Top Asian News 3:55 a.m. GMT

HONG KONG (AP) — Authorities in Hong Kong on Monday took an unprecedented step against separatist voices by banning a political party that advocates independence for the southern Chinese territory on national security grounds. John Lee, the territory's secretary for security, announced that the Hong Kong National Party will be prohibited from operation from Monday. Lee's announcement did not provide further details. But Hong Kong's security bureau had previously said in a letter to the National Party's leader, 27-year-old Andy Chan, that the party should be dissolved "in the interests of national security or public safety, public order or the protection of the rights and freedoms of others." Chan had no immediate comment.

MALE, Maldives (AP) — Opposition candidate Ibrahim Mohamed Solih declared victory early Monday in the Maldives' contentious presidential election, which was widely seen as a referendum on the island nation's young democracy. The win was unexpected, and Solih's supporters flooded the streets, hugging one another, waving the Maldivian flag, cheering and honking horns in celebration. The opposition had feared the election would be rigged for strongman President Yameen Abdul Gayoom, whose first term was marked by a crackdown on political rivals, courts and the media. Yameen did not concede, and his campaign couldn't be reached for comment. "People were not expecting this result.

The U.S. State Department has congratulated the Maldives' on its peaceful democratic election. Opposition candidate Ibrahim Mohamed Solih declared victory in Sunday's vote, which was widely seen as a referendum on democracy in the nation that was holding only its third multiparty democratic elections. The nation's strongman president hasn't conceded, and official results won't be announced until Saturday, allowing possible court challenges of the vote. State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert noted the reported opposition victory in a statement that urged "calm and respect for the will of the people" as the election process concludes.

NEW DELHI (AP) — The Maldives is holding its third multiparty presidential election on Sunday. The Indian Ocean nation of 400,000 has been rife with political turmoil since democracy was introduced just a decade ago. Famed for its white sand beaches and luxury resorts, the Maldives under President Yameen Abdul Gayoom, who is seeking re-election, has seen economic growth and longer life expectancy, according to the World Bank. But Yameen's critics say he has systematically rolled back democratic freedoms, jailing rivals and controlling courts. Like elsewhere in South Asia, China has made fast inroads into the Maldives with aid and investment, challenging India's long-held position as the dominant regional power.

BEIJING (AP) — X-Men star Fan Bingbing's Beijing management office is dark and abandoned. Her birthday passed almost unremarked in China's hyper-adrenalized social media environment. For one of China's best known stars and a rising Hollywood actress, Fan's vanishing is stunning, coming amid vague allegations of tax fraud and possibly other infractions that could have put her at odds with Chinese authorities. Fan has starred in dozens of movies and TV series in China and is best known internationally for her role as Blink in 2014's "X-Men: Days of Future Past," a cameo in the Chinese version of "Iron Man 3," and star turns on the red carpet at Cannes as recently as May.

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnam will hold a state funeral and national mourning this week for President Tran Dai Quang, who died last week of a viral illness at age 61. Flags will fly at half-staff and entertainment activities will be canceled during the two-day funeral that starts Wednesday, the Communist Party and government announced. Quang will be buried in his home village in northern Ninh Binh province, some 115 kilometers (72 miles) south of Hanoi on Thursday. His passing is a "great loss to our Party, state and people," the announcement said. He died at a Hanoi hospital on Friday.

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australian filmmaker James Ricketson took a stroll on a Sydney beach at dawn Monday while recuperating from more than a year in a Cambodian prison, his nephew said. Ricketson, 69, landed in Sydney on Sunday night two days after his 15-month stint in a Phnom Penh prison ended with clemency granted by Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni. The filmmaker had been arrested after flying a drone to photograph an opposition party rally in June 2017. He was sentenced on Aug. 31 this year to six years in prison for alleged espionage even though prosecutors never specified whom he was spying for nor presented evidence that he possessed or transmitted any secrets.

HYDERABAD, India (AP) — Supporters of a lawmaker slain by Maoist insurgents in southern India on Sunday attacked two police stations in anger over the killing, setting fire to one and vandalizing the other, police said. Two officers were injured in the attacks, Deputy Inspector General of Police Ch. Srikant told The Associated Press, adding that the mob blamed police for failing to protect the lawmaker, Kidari Sarveshwara Rao, an Andhra Pradesh state assembly member from the ruling Telugu Desam party. Earlier Sunday, at least 40 Maoist rebels were involved in Rao's fatal shooting while he visited with constituents of a tribal area about 700 kilometers (435 miles) northeast of Hyderabad, the state capital, according to Visakhapatanam district police superintendent Rahul Dev Sharma.

BEIJING (AP) — China summoned the American ambassador and the defense attache and recalled its navy commander from a U.S. trip to deliver a strong protest against economic sanctions Washington lodged over the purchase of Russian fighter jets and surface-to-air missile equipment. The Defense Ministry said the U.S. had no right to interfere in Chinese military cooperation with Russia. "We demand that the U.S. immediately correct the mistake and revoke the so-called sanctions, otherwise the U.S. must bear the consequences," the Defense Ministry said in a statement. The Foreign Ministry said that it had summoned Ambassador Terry Branstad. The Central Military Commission, which commands the People's Liberation Army, the world's largest standing military, said that Huang Xueping, the commission's deputy head for international military cooperation, had also summoned the acting U.S.

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Campaigning for Indonesia's presidential election officially began Sunday with the two contenders releasing white doves and vowing a peaceful race as concerns simmer the campaign will sharpen religious and ethnic divides. The election due in April pits incumbent Joko "Jokowi" Widodo against former general and ultranationalist Prabowo Subianto, who lost to Jokowi in 2014. Dressed in traditional clothing, the candidates and their running mates paraded through central Jakarta on Sunday and released doves at a ceremony after reading out a peaceful campaign declaration. The 2014 presidential election was marred by dirty campaigning and wild internet rumors that Jokowi was a secret communist and of Chinese background, accusations often used in Indonesia to discredit or intimidate political opponents.