ISLAMABAD (REUTERS) – Pakistan’s Supreme Court ordered the release from prison on Tuesday (Feb 2) of Ahmad Omar Saeed Sheikh, a ringleader in the kidnapping and murder of US journalist Daniel Pearl by Al-Qaeda and Pakistani Islamist militants in 2002. Pakistan’s government had appealed to the court on Friday to review its decision to free […]

SINGAPORE – The Covid-19 pandemic has changed Singaporeans in many ways, whether it has been getting into the habit of wearing masks daily, or showing more compassion and kindness to those around them, said President Halimah Yacob on Tuesday (Feb 2). “The response of Singaporeans, particularly to the needy and less privileged, has been heartwarming. […]

SINGAPORE – More than 250 appeal cases of Singaporeans and permanent residents who wanted to enter Malaysia, including on compassionate grounds, succeeded with help from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) since March last year. Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said on Tuesday (Feb 2) his ministry has also helped more than 350 Singaporeans stranded in […]

SINGAPORE – A psychiatrist testifying for a lawyer to the celebrities said on Tuesday (Feb 2) that Samuel Seow Theng Beng was suffering from adjustment disorder when he flew into a rage in his office, an incident which was caught on video and circulated on social media. Seow, who owned several companies then, including talent […]

HANOI (REUTERS) – Vietnam’s health minister said on Tuesday (Feb 2) a newly detected coronavirus outbreak, which has infected 276 people and spread to 10 provinces and cities, is caused by the more contagious UK variant of the coronavirus. Six days since the virus re-emerged in the northern province of Hai Duong, the cluster there was […]

SINGAPORE – There were 19 new coronavirus cases confirmed at noon on Tuesday (Feb 2), taking Singapore’s total to 59,584. All of them were imported. More details will be announced on Tuesday night. On Monday, a nine-year-old dependant’s pass holder from India was among the 29 confirmed coronavirus cases. She was asymptomatic when tested. All […]

SINGAPORE – There were 19 new coronavirus cases confirmed at noon on Tuesday (Feb 2), taking Singapore’s total to 59,584. All of them were imported. More details will be announced on Tuesday night. On Monday, a nine-year-old dependant’s pass holder from India was among the 29 confirmed coronavirus cases. She was asymptomatic when tested. All […]

LHOKSEUMAWE, Indonesia (AFP) – Scores of Rohingya women missing from a refugee camp in Indonesia have been trafficked into Malaysia to reunite with their husbands, several sources have told AFP. Just over 100 refugees remain at the camp in Lhokseumawe on the northern coast of Sumatra island, well down from the almost 400 who arrived […]

HONG KONG – The four lockdowns in certain places in Kowloon and the New Territories overnight did not lead to the detection of any confirmed coronavirus case but the city’s leader on Tuesday (Feb 2) dismissed criticisms that they were a waste of time and money. Speaking ahead of the weekly Executive Council meeting, Chief […]

SINGAPORE – A 28-year-old man went on trial on Tuesday (Feb 2) for killing his four-year-old stepdaughter, allegedly after he became angry at her for urinating outside the toilet bowl. Muhammad Salihin Ismail is accused of causing fatal injury to the girl, Nursabrina Agustiani Abdullah, some time between 9am on Sept 1, 2018, and 9.40am […]