A fire in southwestern Japan damages 170 homes and forces evacuations Firefighters and army helicopters battled a fire that burned through old wooden houses in a fishing town in southwestern Japan. The Associated Press
Greetings from Yimianpo, China, where artisans carve Russian nesting dolls Far-Flung Postcards is a weekly series in which NPR's international team shares moments from their lives and work around the world. John Ruwitch
Bangladesh's ousted prime minister sentenced to death for role in protest crackdown A tribunal in Dhaka sentenced Sheikh Hasina to death for her involvement in the use of deadly force against protesters last year. She fled to India and was sentenced in absentia. The Associated Press
Mumbai's pigeon lovers are fighting back against a ban on feeding them Mumbai's civic body has banned pigeon feeding. It says the growing pigeon population is causing respiratory issues. Pigeon-lovers are fighting back. Omkar Khandekar
Multiple explosions shake a mosque in an Indonesian high school, injuring dozens Indonesian authorities said they have identified a 17-year-old boy as the suspected perpetrator of an attack that shook a mosque at a high school during Friday prayers in Jakarta. The Associated Press
Japan deploys the military to counter a surge in bear attacks The deployment comes following a surge of bear attacks in Japan's northern Akita prefecture. The Associated Press
Prosecutors seize yachts, luxury cars from man accused of running Cambodia cyberscams Prosecutors in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore seized hundreds of millions of dollars in assets belonging to a Cambodian businessman whom the U.S. accuses of heading a global scam syndicate. The Associated Press
The Dalai Lama created a Tibetan capital in exile in India. It's shrinking For decades, Tibetans built a capital in exile in Dharamshala, India, and sent their kids to a school founded by the Dalai Lama. That's now changing. Diaa Hadid
Gender inequality accelerates Japan's rural depopulation Akita Prefecture has Japan's most aged population, lowest birthrate and fastest declining population. Rigid gender roles are prompting young women to leave rural areas like this for opportunities elsewhere. Anthony Kuhn
A town in northeast China has shrunk by a third since 2010. Here's one family's story An elementary school in Yimianpo is now a storage yard. The number of children in the town has dropped by half and there are fewer than three births per 1,000 residents in the province — China's lowest rate. John Ruwitch
