Thphoon Nesat, the strongest to hit China this year, has landed in the southernmost island province of Hainan.

Packing winds of 42 meters per second at its center, Nesat made landfall in the township of Wengtian in Wenchang City at 2:30 p.m.

Ships have been recalled, flights suspended and schools closed in the province.

As the typhoon swept past Hong Kong, markets, schools and most businesses were closed in one of Asia's most important financial centers.

 

 

Typhoon Nesat death toll in Philippines now at 35

In the Philippines, the death toll from typhoon Nesat has risen to 35 with over 60,000 families displaced.

The damages of infrastructure and crops are worth nearly 1 billion pesos or 22.8 million U.S. dollars.

 

 

Human error plays role in Shanghai train crash: subway operator

The operator of Shanghai's subway Line 10 has admitted that human error played a role in Tuesday's train crash that left more than 280 people injured.

According to an initial investigation, a sudden loss of power caused the signal system to fail, forcing the trains to be operated manually.

And personnel failed to follow relevant management rules, which led to the accident, according to Shanghai Shentong Metro Group Company.

Line 10 resumed full operation last night after safety checks but the train speeds are limited to 45 kilometers per hour.

 

 

China's first space lab module ready for launch

China is ready to launch its Tiangong-1 unmanned space module later this evening after injecting fuel into the latest model of the Long March carrier rocket.

The Long March-2FT1 features 170 "improvements" - most of which were implemented after the recent failure of the Long March-2C.

The Tiangong-I, China's prototype space lab, will orbit for two years, and is slated to dock with at least three Shenzhou spacecraft during the duration of its mission.

Tiangong-1 is scheduled to be launched between 9:16 p.m. and 9:31 p.m tonight.

 

 

The U.N. Security Council gives the Palestinian bid to the admission committee for examination

The U.N. Security Council has forwarded the Palestinian statehood bid to the council's admission committee for examination.

The admission committee, which includes all 15 security council members, is in charge of deciding who gets admitted to the UN as a member-state.

The move comes almost a week after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas submitted the application to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

The admission committee will meet on Friday to consider the application.

 

 

Small plane crashes in Indonesia; 18 feared dead

A small plane carrying 18 people on a local flight in western Indonesia has crashed in a mountainous area.

A Transportation Ministry spokesman says the plane was about halfway through its 30-minute flight between North Sumatra and Aceh provinces when it lost contact with air traffic control.

Residents have reported it had crashed near their mountainous village of Bahorok.

Four children and 14 adults on board are feared dead.

 

 

Cuba lifts restrictions on buying, selling cars

The Cuban government has lifted a 52-year-old ban on buying and selling all types of vehicles among individuals.

All restrictions on such transactions will be removed as of October 1.

The lifting of the ban was first announced in April by Cuba's current leader Raul Castro.

It's part of reforms promoted by the administration of Castro to "update" the Cuban economy. In the announcement, Castro also said restrictions on the sale of private property would be lifted as well.

 

 

China mulls second action plan on human rights

The Chinese government is set to publish a second action plan on human rights.

Wang Chen with the State Council Information Office says a major goal of the new action plan is to offer more effective protection to people's political rights. 

The central authorities published China's first Action Plan on Human Rights in 2009.

China is now one of 26 countries which have drafted a Human Rights Action Plan since the UN first put out the call back in 1993.

 

 

China honors outstanding foreign experts

The Chinese government has honored 50 foreign experts from 21 countries for their outstanding contributions to the country's development.

The "Friendship Award" is an annual award issued by the Chinese government. Some 1,200 foreign experts from 62 countries have been awarded the honor since it was started in 1991.

 

 

CRI Online launches mobile service in Spanish, French

CRI Online, the website of China Radio International, has launched its mobile services in Spanish and French.

The services will cater to the needs of mobile device users who speak the two languages.

The move marks a new achievement in CRI's development in the new media industry, following the 2009 launch of its mobile service in English.

CRI Online also plans to launch mobile services in Japanese, German and Korean in the near future.