thanh

Around 930,000 children in Vietnam were displaced due to hazards such as floods, storms and drought between 2016 and 2021, among the 10 highest numbers of 44 countries surveyed by UNICEF.

VNE – By Viet Quoc   October 5, 2023 | 07:06 pm GMT+7

Do Thanh An (R), son of murdered victim Phan Thi Khanh, speaks with Vo Ngoc, son of wrongfully detained man Vo Te in Binh Thuan Province, June 2022. Photo by VnExpressA deceased man in Binh Thuan Province, who was wrongfully detained 43 years ago for murder, will be compensated over VND1.9 billion ($77,840) by the provincial People’s Procuracy.

65-year-old Vo Ngoc, the son of wrongfully accuised man Vo Te, said his family was informed of the compensation on Tuesday.

The central province’s Procuracy would monetarily compensate Te and his loved ones for lost incomes, property losses, mental impacts and financial support for six of his children, who were under 18 at the point of his imprisonment, among other costs.