ASIA TODAY Chinese farmers account for record heat damage and attempt new plantings

Today’s news: Catholic Filipinos help Manila’s poor by providing free food, showers and haircuts. In Pakistan, “historic” rains and floods continue, with a balance of more than 900 victims since June. Tokyo approves a fund of 2.5 million euros for the funeral of former Prime Minister Abe. In Iran, for the first time since 1979, women attended a football match in the men’s first division.

CHINA

In China, farmers are starting to count the damage caused by unprecedented heat and drought. The government urges farmers to replant seeds, speed up growth or switch crops (such as sweet potatoes) to limit losses. More than 70 days of extreme temperatures have devastated the Yangtze basin, which supports some 450 million people and a third of the country’s production.

PHILIPPINES

They launch a free mobile service of “haircut, shower and food” to assist the poor and marginalized of Manila. It is an initiative of some Catholic associations in the Philippines, which will be launched on September 8. Through mobile units, identified with a slogan, “basic and essential” services will be provided, accompanied by volunteer doctors and nurses.

PAKISTAN

There are more than 33 million people affected in different ways in Pakistan, following the rains and floods, which the Minister of Climate, Sherry Rehman, describes as “historic”. Since June, more than 900 people have already died from the monsoon and successive floods, which continue at record levels. The government says it is fighting to prevent a “humanitarian disaster” of “giant proportions”.

JAPAN

Tokyo approved a background of 249 million yen (about 2.5 million euros) for the funeral of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, killed in “revenge” for his ties to the Unification Church. However, the cost of the funeral, which will take place on September 27, promises to be higher: 6,000 people are expected to attend and the current estimate only covers logistics and transportation.

IRAN

For the first time since the Islamic revolution of 1979, women attended a game of football of the men’s national league. About 500 women occupied a part of the Azadi stadium in Tehran, despite the dictates of the Shia leaders who “disapprove” of their presence. In the past, sahar khodayaria 29-year-old, set herself on fire to protest the ban.

RUSSIA

Security Adviser Nikolai Patrushev recommended reinforcing propaganda on television and mobile devices in Karelia, the Russian region that borders Finland. The goal, he said, is “to prevent the spread and influence of destructive information from a hostile country, which has decided to join NATO to fight us.”

UZBEKISTAN

They discovered a new archaeological site with an ancient Zoroastrian temple in eastern Uzbekistan. The place is located in the Narynsk province, Namangan region. According to the Tashkent Ministry of Innovation, credit for the find goes to the team led by academician Akhmadali Askarov. Inside the temple is the tomb of a former monarch as well as many valuable items of ancient tradition.