Christmas rescue mission to fly home more than 1,000 Hong Kong tourists stranded by Japan snowstorms

A Christmas rescue mission is under way to fly stranded Hongkongers home from northern Japan after the popular winter holiday destination was battered by its biggest snowstorm in more than 50 years. The storm has dumped 960mm of snow on Sapporo in Hokkaido prefecture from Friday, forcing the cancellation of dozens of flights in the area, according to Japanese transport authorities. Cathay Pacific will return 1,600 passengers to Hong Kong in the early hours of Boxing Day. Three further...