Chinese, US diplomats hold 'frank' talks in Beijing

The US and China held "frank" and constructive talks in Beijing on improving ties and managing their differences, China's foreign ministry said Tuesday.
Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink travelled to Beijing this week – a rare visit to China by a senior US diplomat as Washington seeks to allay tensions between the rival powers.
"The two sides conducted frank, constructive, and effective communication on promoting the improvement of Sino-US relations," China's foreign ministry said of Kritenbrink's meetings with senior Chinese officials, which took place on Monday.
The US described Kritenbrink's talks with China's Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu and diplomat Yang Tao as "candid and productive".
China said the two sides discussed "properly managing differences in accordance with the consensus reached by the two heads of state at their Bali meeting in November last year".
"Both parties agree to continue communication," its foreign ministry said.
The meeting was part of "ongoing efforts to maintain open lines of communication and build on recent high-level diplomacy between the two countries", the US State Department said.
"The two sides exchanged views on the bilateral relationship, cross-Strait issues, channels of communication, and other matters," it added, referring to the Taiwan Strait.
But US officials also "made clear that the US would compete vigorously and stand up for US interests and values", the statement said.
Beijing, too, said its diplomats had "clarified (China's) solemn stance on major principled issues such as Taiwan", which China claims as its territory and has vowed to retake one day, by force if necessary.
The meeting came in the face of continuing tensions between the two powers over the South China Sea as well as Taiwan and a litany of other disputes.
On Monday, the US warned that Chinese military "aggressiveness" that had caused near-collisions with US forces in the sea and in the air could soon lead to casualties.
Last week, Washington said CIA Director William Burns had made a secret trip to China in May, hoping to shore up lines of communication with Beijing.


Public gets first glimpse of Mahathir since hospital scare

Dr Mahathir Mohamad is seen seated with his wife Dr Siti Hasmah Ali and reading a newspaper, in the first public photographs of the veteran leader since his hospital admission that caused nationwide anxiety last month.“Thank you for the prayers, the well wishes, the flowers and greeting cards from everyone,” read a post on his Instagram account today.A statement released by his office said Mahathir was allowed to go home on Wednesday, but must return to the National Heart Institute (IJN) for follow-up treatment.“Dr Mahathir will continue to undergo rehabilitation treatment and he is advised not to receive any visitors at the moment,” it said.Dr Mahathir Mohamad with his wife Dr Siti Hasmah Ali at their house following his hospital discharge on Wednesday. Photo: InstagramIn a separate video address, Mahathir said he had been in and out of hospital since he was discharged.“I would like to inform that I have recovered, not fully, but have recovered, and for the past few days, I have been going back home from the hospital.“My hope is that soon I will recover fully. Thank you again to everyone,” he said.Mahathir, who will turn 97 this July, was readmitted to IJN last month after undergoing an elective procedure on Jan 7.He was previously admitted to IJN in December, when doctors said they were conducting a series of tests on the 96-year-old veteran leader.News of his health drew nationwide interest, with special prayers held for his recovery.Mahathir made history when he was appointed to the top office again in 2018 after leading a coalition to topple six decades of Umno rule in 2018, becoming the oldest prime minister in the world at that time.


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‘No longer the era of computer games’: Pandemic adds to disconnect for cyber cafes

For many years, Naufal Osman and his friends would go to cyber cafes nearly every day. There, they would spend their pocket money playing computer games, even skipping school every now and then in order to have their fun.That was when he was 13. Now, at 28, it has been a year since he last set foot in a cafe, but the many fond memories he has of gaming with his friends remain.Sadly, they may soon become nothing more than that as more and more cyber cafes are calling it a day, especially following the many restrictions brought about by the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.Even those that survived the first two movement control orders (MCOs) are unsure whether they will make it through the latest instalment of health restrictions.Frank Ng, founder of Orange Esports Cafe, said his cyber cafes had had to rent out their desktops to the public in order to survive the MCOs.“We closed down for two months,” he told MalaysiaNow. “Initially, we closed three outlets. After MCO 1.0 ended, we reopened in June but sales were slow to pick up.”With lagging revenue, Orange was eventually forced to close for another two months.“We laid off 50 workers around September. The situation became worse as the year ended – we closed down a total of 12 branches and laid off 80 workers.”During the second MCO which began in January this year, his company sold off 200 computers and used the money to prop up operations. But now, four months and another MCO later, Orange is still struggling.Even before Covid-19, Ng said cyber cafes had seen a drop in business. But it was the movement restrictions that dealt them what could end up being a death blow.“To comply with the physical distancing SOPs, we can only operate at 50% capacity, which means our computers are underutilised,” he said.“The limited operating hours also mean fewer customers.”WIth SOPs tightened again under MCO 3.0, Ng said operators may no longer be able to cover operational costs.“I have talked to other operators and computer suppliers,” he said. “Based on what they tell me, I can say that almost 50% of cyber cafes have closed nationwide since the MCO.”This is sad news for gaming enthusiasts like Naufal, who went on to become a professional Dota player with a local e-sports team, and the thousands of students across the country who once flocked to cyber cafes for afternoon hangouts after school.“Almost 50% of cyber cafes have closed nationwide since the MCO.”“At that time, we played games like Dota for fun,” Naufal told MalaysiaNow. “We did not have strategies or objectives.”He also recalled, after moving on to play more competitively, camping in cafes for two days in a row to train with his teammates, returning home only to bathe.Such days may be over for those in the gaming community.But it is not just gaming that will take a hit if these cafes close down.“There are also students who come to cyber cafes for online learning sessions and to finish the tasks they need to do online such as university applications,” Ng said.Tommy Tan, who runs a company that helps entrepreneurs set up cyber cafes, said he had not set one up since November 2019.“Before the MCO, we could set up five to seven cyber cafes every year. We also helped in maintaining around 30 premises.“But since March last year, our customers have been slowly closing down,” Tan, who has been in this business for a decade, told MalaysiaNow.He cited financial constraints such as rental, staff salaries and utility bills, saying 15 cyber cafes under his maintainance had closed since last March.Naufal believes the rise of mobile gaming has also contributed to cyber cafes’ drop in popularity.“Kids today prefer simple games on their mobiles,” he said.“It is no longer the era of computer games, so it is not impossible that one day most cyber cafes will close down for good with only e-sports hubs surviving.”


