KABUL -- At least 19 people were killed and 27 others wounded on Friday in a suicide explosion that rocked an education center in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan.

"Students were preparing for an exam when a suicide bomber struck at this educational center. Unfortunately, 19 people have been martyred and 27 others wounded," Kabul police spokesman Khalid Zadran said.

No group or individual has claimed responsibility for the attack in Police District 13 of Kabul. A similar blast claimed seven lives and injured 41 others in Kabul a week ago. (Afghansitan-Blast)

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SEOUL -- One person was found dead and four others were seriously injured in the South Korean pharmaceutical factory fire, Yonhap news agency reported Friday.

An explosion occurred at about 2:22 p.m. local time (0522 GMT) from a pharmaceutical factory in Hwaseong, some 50 km south of the capital Seoul.

It sparked a huge fire, leaving one person dead and four people seriously wounded. Ten others suffered minor injuries, such as smoke inhalation. (South Korea-Explosion)

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BANGKOK -- Thailand's Constitutional Court ruled on Friday that Prayut Chan-o-cha has not reached an eight-year term limit as prime minister, a move that will enable Prayut to resume his duties after being suspended last month.

Judges of the court voted 6 to 3 to decide that under the 2017 constitution, which came into effect on April 6, 2017, the count of Prayut's premiership should start from April 6, 2017, and thus he has not completed his term as the prime minister, according to a statement issued by the court on Friday.

In August, judges of the court agreed by five votes to four to suspend the premiership of Prayut, effective on Aug. 24, following a petition filed by the opposition parties for a ruling on when Prayut's eight-year tenure should conclude, which the opposition parties believed should have ended. The opposition parties also urged Prayut to step down. (Thailand-PM-Court Ruling)

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COLOMBO -- Sri Lanka's inflation, as measured by the year-on-year change in the Colombo Consumer Price Index, rose to 69.8 percent in September 2022 from 64.3 percent a month earlier, the Department of Census and Statistics announced on Friday.

According to the department, this increase in inflation was driven by the monthly price hike for both food and non-food categories.

The department also said that food prices have gone up by 94.9 percent in in September from 93.7 percent in August. Prices of all commonly used food items have increased compared to August.

Non-food inflation increased to 57.6 percent in September, compared to 50.2 percent in August. (Sri Lanka-Inflation-September)

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ISLAMABAD -- At least two people were killed and 20 others injured when a blast hit a market area in Pakistan's southwest Kohlu district of Balochistan province on Friday, hospital and police officials said.

Asghar Marri, a medical superintendent of a local hospital, told Xinhua that at least 20 patients are being treated in the hospital, and at least 10 are in critical condition.

No group or person has claimed responsibility for the attack yet. (Pakistan-Blast)

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JAKARTA -- The Indonesian food and drug administration (BPOM) has issued an emergency use authorization (EUA) for the mRNA-platform COVID-19 vaccine, AWcorna, developed by Chinese companies.

AWcorna is a SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine developed by Suzhou Abogen Biosciences Co., Ltd. with the participation of Walvax Biotechnology Co., Ltd. AWcorna can be stored and transported at two to eight degrees centigrade.

"The AWcorna vaccine has been approved for EUA to prevent infection with the SARS CoV-2 virus in individuals aged 18 years and above, as a primary and heterologous booster dose," said Penny Lukito, head of BPOM, at a press conference on Friday in Jakarta. (Indonesia-China-Vaccine)