Dead Beaches, Airport Taxi Wars, and a Mystery Denial: The VICE Evening Bulletin

Empty Beaches as Mt. Agung Threat Continues to Loom Over Bali
The island's tourism sector is in a slump as the threat of a volcanic eruption drags on for more than a month. Visits are down an estimated 20-30 percent, beach villages are empty, and locals wonder how much longer they can last. —VICE

Soekarno-Hatta Welcomes Ride Sharing Apps, With Strings Attached
The Jakarta airport will allow ride-share companies to set up dedicated pick-up locations alongside traditional taxis—as long as they register with the National Police, provide drivers with uniforms, and make them display official airport stickers on their cars—basically just like traditional taxis. But so far, only Grab has signed up with the police. So you're still going to need to walk a bit to find your Uber or GO-CAR. —Coconuts

Indonesian Military Chief Briefly Rejected From US-Bound Flight, DC Won't Say Why
TNI General Gatot Nurmantyo was denied entry to flight bound for Washington DC, where he was invited to take part in a seminar on combating violent extremism. The situation was quickly reversed—Gatot is now allowed to fly to the US—but there's still no explanation from US officials. —Sydney Morning Herald

Abe Wins Big in Japan Election, Opens to More Militarized Future
Is Japan on the verge of redrafting its pacifist constitution? The political party of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe won big on Sunday's election, so big in fact that Abe may now be able to realize his ambitions to revise the post-World War II constitution and allow Japan to take on a more militarized role in the already tense region. —Washington Post

Philippines Declares Victory in War to Retake Marawi
The battle to recapture the southern city from ISIS-linked militants is finally over. But the victory came at quite the cost: some 1,000 were killed, 400,000 displaced, and half the city lays in ruins after months of artillery fire and street-by-street urban warfare. —Straits Times

Cambodia Slides Closer to Dictatorship
Prime Minister Hun Sen, Cambodia's leader for more than 30 years, plans to dissolve the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) after arresting its leader on charges of treason. It's not the first time Hun Sen has used his power to attack the CNRP, he forced former opposition leader Sam Rainsy to step down earlier this year. Now critics worry that Cambodia is sliding toward one-party rule. —Reuters

Islamist Party Opposes Extradition of Radical Indian Preacher Zakir Naik
Malaysia's Islamist Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) is rallying behind radical preacher Zakir Naik and urging the government to refuse India's extradition request. The preacher is wanted in India for inciting religious hatred as part of a wider terrorism investigation. —Malay Mail Online

'Phantom Pregnancy' Is One of the Most Bizarre Medical Mysteries
Phantom pregnancies are extremely rare—about only 80 cases have show up in medical history—but that only makes them so much more bizarre. How can a woman's body go through all the stages of pregnancy without a baby, or in one case even a uterus? Tonic investigates—VICE

I Accidentally Fell Into the Feeder Fetish Community
There's an entire community of men and women who derive pleasure from feeding people. This is the story of how I, a cute fat girl, accidentally stumbled across a feeder in the wilds of Brooklyn. —MUNCHIES

What Our Obsession with Tragic, Beautiful, Mentally Ill Women Says About Us
We, as a culture, have had an unhealthy obsession with mentally ill women for centuries. From Hamlet's Ophelia to Natalie Portman in Black Swan, our films "would rather look at women than analyze them — except when the lady in question is (at least apparently) a little screwy."—Broadly

Sleater-Kinney Return with a Terrifyingly Good New Single, 'Here We Come'
The band's new single, released as part of a series supporting Planned Parenthood, is everything you would expect from the World's Greatest Rock Band, writes Noisey. —VICE