No misunderstanding with Anwar over winnable seats, says Rafizi

PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli today denied a lack of understanding between him and party president Anwar Ibrahim following their conflicting statements over the number of seats Pakatan Harapan (PH) could be expected to win in the upcoming election.
"I have been consistent from the beginning and now, with the fourth day of campaigning, we are actually in a good position and can be seen as able to win 80 seats.
"But in the coming two weeks, if our campaigning gets even better with us meeting more people, we can win 90 to 100 seats. So it’s true, as Anwar has said, that we could win 100 seats," he said at a programme in Tebrau, Johor Bahru, today.
Yesterday, Barisan Nasional treasurer-general Hishammuddin Hussein reportedly said that Rafizi and Anwar had given different numbers of seats that could be won PH, hence, there was no consensus or understanding between the two PKR leaders.
Rafizi, the PH candidate for the Pandan parliamentary seat, said the prediction was made based on a number of factors including the feedback gathered, data collection, impressions through social media and voters’ acceptance during face-to-face campaigning.
In GE15, Rafizi will be facing Pandan division MCA chief Leong Kok Wee, who is representing BN, and former MCA president Ong Tee Keat, representing Warisan.
Rafizi won the seat in GE13, defeating the BN candidate and an independent with a majority of 26,729 votes. However, in GE14, he was not eligible to contest due to a court case.


Germany to vaccinate children over 12

Germany will start offering coronavirus jabs to children over the age of 12 from June 7, Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday.But she stressed that vaccination would not be compulsory and would have no bearing on whether children can attend school or go on holiday.The European Medicines Agency is expected to approve the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid jab for 12- to 15-year-olds on Friday. It is already authorised in the EU for those over 16.“Children and young people aged 12 and over will have the chance to book a vaccine appointment from June 7,” Merkel said after talks with Germany’s regional leaders.Those willing will be offered at least their first of two shots by the end of August, she added, roughly in time for the new school year.“The main message to parents is: there will be no compulsory vaccinations,” Merkel told reporters.Schools would not require pupils to be vaccinated, she said. “And it would be totally wrong to think you can only go on holiday with a vaccinated child.”Inoculating children is seen as a key step towards achieving herd immunity in the fight against the pandemic.Canada and the US have already started vaccinating over-12s.But experts have also expressed reservations, pointing out that children rarely suffer from severe Covid and that vaccine supply is still tight.Merkel urged patience, saying not everyone would get an appointment for their child right away.‘Not over’Germany’s Stiko vaccine regulator is due to give its recommendations for over -12s shortly after the Pfizer jab is approved.The agency has already signalled it intends to recommend the jab only for children in risk categories, such as those with underlying medical conditions.All over -12s will still be allowed to get jabbed regardless, similar to the AstraZeneca vaccine which is officially recommended only for people over 60 in Germany but is open to anyone who has consulted with their doctor.After a much-criticised slow start, the coronavirus inoculation campaign in Europe’s top economy has kicked into high gear in recent weeks.More than 40% of adults have now had their first jab, and 15% are fully vaccinated.The accelerated pace, along with rapid testing and widespread shutdowns, has helped break a third coronavirus wave and allowed Germany to relax restrictions.“This is a great success,” Merkel said. But she called on Germans not to ditch precautions such as social distancing, mask wearing, and airing out rooms.“The pandemic is not over.”


Who will champion the Rohingya?

