Vietnam has begun enforcing tough penalties on the use of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products (HTPs), with individuals facing fines of up to US$190 and mandatory destruction of the devices under a new government decree.

Six members of a family in Son La Province, northern Vietnam were hospitalized with suspected food poisoning after eating fruit and yogurt during a holiday gathering, with a three-year-old boy later confirmed dead, local authorities said on Friday.

TOKYO -- In a model project by Japan's internal affairs ministry, municipalities in the countryside are collaborating with university students from urban areas, in order to leverage young people's ideas for regional revitalization.

NEW DELHI - At least nine people have died and more than 200 have been hospitalised in the central Indian city of Indore after a diarrhoea outbreak that officials said was linked to contaminated drinking water, according to a lawmaker and local health authorities.

Investigators on Friday set about the painful task of identifying the burned bodies of a blaze that engulfed a crowded bar and killed around 40 people at a New Year's Eve party in the upscale Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana.

The Phu Tho circus and multi-purpose performing arts theater in Ho Chi Minh City has begun lighting up at night as key technical systems enter trial operation, marking a new visual highlight for the Phu Tho sports and cultural complex as the landmark venue nears completion.

Phu Quoc Special Zone, administered by An Giang Province in southern Vietnam, welcomed nearly 7,000 foreign visitors on January 1, 2026, with many enjoying the island’s high-end attractions from daytime sightseeing through night-time entertainment.

The skies over Da Nang City in central Vietnam became noticeably busier as helicopters from Air Defense Division 372 conducted regular training flights in the final days of 2025, signaling the start of a new chopper flight training season.

NEW DELHI -- Canada's transport regulator has asked Air India to investigate an incident of a pilot reporting for duty under the influence of alcohol and failing two breathalyzer tests, a person familiar with the matter said.

Vietnamese traffic police handled nearly 10,500 violations nationwide on Thursday, the first day of the four-day New Year holiday, according to the Traffic Police Department under the Ministry of Public Security.

Several dozen people are feared dead and around 100 others injured after a fire tore through a crowded New Year’s celebration at Le Constellation bar in the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana, forcing hospitals in Wallis to declare an emergency.

Starlink will begin a reconfiguration of its satellite constellation by lowering all of its satellites orbiting at around 550 km (342 miles) to 480 km over the course of 2026, Michael Nicolls, SpaceX's vice president of Starlink engineering, said on Thursday.

Exports from 12 Vietnamese fisheries have been blocked from entering the United States since January 1, after the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) denied comparability findings for these fisheries under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), Vietnam’s fisheries management agency said.

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Vietnam will roll out a series of new traffic regulations this year, tightening child safety requirements in cars, revising rules on drivers’ working hours, and expanding eligibility for higher-grade driver’s licenses, as part of broader legal changes on public order and road safety.

Ho Chi Minh City offered free rides on all public transport services, including the metro and buses, on January 1 (Thursday), to mark the New Year, drawing large crowds and creating a lively atmosphere across the city.

Vietnamese cybersecurity officials have urged an objective and cautious review of Zalo’s user data collection practices, as public scrutiny intensifies following the messaging platform’s controversial update to its terms of service and subsequent intervention by relevant authorities.

KANAZAWA, ISHIKAWA PREF. -- More than 900 applications needed to close family graves have been filed in the Okunoto area of central Japan since it was hit by the January 2024 Noto Peninsula earthquake.

TOKYO -- Japanese retailers are competing to offer low-priced goods as consumers continue to keep their purse strings tight amid inflation.

Vietnam’s series of new laws and regulations are set to take effect from 2026 to reshape digital industry development, public telecommunications services, data protection, and investment procedures.

Sa Dec Square in Dong Thap Province, southern Vietnam buzzed with excitement on Wednesday evening as hundreds of thousands of visitors gathered for the opening of a hot-air balloon performance program, ushering in the New Year with a vibrant visual spectacle.

Trading personal data in Vietnam will carry fines of up to ten times the illegal profits earned starting January 1, 2026, as the country enforces a sweeping new law aimed at strengthening digital privacy and consumer protection, officials said.

Two days after he was hurt in a deadly car crash outside Lagos, Nigeria, British boxing star Anthony Joshua was released from hospital on Wednesday and will continue recovering at home, Nigerian officials said.

BERLIN - Thieves used the quiet Christmas period to drill their way into the vault of a German retail bank and make off with at least 10 million euros' worth of money and valuables from customers' deposit boxes, police said on Tuesday.

Ho Chi Minh City on Wednesday inaugurated the renovated Le Loi Boulevard, a key downtown thoroughfare, following nearly 20 days of work to upgrade infrastructure and revitalize the city center ahead of New Year celebrations.

A single lucky ticket won Vietlott’s Mega 6/45 jackpot worth VND17,185,095,500 (US$650,650) in the Wednesday evening draw, marking one of the final big lottery prizes of 2025 in Vietnam, the state-run Vietnam Lottery Company (Vietlott) announced.

The Transportation Works Construction Investment Project Management Authority of Ho Chi Minh City said on Wednesday night that the unit had held a ceremony to officially open the N2 overpass branch of the An Phu Interchange project to traffic.

Vietnamese authorities have announced fireworks displays in multiple cities and provinces to mark the arrival of 2026, with events scheduled around midnight on Wednesday.

Vietnam’s competition authority has ordered VNG Corporation to urgently implement three consumer protection measures on its Zalo messaging platform, after the company sought to delay a scheduled working session amid heightened scrutiny over its updated user data collection practices.

Hanoi police have arrested the director of Ngoc Viet Education Co. Ltd. on fraud charges after a highly anticipated music concert was abruptly canceled, leaving audiences demanding refunds and triggering a criminal investigation, authorities said on Tuesday.

A 50-year-old Romanian man suffered a sudden cardiac arrest after playing pickleball with friends at a sports facility in Hanoi, but he was successfully saved thanks to timely emergency intervention by doctors a few days ago.

A content creator from Yamaguchi has posted a video showing himself using fish stock to cook a dish he called ‘Vietnam pho,’ prompting widespread discussion on social media.

Police in Da Nang City, central Vietnam have uncovered an illegal dog slaughter operation during an unannounced inspection, seizing more than 320 kilograms of meat from 29 slaughtered dogs and a quantity of prohibited fireworks.

TOKYO -- Tokyo police arrested a 35-year-old Chinese man Tuesday on suspicion of stabbing a woman in the Takadanobaba district of the Japanese capital's Shinjuku Ward on Monday.

Health authorities in Hai Phong City, northern Vietnam on Monday reported a shocking case in which a nearly-10-meter-long pork tapeworm was discovered parasitizing the body of a local man, raising renewed concerns about food safety and parasitic infections linked to eating raw or undercooked foods.