Explosion in KL shopping complex caused by air conditioner, says Fire Dept

KUALA LUMPUR: The explosion at a shopping complex here was due to an air conditioning unit, says the Fire and Rescue Department. In a statement on Monday (Oct 21), it said that an emergency call had been received about the incident at 3.20pm. The department said that the incident happened at Plaza GM while maintenance work was...

Zahid: Govt to rope in AI in multi-ministry plan to tackle scams and violence

KUALA LUMPUR: The government is taking proactive steps to curb the escalating trend of violent crimes, scams and other social issues that are plaguing communities across the nation, says Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi. The Deputy Prime Minister said with the rapid rise of digital and communication technology, including artificial intelligence (AI) in recent years,...

QuickCheck: Did a fire gut a palm oil processing plant in Johor?

A DRAMATIC video has surfaced, capturing what appears to be a building in an industrial area consumed by flames. The footage has spread across social media, and commenters have said that the clip was of a palm oil processing centre in Pasir Gudang. So, does this viral video truly show the fiery devastation at the Johor facility? Verdict: TRUE A...

Chinese man, 29, with four PhDs and several master’s degrees probed for dubious credentials

BEIJING (SCMP): A young Chinese man has astonished mainland social media with his remarkable academic accomplishments, which include two postdoctoral degrees, four PhDs, four master’s degrees, and more than 20 memberships in academic organisations. Zhao Zijian, 29, sparked intense public debate after the Inner Mongolian National Culture and Art Research Institute announced his appointment as a...

Sipadan resort kidnappings: Philippine court jails 17 Abu Sayyaf militants for life

MANILA: Seventeen members of an Islamic State-linked militant group have been sentenced to life in prison for kidnapping foreign and Filipino nationals in Malaysia nearly 25 years ago, the Philippine Justice Department said on Monday (Oct 21). In April 2000, members of the Abu Sayyaf group kidnapped at gunpoint 21 people from a holiday resort on...

New Indonesia leader strikes harsher tone as he takes power

JAKARTA: Indonesia’s new leader Prabowo Subianto endeared himself to voters as a kindly grandfather vowing to give free meals to schoolchildren. Now to get things rolling in South-east Asia’s largest economy, the president is signaLling a strongman approach. The former general used his maiden speech on Sunday (Oct 20) to rail against corruption and poverty, a...

Indonesian woman, 24, surprised to find she was at previous wedding of husband, 62, when she was nine

JAKARTA: In a strange twist of fate, an Indonesian woman has discovered that the man she married was a groom she had met at a wedding when she was a child. Renata Fadhea, 24, from Bangka Island, Indonesia, realised after marrying her husband, who is 38 years her senior, that she had met him 15 years...

Philippine police hunt Chinese suspect over Manila murder

MANILA (SCMP): Philippine police are hunting a Chinese suspect over a fatal shooting in Metro Manila that the country’s embassy has hinted may be linked to offshore gambling. According to The Philippine Star, the shooting occurred on Thursday in a hotpot restaurant in the Makati district. The victim – a 29-year-old Chinese man – was dining with...

Two-tiered pricing system to be implemented for RON95 petrol, says Rafizi

PUTRAJAYA: A two-tiered pricing system is expected to be implemented for RON95 petrol subsidies, says Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli. However, the specific mechanism for this system will be decided at a later date, as the government is still in discussions with various stakeholders, including the Petrol Dealers Association. “Previously, we considered providing cash payments to families, but...