I have spent nearly 30 years exposed to emergencies and humanitarian crises. Yet, standing at our "hospital on the hill" in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, now the world’s largest refugee camp, I was taken by the sheer scale of this makeshift setting. A jumble of humanity packed together in precarious bamboo and plastic shelters, all contained within kilometres of razor wire fencing.    As we mark five years since the brutal campaign of violence meted out at the hands of the Myanmar military, I remember a Rohingya mother of six who said: "The military was brutally killing Rohingya and burning our houses... now, we live here in the refugee camps. It is five years of living in distress..."   The plight of the Rohingya – persecuted in Myanmar, living in containment in Bangladesh, trafficked and living as illegals in Malaysia and elsewhere – is fast becoming a pressure cooker that no-one seems inclined to take off the stove.   The approach to assistance in Bangladesh, the only country to open its borders and offer sanctuary to now over one million Rohingya, is increasingly unsustainable, with funding  harder to secure. Five years on, the humanitarian response must transition from a minimum provision of emergency services to one better suited to a long-term resettlement reality.    For Bangladesh, this policy shift remains unacceptable. With good reason, it wants the Rohingya to return to Myanmar, which stripped them of their citizenship 40 years ago. This is also what nearly every Rohingya I have spoken with wants. But the country has been at war with itself since the military seized power in February 2021, and in Rakhine, tensions between the Myanmar military and Arakan army are increasing. Our teams on the ground know firsthand the conditions for those that remain in Rakhine are unacceptable, and safe repatriation to this region is simply not a responsible option yet.  Additionally, across the region, Rohingya are treated as illegals and exploited by those who seek to benefit from their precarious status. In Malaysia and Indonesia, those who arrive by boats are turned away at sea, with some left adrift for months and others dying due to heat and starvation. In April this year, more than 500 Rohingya escaped from a detention centre in Malaysia allegedly due to poor living conditions and lack of access to medical services.  Bangladesh feels the weight of responsibility is unfairly on them alone. I agree with Bangladesh, regional states are becoming part of the problem, favouring the securitisation of their own borders over persevering to find solutions together. It feels like Asean has run out of steam, with nothing new to try and no-one willing to champion what has become a fraught political problem.    The latest scabies outbreak in the camps and the increasing number of dengue fever cases are symptomatic of the emergency health needs of the population, while year-on-year increases in mental health and non-communicable disease consultations at Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) facilities are indicative of the protracted nature of the crisis.
In Cox’s Bazar, our mental health professionals told me how emotionally draining it is to know that they cannot change the root cause of people's mental health conditions.  At the end of a psychosocial session, our patients return to an existence devoid of prospects, in overcrowded camps that are becoming increasingly unsafe.  It is easy to argue this response has been a success. It has reduced loss of life, alleviated the worst suffering, and created order out of chaos. But we must ask ourselves: are we becoming complicit in a system of containment (repression? apartheid, even?) for a population with nowhere else to go? The reality is we are substituting for the failures of Myanmar to redress its wrongs. We are also trying to cope with the cost of political inaction, an impotent failure of collective progress from regional states and the international community to find durable or even temporary solutions but better ones.   In all of this, the Rohingya remain extremely grateful to Bangladesh for giving haven, as hopeless as their situation appears to be. They don’t consider themselves to be stateless, rather, denied the right to citizenship in a state and region they historically identify as their own. The majority say they want to return, but they will not risk a repeat of history where their children may be taken at any moment, never to be seen again.   Looking out from Doctors Without Borders’ Hospital on the Hill, I realise we must all push back against the overwhelming sense this cannot be fixed. There are things that can be done. A good start would be ending draconian refugee policies practised across the region.   Australia’s new government could set the tone for humanity and solidarity, starting with the Rohingya. They can seek to open resettlement pathways for Rohingya from Malaysia and Bangladesh. Australia could recalibrate its anti-human traffic support across the region to be more accommodating of people who qualify as refugees and deserve extra protections.   Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia must be more accommodating of refugees. They cannot be treated as irregular economic migrants. While both are extraordinarily vulnerable, refugees seek refuge from persecution and require special protection.   Diplomatic channels with Myanmar must remain open, and a stronger, coherent regional and international approach with Myanmar must be hammered out, with China at the forefront.  China can lead in negotiating the safe return of Rohingya from Bangladesh, but it must consider how Rohingya will be compensated for lost property and livelihoods within those negotiations. Returns must be more than a political façade and must solve the issues of the Rohingya themselves.   Failing meaningful and safe return to Myanmar, I worry what the future holds. How long can people live with so little basic protection and hope? Trauma is cumulative. After 40 years of statelessness and injustice, I worry the care we provide only manages to keep people alive to live in hopelessness.
Paul McPhun is the director for Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières regional Southeast & East Asia Pacific Partnership covering Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of MalaysiaNow.


Zahid ups the pressure on PM for early polls

Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi today upped the pressure on Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob to dissolve Parliament, mentioning the 15th general election (GE15) a total of 10 times throughout his policy speech at the party’s general assembly today.He said Umno had the power to determine the party’s direction in facing GE15 although the dissolution of Parliament would be a Cabinet decision.“What else are we waiting for? Dissolve Parliament,” he said at the World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur.He maintained however that Umno was a party that upheld the constitution and understood that the authority to dissolve Parliament lay with the Cabinet and prime minister, who would seek the consent of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.Zahid’s speech today was in line with that of Umno deputy president Mohamad Hasan, who previously urged Ismail to dissolve Parliament immediately following Barisan Nasional’s (BN) victory at the Melaka and Johor state elections.Ismail had said then that Umno could not overstep the authority of Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah in the matter.‘Sleeping with the enemy’In his speech, the Bagan Datuk MP said it was up to the prime minister whether to continue the memorandum of understanding with the opposition, which he described as “sleeping with the enemy”.“This general assembly should hear the voice of the grassroots who want a new mandate through GE15,” he said.“Don’t let thunder roar and lightning strike, but not a single drop of rain fall to the ground.”Zahid also maintained that the Umno elections would only be held after GE15.“This is not my decision,” he added. “This was decided during the delegates’ meetings at their respective divisions.”He said it had been common practice for years for party elections to be held after the general election.“Should we now change this tradition?”Political observers previously said that Zahid wanted GE15 to be held before the Umno elections as part of efforts to save himself from the 47 criminal charges he currently faces.Ismail is expected to challenge him for the position of president at the Umno polls which must be held before December.


