Songkran Festival officially begins
Revellers enjoy water play on Silom Road and at CentralWorld in Bangkok as the Songkran Festival officially begins. Photos: Varuth Hirunyatheb and Pattarapong Chatpattarasill

French court jails Lafarge ex-CEO for funding IS in Syria
PARIS (FRANCE) - A French court on Monday fined the cement group Lafarge over $1.3 million and sentenced its former boss to six years in prison for paying protection money to the Islamic State group and other jihadists to maintain its business in war-torn Syria.

Oil surges, stocks drop as Trump threatens to block Hormuz
LONDON - Oil prices surged and stock markets broadly fell Monday after US-Iran peace talks broke down and President Donald Trump announced a plan to block the strategic Strait of Hormuz, ratcheting up fears for Middle East energy supplies.

War in the Middle East: latest developments
PARIS (FRANCE) - The latest developments in the Middle East war:

Courts warn revellers, 'No groping'
The Court of Justice has warned Songkran revellers they could face up to 10 years in prison and/or a hefty fine of 200,000 baht if found guilty of physically molesting someone during crowded water fights.

US announces beginning of blockade of Iranian ports
TEHRAN - The US military said it would begin a blockade of all Iranian ports on Monday, after talks between the warring sides in Pakistan collapsed, and despite the Iranian military warning that it would treat any such action as an act of piracy.

Chinese AI solves decade-old maths problem in hours, with no human intervention
A Chinese artificial intelligence framework has autonomously resolved an open problem proposed more than a decade ago by a US mathematician, according to the Peking University-led team that developed it.

Two border flashpoints reopened to visitors for Songkran
SURIN - The army is allowing public access during Songkran to two strategic points fiercely contested during last year's border war with Cambodia - Ta Kwai ancient temple, which is a cultural heritage site, and nearby Hill 350.

Pope Leo kicks off African tour under shadow of Trump's ire
VATICAN CITY - Pope Leo XIV headed to Algeria on Monday at the start of an 11-day tour of Africa, the first international trip of his papacy that risked being overshadowed by criticism from US President Donald Trump.

South Korean airlines make changes to Thai flights
Jet fuel hikes have forced South Korean no-frills airlines to adjust or in some cases suspend  flights to Thai destinations as the Middle East war continues to bite into the aviation sector.