RIYADH / AP Saudi King Salman has arrived in Malaysia to kick off a multi-nation tour aimed at boosting economic ties with Asia.The official Saudi Press Agency reported on Sunday that the monarch’s tour will also take in Indonesia, Brunei, Japan, China and the Maldives. Salman will also visit Saudi Arabia’s neighbor Jordan before returning home. OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia …

  TEHRAN / AP Iran’s navy began an annual drill on Sunday near the strategic Strait of Hormuz, its first major exercise since the inauguration of US President Donald Trump, state television reported. The TV report quoted navy chief Adm. Habibollah Sayyari as saying the two-day maneuver will cover an area of 2 million square kilometers (772,000 square miles) in the …

  KABUL / AP Springtime in Afghanistan usually brings a spike in violence as the Taliban takes advantage of the thaw to launch a wave of fresh attacks. But the Taliban’s leader has just issued a statement calling on Afghans to plant more trees. In a public letter issued on Sunday in four languages, including English, Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada says that, …