29 killed in Philippine military plane crash

At least 29 people were killed and 50 injured Sunday when a Philippine military aircraft carrying troops crashed and burst into flames after missing the runway in the country’s south, officials said.Nearly 100 people, most of them recent army graduates, were on the C-130 Hercules transport plane which was trying to land on Jolo island in Sulu province around midday.Some of the soldiers were seen jumping out of the plane before it hit the ground and exploded into flames, said Major General William Gonzales, commander of the Joint Task Force-Sulu.It was one of the country’s deadliest military aviation accidents.“This is a sad day but we have to remain hopeful,” Gonzales said in a statement.“We enjoin the nation to pray for those who are injured and those who have perished in this tragedy.”A search was still under way for 17 missing people.Photos of the crash site released by the Joint Task Force-Sulu showed the damaged tail and the smoking wreckage of the fuselage’s back section lying near coconut trees.Images published by local media outlet Pondohan TV on its Facebook page showed the wreckage engulfed in flames and a plume of thick black smoke rising above houses located near the site.Armed Forces Chief General Cirilito Sobejana said the aircraft was carrying troops from Cagayan de Oro on the southern island of Mindanao when it “missed the runway” as it tried to land on Jolo.The plane tried to “regain power but didn’t make it”, he told local media.The four-engine plane crashed near a quarry in a lightly populated area, First Lieutenant Jerrica Angela Manongdo said.Western Mindanao Command chief Lieutenant General Corletan Vinluan told AFP the aircraft overshot the landing strip and broke into two according to initial reports.Air force spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Maynard Mariano said the cause of the crash would be investigated, while armed forces spokesman Major General Edgard Arevalo told DZBB radio that it was being treated as an accident rather than an attack.Most of the passengers had recently graduated from basic military training and were being deployed to the restive island as part of a joint task force fighting terrorism in the Muslim-majority region.They were supposed to report for duty on Sunday, Gonzales said.The military has a heavy presence in the southern Philippines where militant groups, including the kidnap-for-ransom outfit Abu Sayyaf, operate.Deadly accidentsC-130s have been the workhorses of air forces around the world for decades, used to transport troops, supplies and vehicles. They are also often deployed to deliver humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.The Hercules that crashed Sunday has the same tail number as one acquired from the United States and delivered to the Philippines earlier this year.Senator Richard Gordon said it was the fourth military aircraft accident this year with “mass casualties”.“Are we buying defective crafts… (with) the people’s money?” he tweeted.Presidential spokesman Harry Roque described the accident as “very unfortunate”, and the US embassy Charge d’Affaires John Law offered “sincerest condolences” to the families of the victims.Sunday’s accident comes after a Black Hawk helicopter crashed last month during a night-time training flight, killing all six on board. The accident prompted the grounding of the Philippines’ entire Black Hawk fleet.


Home minister asks top cop to bring back regular press conferences

Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail has asked Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani to consider holding regular press conferences to allow media practitioners to receive the latest updates from the police.
He said he had received feedback from media practitioners on the absence of regular press conferences, which they said made it difficult for them to get the latest developments on cases investigated by the police.
"I have discussed and received views from the police (regarding this matter) and find that press conferences should be reinstated.
"I gave him (the IGP) the opportunity to consider the proposal and hope it can be implemented soon," he told reporters after an engagement session with the media in Putrajaya yesterday.
He said he hoped that regular press conferences would strengthen the relationship between the police and media practitioners as strategic partners of the police force.
Commenting on the use of body cameras for police officers, Saifuddin said the ministry’s procurement department was finalising the specifications.
"I believe the use of body cameras will increase the integrity of the police force, (help) gather evidence, and act as a reminder to them (police personnel) that they are being monitored," he said.
When asked about the dress code imposed on the public at police stations, Saifuddin said the matter had been resolved.
"I do not agree with the actions of police officers who prevent members of the public from making police reports (because of inappropriate attire).
"On the other hand, the public must have a sense of decency when dealing officially with the police," he added.


35.6% of children given first vaccine jab, 65.8% of adults boosted

A total of 1,263,287 children or 35.6% of those aged five to 11 had received a first dose of Covid-19 vaccine under the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme for Children (PICKids) as of yesterday.Meanwhile, 2,843,805 teenagers or 91.4% of those aged 12 to 17 have been fully vaccinated while 2,942,399 or 94.6% have received at least one dose of vaccine.In terms of adults, 15,483,571 individuals or 65.8% have received a Covid-19 booster dose.A total of 22,943,182 individuals or 97.5% have been fully vaccinated while 23,219,105 or 98.7% have received at least one dose of vaccine.Yesterday, 27,330 vaccine jabs were administered with 9,849 as first doses, 1,116 as second shots and 16,365 as booster jabs.This brings the cumulative number of vaccine doses given under the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme (PICK) to 68,484,635.


