WASHINGTON (NYTIMES) – US Defence Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III has ordered six commercial airlines to provide passenger jets to help with the growing US military operation of evacuating Americans and Afghan allies from Kabul, the Afghan capital, the Pentagon said on Sunday (Aug 22). Mr Austin activated Stage 1 of the Civil Reserve Air […]
TOKYO (REUTERS) – The authorities in the Japanese capital are considering plans to convert some of the city’s Olympics and Paralympics venues into temporary medical facilities as they combat soaring Covid-19 infections that have piled pressure on the healthcare system. Japan’s fifth wave of infections, which is being driven by the highly infectious Delta variant, […]
SINGAPORE – United States Vice-President Kamala Harris touched down in Singapore minutes ago and kicked off an official visit to South-east Asia – her first outside the Americas since being sworn into office in January. Ms Harris arrived on Air Force Two at about 10.50am on Sunday (Aug 22) at Paya Lebar Air Base. She […]
Good morning! Here are our top stories to kick-start your Sunday, Aug 22. NDP 2021: A parade to lift spirits The show featured virtual dance routines, video clips and animated films that tugged at the heartstrings. Also, check out the photo gallery in this newsletter. READ MORE HERE Why the surge in Covid-19 deaths in S’pore, and what […]
The State Department and Pentagon on Saturday gave conflicting messages to Americans seeking to flee Afghanistan through Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, as security conditions continued to deteriorate at the remaining gateway out of the country. Even as the State Department warned Americans to avoid traveling to the airport because of security threats there, […]
A top homeland security adviser to former Vice President Mike Pence accused the Trump administration of distorting the truth about Afghan refugees, writing on Twitter that the former president and Stephen Miller, his top immigration adviser, sought to prevent the refugees from entering the United States. In an interview, Olivia Troye recalled sitting in meetings […]
SINGAPORE – This year’s National Day Parade (NDP) organisers worked closely with green groups to make the parade as environmentally sustainable as possible. Since last December, the NDP Executive Committee had engaged with some 15 green groups to discuss what materials can be used to produce the NDP pack so that it is durable and […]
SINGAPORE – The National Day Parade (NDP) on Saturday (Aug 21) celebrated its 10th anniversary at the Marina Bay floating platform, which was initially built as a temporary stage. A tribute video to the platform was shown during the NDP show. Mr Teo Jing Siong, chairman of the first NDP to be held there in […]
Good evening! Catch up on some of the week’s top reads. Ismail Sabri Yaakob sworn in as Malaysia’s new prime minister His appointment marks Umno’s return to power after three years. READ MORE HERE Vaxxed or vexed: What will life for the unvaccinated be like in Singapore? How will the future play out for those […]
XIANGHE COUNTY, HEBEI – When inspiration strikes, Chinese cartoonist Wang Wei is often gripped by a compulsion to put pen to paper. Sometimes, when he gets an idea in the middle of the night, he leaves his bed without waking his wife, creeps down to his office in the same apartment compound and takes one […]