Asia Pacific + South and Central Asia
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There are reasons to be cheerful ... LGBTI rights gains in unlikely countriesIraq, Tunisia and Lebanon have recently made progressive steps forward in lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex human rights
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Global arms trade reaches highest point since cold war eraMiddle East almost doubles weapons imports, as US and Europe remain the main suppliers and China joins top-tier exporters
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'All is forgiven': Sri Lankan PM says returning asylum seekers won't be chargedRanil Wickremesinghe claims compatriots broke the law in trying to flee to Australia but insists it is safe for them to return
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'There will be more deaths': NGOs on Trump's anti-abortion ruleWe asked NGOs how the reinstatement of the ‘global gag’ rule will impact what they do, and the people they work with. Here are some of the responses
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Even torturers admit that torture doesn’t workLetters: Torture does not work, unless the intended effect is punishment rather than uncovering information vital to saving lives
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'Global gag rule' jeopardises future of Asia health initiatives, campaigners sayFunding for programmes from sanitation to nutrition will be subject to Trump’s far-reaching order, with huge implications for family planning providers
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Donald Trump’s policy pledges should have the left cheeringLetters: Trump spoke of closed industries and decimated communities while the ruling class make decisions which enrich an elite. What is untrue here?
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UK supreme court to rule on government responsibility for alleged renditionJudgments on alleged treatment of jihadi suspects could define extent of human rights protections overseas
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Displaced: faces of some of the world’s 63 million people fleeing disasterWar, weather, climate change and terrorism have made millions homeless. UN photographer Muse Mohammed has documented how they have coped
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The Observer view on corruption, repression and violence threatening fragile democraciesThe populations of Malaysia, Thailand and Burma are increasingly suffering under their leaders
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UK government led public to believe aid to India had ended, watchdog saysAid impact commission criticises Department for International Development’s management of switch from traditional aid to new development partnerships
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'It was too hot, even to leave home': stories from the world's hottest yearFrom drought-hit Nigeria to wine-growing Finland, we hear from people whose lives have already been changed by a warming world
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Large metal cylinder crashes to earth in MyanmarStrong possibility that 4.5m-long object which landed in northern mining area was part of Chinese satellite
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How the world views the US elections, from Israel to North KoreaWhile many countries have shown a preference for Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump has pockets of support, as Guardian journalists around the world explain
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'Orphanage tourism': fears of child exploitation boom as Myanmar opens upAs more foreigners visit the country, institutions that exploit children for money and also abuse are becoming more widespread, Unicef says
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Stan Lee to create Chinese movie superhero Monkey MasterMonkey Master will weave Chinese and Indian warrior myths into modern-day martial arts story, and follows pioneering mashup Chakra: The Invincible
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Suicide bomber attacks Chinese embassy in KyrgyzstanKyrgyzstan’s deputy PM says attacker died and three people were injured in Bishkek after a car rammed the embassy’s gate before exploding
Water in development Empty reservoirs, dry rivers, thirsty cities – and our water reserves are running out