PN-PH ties possible if PH undergoes major overhaul, says Muhyiddin

Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairman Muhyiddin Yassin says cooperation with Pakatan Harapan (PH) could be an option if the opposition pact undergoes a large-scale reshuffle.He said based on his experience in working with PH before this, there was no way PN could cooperate with the coalition in its present form.“It’s not that we are against unity, it’s just that there are fundamental differences between us,” he said during a press conference at Bersatu’s fourth annual assembly in Kuala Lumpur today.Adding that he had had “experience” with PH, he said this was why the decision was made to leave the pact.He said this when asked about the suggestion by former Melaka chief minister Idris Haron for PH and PN to work together during the 15th general election.Idris, who contested on a PH ticket but lost during the recent Melaka election, said it would be difficult for the coalition to rally support if it chose not to work with other parties.Bersatu had been part of the PH coalition when it toppled Barisan Nasional at the 14th general election.Some 22 months later, however, it left PH to form a the government together with Umno, PAS, Gabungan Parti Sarawak and SAPP.Muhyiddin said the factors stopping PN from forming ties included the fact that one of its components was seen as not pro-Malay and Bumiputera.“This party has a long history of disputing rights and so on,” he said. “So we cannot work together with them.“This is why I think that ties will only be possible if a reshuffle takes place in PH.”The former prime minister also assured that Bersatu would not cut PAS off from the seats it holds at GE15.He said PN would ensure that no clashes occur among component parties.“In PN, we already have an understanding but we need to fine-tune how to settle the issue of seat distribution in the election to come,” he said.“The important thing is to avoid clashes. We must have mutual respect and cooperation – this is the recipe for success.”Muhyiddin however said he did not think that seat distribution would be a problem as Bersatu is known in PAS-led states.“The best way is to avoid any misunderstandings. At the Melaka election, for example, PN did not clash and fight within the coalition itself. That is the principle of winning together.”


Australia, UK hail ‘progress’ on nuclear subs deal

Australia’s bid to acquire nuclear-powered submarines is making “significant progress”, the country said Thursday in a joint statement with Britain after a virtual summit between their leaders.US and British experts are now in Australia to advise on the project – announced in September under a new Australia-Britain-US defence alliance, Aukus – they said after talks between Prime Minister Scott Morrison and British leader Boris Johnson.Australia says it plans to arm the submarines with conventional weapons but has yet to decide on the details of the programme, including whether to opt for a fleet based on US or British nuclear-powered attack submarines.“All three partners have made significant progress in their collective endeavour to provide the Royal Australian Navy with a conventional-armed nuclear-powered submarine capability at the earliest possible date,” Australia and Britain said.“Leaders further welcomed the presence in Australia of UK and US officials to provide expert advice on the many facets of nuclear stewardship needed to operate a nuclear-powered submarine capability,” they said.Forged at a time of growing Chinese influence in the Pacific region, the Aukus alliance would make Australia the only non-nuclear weapons power with nuclear-powered submarines, capable of travelling long distances without surfacing.Johnson and Morrison said they were committed to the three-nation defence alliance “as a cornerstone of their shared efforts to promote an open, inclusive and resilient Indo-Pacific”.The secretly negotiated Aukus deal infuriated France, which discovered at the last moment that its own diesel-electric submarine contract with Australia had been scrapped.Australia and Britain said they were advancing in joint discussions with the US on cyber capabilities, artificial intelligence, quantum technologies and unspecified “additional undersea capabilities”.A study released in December by the influential Australian Strategic Policy Institute said the nuclear-powered submarine programme would cost more than US$US80 billion and take decades to complete.It said the vessels would offer a significant advantage in deterring aggression from China or elsewhere.


Khairy withdraws appeal in Anwar’s defamation suit

Khairy Jamaluddin has ceased his legal battle against a court ruling holding him liable for defaming Anwar Ibrahim over a statement of immoral character made 14 years ago.A three-member Federal Court bench led by judge Nallini Pathmanathan struck out two leave applications to appeal filed by Khairy, with costs of RM5,000 for each appeal, after Khairy’s counsel Sarah Abishegam informed the court that they had written to the opposing side for the withdrawal of the leave applications in April this year.Khairy sought the leave to appeal against the Court of Appeal’s ruling that he was liable for defaming Anwar and over the same court’s finding dismissing his appeal to amend the statement of defence with regard to the defamation suit brought by the opposition leader.Earlier, Sarah offered costs of RM1,000 for each appeal on the grounds that the withdrawal had been made at an early stage.“We filed the motion on March 7 and the matter came up for e-review (at the court) on April 6.“There was a hearing date set on Aug 11 for this matter. We actually wrote to the opponent for the withdrawal of the appeals in April,” she told the panel, which also included justices Zabariah Mohd Yusof and Rhodzariah Bujang.But Anwar’s counsel Gopal Sri Ram said the sum of RM5,000 in costs for each appeal before the apex court was reasonable.“The motions (applications for leave to appeal) which were served on us comprised of 10 volumes. We had to respond to the points raised and my learned friend appearing with me, Miss Leela, also prepared the draft submissions,” he added.On Feb 7 this year, the Court of Appeal dismissed Khairy’s appeal to challenge Anwar’s defamation suit after ruling that there was no appealable error warranting appellate intervention.Judge Darryl Goon Siew Chye, who read out the decision, said the impugned statement uttered by Khairy, in the choice of analogy and figure of speech within the natural and ordinary meaning, was capable of being defamatory towards Anwar.The Court of Appeal also affirmed the High Court’s decision, holding that the damages of RM150,000 awarded by the High Court to Anwar were not manifestly excessive.On March 7, 2008, Anwar, who is PKR president, sued Khairy, who was then youth and sports minister and Umno Youth vice-chief, for allegedly uttering defamatory words about him during a ceramah in Lembah Pantai on Feb 20 the same year which led to the posting of a video clip titled “Anwar and kin no threat” on a news portal.In September 2017, High Court judge Azizul Azmi Adnan found Khairy liable for defamation and ordered him to pay Anwar RM150,000 in general damages.The judge also dismissed Khairy’s application to amend his statement of defence to say that his remark had been fair comment.Khairy subsequently filed an appeal against the High Court ruling but in February 2018, the Court of Appeal struck it out after allowing the application by Anwar’s counsel to annul the notice of appeal.On Dec 15, 2020, the Federal Court allowed Khairy’s appeal for his case to be reheard on its full merits at the Court of Appeal.


