ASIA TODAY In one year, almost 7,000 journalists were fired in Afghanistan

Other news of the day: heavy flooding in Japan; a hotel in Thailand offers rooms for less than 30 cents; Malaysia owes billions of dollars to descendants of a sultan; sanctions against Russia are making themselves felt more and more.

AFGHANISTAN

According to the Federation of Afghan Media and Journalists, More than 200 newsrooms closed in a year, leaving some 7,000 people without work.. Among the main causes are economic problems and the repression of freedoms by the Taliban. Many journalists have emigrated or have looked for another job.

JAPAN

Heavy rains hit the north of the Japanese archipelago, causing the evacuation of 200,000 inhabitants. So far two people have been reported missing. The train service is suspended and the government has issued an alert, communicating the risk of landslides.

MALAYSIA

The descendants of the last sultan of the Philippine region of Sulu claim 15,000 million dollars from Malaysia, according to an arbitration award issued last month. The affair dates back to 1878, when two English settlers ceded part of the territory in exchange for a life annuity of 1,000 pounds a year.

THAILAND

In an attempt to attract tourists again, a hotel in the northern city of Chiang Mai offers rooms for one baht per night (28 cents). The offer, available until August 7, has already gone viral. The tourism sector in Thailand had stagnated during the pandemic and is slowly recovering: it is estimated to reach 8 million visitors by the end of the year, a figure far removed from the 40 million in 2019.

TURKEY

Turkish inflation reaches unprecedented levels and reaches almost 80%, the highest recorded in the last 24 years, The factors that drive it are the devaluation of the lira and the increase in energy prices. According to some analysts, we could be close to the peak, expecting a gradual improvement in the coming months.

ARMENIA-AZERBAIJAN

Tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan do not cease: Yerevan has filed a formal interstate lawsuit against Baku before the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg for “violation of the rights of the civilian population of the Republic of Artsakh [Nagorno Karabaj] after the attacks that occurred in the villages of Khramort and Parukh”.

RUSSIA

As widely predicted, Russians are beginning to feel the brunt of the economic crisis due to sanctions. The Aeroflot company has applied a salary cut of 30-40%, starting with top managers, who will also be deprived of their service cars. AvtoVaz in Izhevsk, the manufacturer of the Lada, proposes incentives for voluntary redundancies.