Valletta / AFP A small passenger aircraft crashed on takeoff at Malta’s international airport on Monday, killing all five people onboard, officials said. In a statement, the airport said the aircraft, a Fairchild Metroliner turboprop, was involved in an accident “upon takeoff.” “We can confirm that the five crew on board are deceased,” it said, adding that the airport …

  Manila / AFP Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s fiery rhetoric and deadly crime war are becoming a growing concern around the world, the top US envoy for Asia warned on Monday in Manila. US assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Russel met with the Philippines’ defence and foreign ministers on Monday, after Duterte last week …

  Islamabad / AFP Two children and another civilian were killed along with a soldier in firing across the border between India and Pakistan, officials from both sides said on Monday, as tensions soar between the nuclear-armed rivals. Pakistan’s military said an 18-month-old girl and another civilian were killed on its side of the border in “unprovoked firing” by the …