Indonesian and New Zealand authorities rejoiced over the weekend as Philip Mehrtens, a New Zealand pilot held hostage for 19 months by a Papuan armed group, walked free on Saturday.

China will gradually resume importing Japanese marine products, the Chinese Foreign Ministry announced Friday.

Former world junior champion Tomoka Miyazaki stunned Akane Yamaguchi in the women's singles semi-finals of the US$2 million BWF China Open in Changzhou yesterday.

Slovakia's Rebecca Sramkova booked her berth in the final of the US$267,082 WTA Allied Thailand Open at Arena Hua Hin on Saturday.

Thailand finished as Group B runners-up after losing to five-time world champions Brazil 9-1 in the Fifa Futsal World Cup in Uzbekistan on Friday night.

MOSCOW - Russia and China started naval exercises in the Sea of Japan on Saturday, Russian news agencies cited Russia's Pacific Fleet as saying.

TAIPEI - A 5.3 magnitude earthquake struck Taiwan’s sparsely populated east coast county of Hualien on Saturday, the island’s weather administration said, with no immediate reports of damage.

BEIRUT - At least 37 people were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a Beirut suburb on Friday, including three children and seven women along with 16 Hezbollah fighters, the Lebanese health ministry said on Saturday.

Port got off to an impressive start in their AFC Champions League Two campaign by defeating Indonesia's Persib Bandung 1-0 in their Group F encounter at Si Jalak Harupat Stadium on Thursday night.

Unseeded Tamara Zidansek of Slovenia booked her berth in the semi-finals of the US$267,082 WTA Allied Thailand Open at Arena Hua Hin on Friday.