Top Asian News 4:59 a.m. GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — In another sign that he intends to shake up relations with China, President-elect Donald Trump named economist Peter Navarro to lead a newly created White House council on trade. The University of California-Irvine professor, who advised Trump during the campaign, has sharply criticized China's economic and military policies in books and videos. In addition to leading the new White House National Trade Council, Navarro will be director of trade and industrial policy. In a statement, the Trump transition team said the creation of the council "demonstrates the president-elect's determination to make American manufacturing great again." Trump says China's unfair trade practices are responsible for wiping out American factory jobs.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Investigators looking into the scandal surrounding impeached South Korean President Park Geun-hye are seeking to detain the daughter of Park's longtime confidante who faces criminal charges for allegedly extorting companies and manipulating state affairs. A German prosecution official on Thursday told South Korean media that Germany will cooperate with South Korean investigators in their search for Yoora Chung, the daughter of Park's jailed friend Choi Soon-sil, who is believed to be staying in Germany. An official from the investigation team led by special prosecutor Park Young-soo earlier said it had obtained a warrant to detain Chung and had asked for help from German prosecutors in finding Chung and obtaining evidence, such as financial transaction and phone records.

PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) — Pyongyang's pyramid-shaped Ryugyong Hotel, which poetically enough was built with some help from Egyptians, is one of the world's strangest landmarks and most conspicuous construction-project fails. Intended to be the world's tallest hotel, it has yet to host a guest, even though it's nearly as old as leader Kim Jong Un. The perennial mystery: Will it ever? Nearly 30 years after ground was broken, the tower looms eerily dark in the Pyongyang night, a single light at its very top blinking a silent warning to aircraft. By day, residents walk quickly to and from the nearby subway station with nary a glance upward at its 105-story presence.

SYDNEY (AP) — A van carrying gas cylinders exploded outside the headquarters of a Christian lobbying group in Australia's capital, though there did not appear to be any political or religious motivations behind the incident, police said Thursday. The driver, a 35-year-old Australian man, was the only person injured in Wednesday night's explosion, which seriously damaged the van and blew out windows in the two-story building, Australian Capital Territory police said. The driver ignited several gas cylinders that were inside the van, causing the explosion, Deputy Chief Police Officer Mark Walters said. He then walked to a hospital, where he was in critical condition with serious burns.

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — A tiny young woman crouches just outside the airport, crying softly into her thin shawl. It's cold out, but her sleeping toddler is heavy and warm in her arms. Travelers swarm around: Himalayan trekkers load up expedition backpacks. A Chinese tour group boards a bus. A dozen flight attendants in crisp blue suits and heels click by. Saro Kumari Mandal, 26, covers her head completely, a bundle of grief. Hundreds of young Nepali men excitedly wave final goodbyes to friends and family. On this day 1,500 will fly out of the Kathmandu airport bound for jobs mostly in Malaysia, Qatar or Saudi Arabia — jobs that are urgently needed by the people of this desperately poor country.

BETHLEHEM, West Bank (AP) — Christmas is approaching and pilgrims and tourists have begun to arrive, crowding the souvenir shops that line the narrow streets and alleys of Bethlehem, the biblical town revered as Jesus' birthplace. But when visitors choose to take a piece of the Holy Land back home with them, they better check the labels. Many souvenirs — including the West Bank town's trademark rosary beads — are imported from abroad, mainly China. A small number of souvenir shops are now trying to fight the trend, stocking their shelves almost exclusively with locally made products. Shopkeepers say that while their wares may be more expensive, the quality is much better and they give an important boost to the struggling economy.

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — A Canadian woman who authorities say managed to hide her 4-year-old pet cat Bella in her handbag during a flight across the Pacific Ocean had her vacation cut short when border agents discovered the ruse at Auckland Airport. Ministry for Primary Industries spokesman Craig Hughes said Thursday that the woman was refused entry into the country and was forced to catch the next flight home with her cat after she tried to smuggle it across the border. He called the woman's actions "reckless and dangerous." New Zealand has strict regulations for importing pets. Cats and dogs from most approved countries must have an implanted microchip and be kept in quarantine for a minimum of 10 days after arrival.

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Army Capt. Matthew Ball relied heavily on his Afghan interpreter during a yearlong mission in one of Afghanistan's most dangerous areas, entrusting him daily with his life. The interpreter received death threats from the Taliban for helping American troops, and has now been in hiding for nearly four years. He ventures out only in the cloak of darkness. "I'm living my days in hell. Even if someone is not really looking at me, I feel so paranoid, like this guy is going to kill me," Qismat Amin said in an interview with The Associated Press via an internet call.

TORONTO (AP) — The parents of a Canadian man held hostage in Afghanistan say a recently released Taliban video of his family marks the first time they've seen the two grandchildren, who were born in captivity. Canadian Joshua Boyle and his American wife, Caitlan Coleman, were kidnapped in 2012 while travelling in northern Afghanistan. In the video, they beg for their governments to intervene on their behalf. Coleman — sitting with two young children — urges governments on all sides to reach a deal to secure the family's freedom. Boyle's parents, Patrick and Linda Boyle, said in statement Wednesday that the video is the first glimpse at the kids.

BEIJING (AP) — Taiwan on Wednesday condemned the African island nation of Sao Tome and Principe's "abrupt" move to break their diplomatic ties, while rival China welcomed the defection of one of the self-governing island's small number of allies. Just 21 countries and governments now have official ties with Taiwan. Most of the world and the United Nations do not formally recognize the island as a condition of maintaining relations with China, which considers Taiwan a part of its territory. Beijing and Taipei have competed for allies for much of the nearly seven decades since the end of China's civil war in 1949, when the defeated Nationalist government fled across the Taiwan Strait.