Iran's leader appoints 1st VP as acting president

Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has appointed First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber as interim president following the death of President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash.

Raisi and his accompanying team, including Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, were killed in a helicopter crash in the northwest of the country on Sunday.

Khamenei said the first vice president is duty-bound to make the arrangements for the election of the new president within 50 days.

Julian Assange wins High Court victory in case against extradition to U.S.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has won a victory in his battle against extradition from the U.K. to the U.S. after the High Court in London granted him permission to appeal.

The latest move came after the High Court deferred a decision in March on whether Assange could take his case to another appeal hearing.

Assange is wanted by the United States on allegations of disclosing national defense information.

He has been held at southeast London's high-security Belmarsh Prison.

Wang Yi to attend SCO meeting after two-day official visit to Tajikistan

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has arrived in Kazakhstan to attend a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Foreign Ministers Council, following a two-day visit to Tajikistan.

Wang and other SCO foreign ministers will discuss international and regional issues.

Ahead of the meeting, China and Kazakhstan held talks primarily centering on trade relations.

SCO upholds one-China principle, opposes "Taiwan independence"

The secretary-general of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization has highlighted the one-China principle when commenting on the new leader of the Taiwan region taking office on Monday.

Zhang Ming said the SCO abides by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and the SCO Charter, respects the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of its member states, and safeguards their security and development interests.

He said the SCO will continue to firmly support the Chinese government's stance on the Taiwan question, adhere to the one-China principle, abide by UN Resolution 2758, and oppose "Taiwan independence" in any form.

Record-breaking rainfall hits south China's Guangxi

Record-breaking rainfall has battered multiple cities in Guangxi, leading to severe flooding and traffic disruptions.

As of Sunday, the rains had affected over 21-thousand, people across the region in southern China.

Authorities have sent emergency response teams to the affected areas and implemented safety initiatives to protect residents against secondary disasters.

Between late May and mid-June each year, Guangxi is particularly prone to mudslides and flooding due to relentless downpours.

China's loan prime rates remain unchanged

Latest figures show that China's one-year loan prime rate, a market-based benchmark lending rate, came in at 3.45 percent Monday, unchanged from the previous month.

According to the National Interbank Funding Center, the over-five-year LPR, on which many lenders base their mortgage rates, also remained unchanged from the previous reading.

China cut the over-five-year rate by 25 basis points to 3.95 percent in February, the largest drop in recent years.

The one-year rate remained unchanged in February.

The monthly data is a pricing reference for banks that is based on the rates of the central bank's open market operations, especially the medium-term lending facility rate.