India says WTO fishing proposal favours rich nations

The latest World Trade Organization (WTO) proposals on ending fishing subsidies are unfair, weak and favour rich nations, an Indian official told AFP on Friday.Governments spend billions of dollars every year subsidising fishing industries that provide a livelihood to millions of people.But the subsidies contribute to overfishing, which is threatening to lead to a collapse in the world’s fish ecosystem.A draft text that would seek to end subsidies for illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing will be discussed in late November at the WTO in Geneva.But an Indian commerce ministry official told AFP on Friday that the ongoing discussions hadn’t yet addressed the concerns of developing countries like India.“It doesn’t change anything for large fishing nations. It is weak, not balanced and favours the advanced fishing countries,” the official said, without wishing to be identified.New Delhi had said earlier this year that it wants “big subsidisers” – countries like the US, Japan, South Korea, China and the European Union – to “take greater responsibility to reduce their subsidies and fishing capacities.”“Any agreement must recognise that different countries are at different stages of development and that current fishing arrangements reflect their current economic capacities,” Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal told a WTO meeting on fishing subsidies in July.Global fisheries subsidies are estimated at between US$14 billion and US$54 billion a year, according to the WTO.WTO member states have been striving for over 20 years to reach a deal on the issue and in 2020 missed a deadline to reach an agreement by year-end.Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who took the reins of the global trade body in March, has made reaching a fisheries agreement by the end of this year a priority and is under increasing pressure to deliver.


Ex-PM Pak Lah has dementia, Khairy confirms

Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Malaysia’s fifth prime minister, has dementia, his son-in-law and health minister Khairy Jamaluddin revealed yesterday.
Khairy said the revelation followed discussions with other family members as many people had been asking about the health of Abdullah, popularly known as Pak Lah.
"Pak Lah indeed has dementia, and his condition is deteriorating so much so that he can’t even say the names of family members as he doesn’t remember. He may recognise them, he appears to, but he has reached the level of having difficulty speaking.
"I asked my wife, my mother-in-law and brother-in-law just now. I said to them that there are people who are aware of his condition while others aren’t, so could I reveal this (to the public)?" he said at a press conference in Kuala Lumpur.
"I've never shared this (information) before. Many of you may wonder where the fifth prime minister of Malaysia is. Dementia is a very... very cruel condition because the body is there but the mind isn’t.
"So for family members, caregivers, it's a very difficult situation because you see them there but they’re not there. I’ve seen my father-in-law deteriorating over the years, so you don’t see him in public anymore as the dementia has deteriorated to the point where he cannot function normally anymore.
"He doesn't remember my name or even my wife’s name. The only reason I know that he recognises me is because there is a flicker in his eyes when I come to visit him.
"Otherwise, I don’t know whether he registers that I’m there or not. Now for us, the management of his care is challenging. I see how my mother-in-law struggles," said Khairy, adding that his father-in-law was wheelchair-bound.
"There are good days but increasingly, there are more bad days," he said.


Sing the people's song, not 'Oh Azizah', says Azmin as PN steps up campaign for Selangor

Selangor Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairman Mohamed Azmin Ali today said the central government's failure in steering the country in the right direction has led to the people increasingly expressing their dissatisfaction.
Azmin said he understands the situation because the people have been given ample time and space to gauge the government's direction in developing the country.
Although it has been seven months since the coalition government was formed, he said the people have only been presented with unnecessary developments that violate pre-election promises.
He added that during this critical period, the people are being increasingly burdened with difficulties, especially concerning economic issues and the cost of living.
The country needs good leadership to lead the nation, not celebrities, said the Bukit Antarabangsa assemblyman during a speech at the Selangor PN Election Convention in Shah Alam.
"Now is not the time to sing the 'Oh Azizah' song", he added, referring to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's penchant for breaking into the P Ramlee number to sing praises of his wife Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.
"We want to sing the people's song. The people are suffering."
This was followed by a video clip showing Anwar singing songs at various events.
Azmin further said that the people now need leaders who will diligently engage with the people to identify their problems and drive the country's economy.
"Not leaders who just sit in the office.
"We want leaders who will drive the country's economy and focus on national growth. Not leaders riding a buffalo," he said as video clips of ministers that had gone viral before were played and met with laughter from the audience present in the hall.
Azmin said that due to these unresolved issues, the real problems that burden the people persist.
So it is not surprising why the people are becoming increasingly "weary" and often express frustration on social media, he added.
"Did you hear? Yesterday, they were in power... today, the oil price dropped.
"Has it dropped?
"If the oil price doesn't drop, we will bring it down," he said.


