Ohio State University has agreed to pay $2.1 million to resolve federal allegations that it failed to disclose researchers’ affiliations with and support from entities in China on NASA and National Science Foundation grants. An Aug. 31 settlement agreement identifies former Ohio State professor C.K. Shum and another member of his laboratory, Yu Zhang. The … Read more
The reported death toll from the Nepal–Tibet flood rose above 800 on Aug. 30. The Nepal Police reported 788 deaths. Chinese authorities separately reported 16 deaths and 546 people missing on the Tibetan side in Gyirong, bringing the reported cross-border death toll to 804. Nepal’s disaster authority has listed 2,502 people missing as of Aug. … Read more
The United States said on Aug. 30 that about 85 Americans remain missing following last week’s devastating flood, which engulfed villages along the border between China and Nepal and wrecked critical infrastructure in the region. The updates from U.S. State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott came hours after the Nepali authorities issued a fresh warning of … Read more
Cybersecurity researchers have found surveillance backdoors in Chinese carrier routers made by Zbtlink and the same software in a different Zbtlink-made router sold through Amazon. Chinese law requires telecom and internet companies to provide technical assistance to police and state-security agencies. In an Aug. 27 report, cybersecurity firm VulnCheck said it found two hidden programs … Read more
A growing campaign to register rental properties in Guangzhou, one of the largest cities in China, is raising concerns among landlords that authorities could use newly collected housing data to demand back taxes on rental income after years of relaxed enforcement or nonenforcement. Officials in several districts of the southern Chinese city have recently sent … Read more
The Chinese regime’s detention of U.S. citizen U Min Zin amounts to coercive “hostage diplomacy,” serving as a serious global warning that other authoritarian states could adopt similar tactics, experts warn. Scholars at Risk—a U.S.-based academic freedom watchdog group—urged the relevant authorities “to facilitate Min Zin’s immediate and unconditional release, and for his safety to … Read more
China’s cash-strapped local governments are stepping up tax collection, fines, and other penalties while tightening controls on petitioners, online speech, travel, and neighborhood activities, according to an insider familiar with local government operations. The insider and a resident spoke to The Epoch Times on condition of anonymity out of fear of reprisal. The moves come … Read more
Chinese artist Gao Zhen was recently sentenced in China to three years in prison over artworks he created nearly two decades ago, which insiders say illustrates how Beijing is expanding its efforts to criminalize criticism of the regime and its leaders. Gao, 70, was sentenced on Aug. 25 by a court in Sanhe, a city … Read more
A group of oil tanks store imported crude oil at Qingdao Port Crude Oil Terminal in Qingdao, Shandong Province, China, on April 12, 2026. For decades, Beijing has purchased most of Iran’s sanctioned oil at heavy discounts. Iran has also provided China with a platform to conduct business in Chinese yuan, allowing it to bypass … Read more
The Chinese regime is assessing the potential impact of a new round of U.S. sanctions on its financial, energy, and foreign-trade sectors as Washington expands pressure on countries and companies doing business with Iran. The concern in Beijing is not simply that Chinese companies could lose access to the Iranian market. Chinese officials are increasingly … Read more