Top Asian News 4:53 a.m. GMT

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — A massive crowd of mostly barefoot Filipino Roman Catholic devotees on Monday joined an annual procession of a centuries-old statue of Jesus Christ held under tight security due to fears of a possible attack following the killing of a suspected Islamic extremist leader. The U.S. and British embassies asked their citizens to take precautions, and the police warned that local Muslim militants trying to align themselves with the Islamic State group may try to attack the procession of the wooden Black Nazarene with a cross along Manila's streets. National police chief Ronald Dela Rosa says authorities have not monitored any specific threat but warned that followers of a Muslim extremist leader killed in a clash with police last week may retaliate by attacking the procession.

HOUSTON (AP) — Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and Gov. Greg Abbott said they met Sunday with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen while she was passing through Houston on her way to Central America. The Republican senator said in a news release that during his meeting with Tsai, they "discussed our mutual opportunity to upgrade the stature of our bilateral relations" in a talk that addressed arms sales, diplomatic exchanges and economic relations. "Furthering economic cooperation between our two nations must be a priority; increased access to Taiwanese markets will benefit Texas farmers, ranchers and small business owners alike," he said. A news release from Abbott, also a Republican, said he and Tsai discussed energy, trade relations and commercial ties between Taiwan and Texas.

Beijing and other cities across northern and central China were shrouded in thick smog last week, prompting authorities to delay dozens of flights and close highways. Beijing authorities issued an "orange alert," the third level in China's four-tiered warning system, while more than 20 other cities were on the highest "red alert." In other images from the Asia-Pacific region last week, an Indonesian court ruled that witness testimony will be closed to the media in the blasphemy trial of the capital's minority Christian governor. Jakarta Gov. Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama is charged with insulting Islam and desecrating the Quran by using one of its verses to boost his chances of winning re-election.

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia's heath minister temporarily stepped down Monday while her travel expense claims are investigated. The scandal surrounding Minister Sussan Ley's expense claims could trigger the first reshuffle of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's Cabinet since his government was re-elected six months ago. Ley has been under scrutiny since last week over allegations that she made taxpayers pay for personal travel in recent years, including to the tourist city of Gold Coast where she bought a luxury apartment in 2015. Turnbull said Ley had agreed to stand aside without ministerial pay while the prime minister's department investigated whether her expense claims met guidelines.

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Unusually warm winds and seas helped make last year the hottest ever recorded in New Zealand. The average temperature during 2016 was 13.4 Celsius (56.1 Fahrenheit), according to a report released Monday by the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research. That was nearly 1 degree Celsius warmer than normal and fractionally hotter than the previous record set in 1998. The climate agency began keeping records in 1909. Agency forecaster Chris Brandolino said ocean temperatures around New Zealand were warmer than normal for the first seven months of 2016 and that winds during the year came more often than usual from the north rather than the cooler south.

BANGKOK (AP) — A look at recent developments in the South China Sea, where China is pitted against smaller neighbors in multiple disputes over islands, coral reefs and lagoons in waters crucial for global commerce and rich in fish and potential oil and gas reserves: ___ EDITOR'S NOTE: This is a weekly look at the latest developments in the South China Sea, home to several territorial conflicts that have raised tensions in the region. ___ CHINA MAKES WAVES WITH AIRCRAFT CARRIER China says it was routine combat drills, yet the deployment of the aircraft carrier Liaoning's battle group in the Western Pacific and into the South China Sea has made neighbors jittery about Beijing flexing its muscles.

PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) — North Korea marked Kim Jong Un's birthday on Sunday in a decidedly low-key manner. Though the young leader's birthday is well-known throughout the country, it has yet to be celebrated with the kind of adulatory festivities that accompany the birthdays of his late grandfather and father. Pyongyang residents did what they do every second Sunday of the new year — joined in sports events. Kim Jong Un, who is believed to be 33 or 34 and the world's youngest head of state, assumed power after the death of his father, Kim Jong Il, in late 2011.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A South Korean Buddhist monk is in critical condition after setting himself on fire to protest the country's settlement with Japan on compensation for wartime sex slaves, officials said Sunday. The 64-year-old monk suffered third-degree burns across his body and serious damage to vital organs. He's unconscious and unable to breathe on his own, said an official from the Seoul National University Hospital, who didn't want to be named citing office rules. The man set himself ablaze late Saturday during a large rally in Seoul calling for the ouster of impeached President Park Geun-hye, police said.

BEIJING (AP) — Officials in Beijing have announced a new environmental police squad to root out illegal burning in the city, the latest government response to the widespread public anger over China's persistent problems with smog. Beijing's acting mayor, Cai Qi, said at a meeting Saturday that the force would target open-air barbecues, garbage incineration and the burning of wood and other biomass, according to China's official Xinhua News Agency. Cai announced several other measures, including a target of cutting the use of coal by 30 percent in 2017, and shutting down 500 higher-polluting factories and upgrading 2,500 more. About 300,000 high-pollution vehicles will also be restricted from entering the capital starting next month, he said.

BEIJING (AP) — An official with President-elect Donald Trump's transition team said Saturday that neither Trump nor transition officials would be meeting with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, who stopped in the U.S. during her trip to the Americas. Still, Tsai's trip will be scrutinized by Beijing for any signs that Trump's team will risk its ire by further engaging with the self-ruled island that China considers its territory. Tsai, who departed Taipei on Saturday, pledged to bolster Taiwan's international profile as she set off on a trip to reinforce relations with diplomatic allies in Central America, a task that has taken on new urgency as Beijing ramps up efforts to diplomatically isolate Taipei.