'It doesn't make sense': Rafizi's claim on Invoke salaries scrutinised

A campaigner known for scrutinising corporate and financial fraud by local businesses has challenged Rafizi Ramli over his Invoke Solutions, saying the PKR leader's claim that the company has 150 employees or pays them salaries of RM3,200 is questionable, based on rough calculations.
Ahmad Aliff Ahmad Shariffuddin, a co-founder of online database services provider SCRUT, said checks of Invoke's audit report showed discrepancies with his statement that the cost of salaries was RM3.3 million.
Aliff referred to a claim by Rafizi earlier this month that he paid fresh university graduates RM3,200 as a starting salary, with a minimum 6% increment for the last three years.
Aliff said if an Invoke employee was paid RM3,200, the total salary cost would come to RM480,000 per month, and RM5.76 million per year.
He said Invoke's audit report, however, put the cost of employees at RM3.3 million and its income at RM6.3 million.
"Do the math: RM3,200 multiplied by 150 people equals RM480,000, giving us RM5.76 million," he said in a Facebook post.
He said this had yet to take into account statutory payments such as for the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) and Socso, staff benefits and the possibility that some staff might already be earning much higher salaries.
"If you take RM3.4 million divided by 12 (months) and 150 (workers), you get RM1,900 a month in average minimum wage. Not RM3,200."
Aliff said even if Invoke had 100 employees, the calculations would put their wages at RM2,888 each, not RM3,200.
"This is why I say it doesn't make sense.
"I don't know if there are top-ups and shares sold to boost this," he said.
He said Rafizi should also show statements from EPF as proof of what he pays his 150 workers.
Rafizi came under scrutiny following his declaration of assets in which he listed RM16.7 million in shares from Invoke as part of a total of RM19.67 million in assets owned.
He also claimed he was already a millionaire by the age 30, citing his salary and bonuses at Petronas, remarks raised more questions from his critics on his sources of income.
Aliff said in Rafizi's asset declaration, it was said that the bulk of his wealth was through company shares.
He questioned whether the commissioner of oaths was given the relevant documents, as well as proof of Rafizi's salary and increments during his time at Petronas.
Aliff said any sworn statement must be accompanied by an attachment of evidence and supporting documents.
"Otherwise, I can also make a sworn statement claiming assets worth RM100 billion."


Tel Aviv hit by car-ramming, stabbing as Israel's Jenin operation winds up

Thousands of people were evacuated from the Jenin refugee camp as one of Israel's biggest military operations in years moved to a second day on Tuesday and a suspected car-ramming attack in Tel Aviv underlined the risk of a spillover in violence.
The operation, which the army said was aimed at destroying infrastructure and weapons of militant groups in the camp, was launched with a drone strike in the early hours of Monday and continued all day, with hundreds of troops. At least 10 people have been killed, Palestinian officials said.
After more than 24 hours of clashes of varying intensity, Israeli National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanebi said the operation was "close to completing the achievement of the goals set," but there was no specific indication of when it might end.
A car-ramming and stabbing attack in Israel's economic hub Tel Aviv, in which six people were hurt, showed the risk that the impact of the operation could lead to a further escalation. An Israeli police spokesman described the incident as terrorism.
In Jenin, sporadic gunfire and explosions sounded near the refugee camp but parts of the city were quiet and life proceeded in relative normality.
Late on Monday, the Palestinian Red Crescent said it had evacuated 500 families from the camp, or around 3,000 people, and UN agencies expressed alarm at scale of the air and ground operation.
Jihad Hassan, 63, who fled the camp with his family after his son was wounded, said the drone strike had prompted him to leave. "You don't hear a sound, you just see the explosion," he said, as he waited with his son at the Jenin Government Hospital. "It is something, when a person is forced to leave their home," he said.
Echoing Palestinian emergency services, the World Health Organization said first responders had been prevented from entering the camp to reach wounded people. An Israeli military spokesman said there had been no such order.
"Ambulances have a free pass and we are also coordinating the entry of ambulances," he told reporters late on Monday.
However power and water supplies remained cut off in the camp and in some areas of the city after bulldozers that ploughed up roads looking for improvised bombs cut power cables and a main water pipe.
A Palestinian wounded during the clashes died overnight and another body was found in the morning, bringing the death toll to 10, with around 100 wounded, 20 of them critically, the Palestinian health ministry said. Another Palestinian was killed in Ramallah on Monday.
The Islamic Jihad faction claimed four of the dead as its fighters. Hamas, another Islamist faction, claimed a fifth. The status of the others was unclear, although Israeli officials said as far as they were aware, no civilians had been killed.
Problems at the hospital morgue, forced health services to transfer some bodies from Jenin to another hospital in nearby Qabatia, officials said.
Offices closed
Offices and businesses across the occupied West Bank were expected to close on Tuesday in response to calls for a general strike to protest the operation, which the Palestinian Authority has described as a "war crime".
International reaction to the operation has been mixed. The US said it respected Israel's right to defend itself but said it was imperative to avoid civilian casualties.
Mohammed Moustafa Orfy, Egypt's permanent representative to the Arab League, said the operation would hinder efforts to bring reconciliation after months of escalating violence.
"What is happening in Jenin, from brutal killing using the Israeli war machine, is aimed at shrinking to a very large extent the chances of reviving the peace process, he said.
The densely populated camp, where some 14,000 people live in less than half a square kilometre, has been one of the focal points of a wave of violence that has swept the West Bank for more than a year.
Hundreds of fighters from militant groups including Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Fatah, live in the camp, which has been fortified with a range of obstacles and watching posts to counter the regular army raids.
On Tuesday, the military said border police had found an underground shaft used to store explosives in the refugee camp and had dismantled two observation posts.


