74 people remain missing after three fishing boats sank on Sunday afternoon amid Typhoon Wutip in the South China Sea.

The boats, all from Guangdong, went down near the Xisha Islands.

Search and rescue has managed to retrieve 14 people so far.

Altogether five boats with a total of 171 people aboard were caught in the Typhoon Wutip.

The Chinese Navy has dispatched 7 ships and a helicopter to help with the search and rescue.

The rescue operations are being hampered by strong winds and high waves.

Wutip made landfall on Vietnam's central coast last night.

 

China condemns strike on Damascus Chinese embassy

The Chinese goverment is condemning the launch of a mortar shell which hit the Chinese embassy in Syria.

The shell fell into the compound of the Chinese embassy in Damascus on Monday, leaving one person hurt.

It's believed the mortar may have been launched from the southern suburbs of Damascus.

Despite this, the Chinese side says it remains committed to finding a solution to the conflict.

The Chinese government has already decided to send in experts to assist in the dismantling of Syria's chemical weapons.

Li Keqiang made a speech at National Day reception

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang says development is China's first priority.

Speaking at a reception to mark this National Day, he also says the government should make sure development brings benefits to everyone.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Keqiang, and other state leaders gathered Monday evening at the Great Hall of the People to celebrate the National Day.

More than 11-hundred people attended the reception.

 

Senate rejects Obamacare delay compromise

The Democratically-controlled US Senate has rejected a proposal by the House of Representatives to delay President Barack Obama's healthcare reforms in return for temporarily funding the federal government.

The US government is just hours from being shut down.

The Senate has so far rejected all House efforts to modify Obamacare.

Failure to reach any agreement will force many federal services to shut down for the first time in 17 years.

The impasse will put up to 1-million federal workers on unpaid leave.

 

Wave of car bombs across Baghdad kills 51

The death toll from a series of bombings in Shiite neighbourhoods of Baghdad on Monday has reached 51. 

Dozens of others have been wounded in the assaults.

No group has claimed responsibility, although the strikes bare the hallmarks of al-Qaida's local branch in Iraq.

The attacks on Monday follow a series of bombings the day before which left 46 dead.

More than 45-hundred civilians have been killed since April amid the sectarian violence in the country.

 

Chicago train collision injures dozens

Over 30 people have been hurt following a collision involving a pair of commuter trains in Chicago.

The injured have been taken to local hospitals.

The crash took place during the morning rush hour.

Local officials say none of the injuries appear to be life threatening.

 

Indonesia demands closer cooperation with Australia on border issues

Indonesia's President is calling for closer cooperation with Australia on immigration issues.

The call has come amid Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbot's visit to the country.

This comes just days after a boat packed with Australia-bound asylum seekers sank in Indonesian waters, leaving 36 dead.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono says the two countries need to work together to combat the problem.

Newly-elected Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott won the September election on a promise to end asylum seeker boats ending up on Australian shores.

The Indonesian goverment has expressed concern over Abbott's plan.

The plan would see the Australian navy intercepting boats and forcing them back into Indonesian waters.

 

Turkish PM Erdogan announces "historic" reform plans

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced a set of proposals designed to try to strengthe ties with his country's Kurdish population.

Erdogan says his new proposals will lift certian restrictions on the use of the Kurdish language.

Authorities consider the reforms to be key in seeking peace with the Kurds.

Kurdish groups have demanded Erdogan lift restrictions on the Kurdish language even further, saying Kurdish children have the right to education in their mother tongue.

The PKK, the Kurdish rebels in the southwest of the country, suspended their expected pullout from Turkey earlier this year, claiming Erdogan's government has not fulfilled their promises to improve Kurdish rights.

 

First session of Kercher murder trial adjourned as judge and jury consider defence requests

The second appeal of the murder of British student Meredith Kercher has opened in Italy.

American Amanda Knox and her former boyfriend were originally aquitted 2-years ago.

Lawyers from both sides are pressing for the re-examination of DNA on the knife suspected to be the murder weapon. 

Kercher was found with her throat slashed in the home she and Knox shared in 2007.

 

Rising tennis star Zhang wins China derby at China Open

China's rising tennis star Zhang Shuai has beaten veteran Peng Shuai, 6-3, 6-3, in the first round of the China Open, winning the China derby.

Zhang won her first WTA title of her career in the recent Guangzhou women's tennis tournament earlier this month.

Following a series of outstanding performances, the 24-year old tennis star lifted her ranking to 66, a personal best.

Zhang and Peng both hail from Tianjin, a port city in east China, which boasts several top female tennis players including Duan Yingying and Zheng Saisai.