Two satellite images show Zeitoun on Aug. 8 and Aug. 28. A headline reads: A Gaza City Neighborhood Is Now a Wasteland. The source is satellite images via Planet Labs.

A large part of Zeitoun, a neighborhood in Gaza City, was still standing just three weeks ago. But as Israeli forces have expanded their military campaign, the area has been turned into a barren wasteland, according to satellite images reviewed by The New York Times. nyti.ms/4lVj3bR

On the Run, a Hit Man Gives One Last Confession Edgar Matobato says he killed again and again for former President Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines. Now he’s trying to stay alive to testify.

As Rodrigo Duterte is arrested on an ICC warrant for crimes against humanity, a hit man tells of his years on Duterte's death squad. (Story from January.) www.nytimes.com/2025/01/05/w...

U.S. Terminates Funding for Polio, H.I.V., Malaria and Nutrition Programs Around the World Here are some of the 5,800 contracts the Trump administration formally canceled this week in a wave of terse emails.

The Trump administration terminates funding for polio, HIV, malaria and nutrition programs around the world.

“People will die,” said Dr. Catherine Kyobutungi of the African Population and Health Research Center, “but we will never know, because even the programs to count the dead are cut.”

Nepal Took a Risk on a $500 Million U.S. Grant. It May Now Regret It. President Trump’s freezing of foreign aid provides an opening for China to portray America as an unreliable partner.

Is Trump helping China? Nepal pushed away China to take a $500 million US grant to build electricity lines and roads. US officials aimed to blunt China’s influence. Now it’s all frozen because of Trump’s foreign aid halt. Our @nytimes.com story: www.nytimes.com/2025/02/19/w...

www.nytimes.com/2025/02/18/w...

Myanmar Refugees’ Dreams of Living in America Dashed by Trump Orders President Trump’s moves to pause refugee resettlement, freeze foreign aid and suspend funds to promote democracy have added more chaos to one of the world’s most urgent humanitarian crises.

A refugee resettlement pause and foreign aid freeze add misery to one of the world's most urgent humanitarian crises. www.nytimes.com/2025/02/12/w...

Thailand Starts Recognizing Same-Sex Marriage Hundreds of people to began registering their marriages at a mall in Bangkok, as Thailand became one of the few places in Asia to legalize same-sex unions.

Marriage equality at last in Thailand. www.nytimes.com/2025/01/22/w...

Daughters of the Bamboo Grove by Barbara Demick: 9780593132746 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books The heartrending story of twin sisters torn apart by China’s one-child policy and the rise of international adoption—from the author of the National Book Award finalist Nothing to Envy, one...

Exciting new book about China, America and international adoption coming this May, from the great @barbarademick.bsky.social www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/611356...

In Tibet, Chinese Boarding Schools Reshape the ‘Souls of Children’ Across China’s west, the Communist Party is placing children in boarding schools to assimilate a generation of Tibetans into the national mainstream and mold them into loyal citizens.

Hundreds of thousands of Tibetan children are being separated from their families and placed in boarding schools by the Chinese government where they face political indoctrination. The children are at risk of abuse, and of being stripped of their Tibetan identity and bonds with family.

Seeing the photos of Delhi pollution reminds me of living in Beijing during the crazy bad air years. We dealt with it. We kept going with our lives. But those were Dickensian times.

On the eve of a tough day for Hong Kong, Chinese cooking for the soul. 鬼鸡，拍黄瓜，鱼香茄子，青菜炒蘑菇

Dozens of Hong Kong Pro-Democracy Leaders Sentenced in Mass Trial The 45 defendants, including Joshua Wong, were at the forefront of the opposition movement crushed by Beijing. Many had already been in jail for years.

"I love Hong Kong," said Joshua Wong, as he and 44 others were sentenced in a mass trial that showed just how much national security legislation has strangled the territory. www.nytimes.com/2024/11/18/w...

A reporter for the NY Times covering Asia and beyond. I left Twitter/X last year. Life has never been better. Dipping a toe back in.