TOKYO -- Fumio Kishida, leader of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), was elected on Monday as the country's new prime minister to succeed Yoshihide Suga.

The Japanese Diet convened an extraordinary session in the afternoon to choose the new prime minister. As the ruling coalition led by the LDP controls both chambers, 64-year-old Kishida received 311 of 458 votes in the House of Representatives and 141 of 241 votes in the House of Councillors. (Japan-PM-Election)

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KABUL -- The death toll from a bomb explosion outside a big mosque in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan, has risen to eight while 20 other people were wounded, a local online news agency Khaama Press reported on Monday.

The explosion occurred at the middle of a crowd at the gate of Eidgah Great Mosque on Sunday afternoon when a prayer ceremony was being held for Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid's deceased mother. (Afghanistan-Mosque-Blast)

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MANILA -- Manila Mayor Francisco Domagoso on Monday filed his certificate of candidacy to run for the next president of the Philippines in the May 2022 elections.

Domagoso, 46, popularly known by his celebrity nickname Isko Moreno, and his running-mate Willie Ong, a doctor with more than 16 million followers on Facebook, filed their certificates of candidacy at the Commission on Elections. (Philippines-Elections-Francisco Domagoso)

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WELLINGTON -- More than 2 million people have received two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, marking a significant milestone for the largest vaccination program in New Zealand's history, Minister for COVID-19 Response Chris Hipkins said on Monday.

As of Monday morning, 2,018,305 people were fully vaccinated with two doses of the Pfizer vaccine, representing 48 percent of Kiwis aged 12 and over, Hipkins said in a statement. (New Zealand-COVID-19-Vaccine) Enditem

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