Malay-based parties may use own logos as pandemic polls loom

The current ruling parties may enter the next general election fray using their own logo, although party insiders fear this may dash hopes of an end to the threat to government stability through an alliance by some with partners outside their coalition.MalaysiaNow understands that PAS and Bersatu, which are part of Perikatan Nasional (PN), have decided to use their own logos.The move was confirmed by the leader of the Islamist party’s highest decision-making body.“So far, the plan is to use our own logo. Each of us has our reasons,” Nik Muhammad Zawawi Salleh, who heads PAS’ powerful Ulama Council, told MalaysiaNow recently.An insider close to PN and Barisan Nasional (BN) leaders said while it was obvious that the parties are banking on the familiarity of their logos, the move may mean that the 15th general election will not put to rest the shifting political alliances.“So far, the plan is to use our own logo.”“In the eyes of the Election Commission, contesting under their own logo means there might not emerge a single party with a clear majority to form the government.“There’s a risk of election-night cold feet, as some leaders from parties with more seats could negotiate with those outside their alliance,” the insider told MalaysiaNow, believed to be a reference to overtures from former prime minister Najib Razak to PKR president Anwar Ibrahim in the wake of BN’s defeat in 2018.In that election, Pakatan Harapan (PH) parties in the peninsula went to the polls using the PKR logo, as the coalition’s registration was still pending with the Registrar of Societies.PN, the current ruling coalition, comprises Bersatu, PAS, GPS and several Sabah and Sarawak parties. It was formed in February this year as a platform for parties which lent their support to Muhyiddin Yassin to form the government following the collapse of the PH administration.Umno, despite supporting Muhyiddin with more than 30 seats, has so far decided to stick to BN, where its partners MCA and MIC have two seats each.In September, the Malay party went to the Sabah polls using BN’s “scales” logo, while its federal ally Bersatu went with the PN logo.Despite the novelty of its logo, PN managed to win more seats than BN in the state polls, allowing it to lay claim to the chief minister’s post.‘PAS won’t clash with Umno’There is much speculation that the next general election could be held in March, as PN leaders seek to put to rest constant challenges to the government’s legitimacy.Senior minister Mohamed Azmin Ali recently revealed that a plan to hold the general election in September was cancelled following a fierce return of Covid-19 infections nationwide.“The seat distribution issue is 80% resolved.”Speaking to MalaysiaNow, PAS’ Zawawi, who is Pasir Puteh MP, agreed that the election is near.He said his party has had meetings with Umno and Bersatu on preparations for the polls.He said PAS and Umno have made progress on seat distributions for the coming polls, despite initial reports of them clashing in constituencies in the Malay heartlands of Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu.“The seat distribution issue is 80% resolved,” he said. “There are some small remaining problems between Umno and Bersatu.”However, Zawawi said PAS will not clash with Umno in any seat, adding that candidates have already been given letters of credentials from their respective parties.“So if someone insists on contesting a seat without his party’s approval, he’ll have to do so as an independent,” he said.In September, Umno, PAS and Bersatu announced a joint committee to discuss seat distributions between the three Malay-based parties, hoping to force one-on-one contests with PH.Zawawi is confident that differences over seats between Bersatu and Umno can be overcome, and offered his party as a “peacemaker”.“It’s important to be the middleman although it can drive you crazy,” he quipped.“Between PAS and Umno, we might get a simple majority. But if PAS, Umno and Bersatu combine, we can achieve two-thirds,” he said confidently.Zawawi also said his party is ready for an election.“PAS is 100% ready,” he said, adding that some 10% of the party’s candidates are new faces.


Terengganu police arrest doctor accused of giving fake vaccination certs

Terengganu police have arrested a private clinic doctor suspected of issuing fake Covid-19 vaccination certificates.Terengganu police chief Datuk Rohaimi Md Isa said the 51-year-old man was picked up on Saturday at his clinic in Marang following a complaint from members of the public.“Preliminary investigations revealed that a total of 1,900 individuals were found to be dealing with this clinic (for vaccination purposes) and out of that number we are still investigating how many did not get injections, but got fake vaccination certificates.“It is understood that those who wanted to get fake vaccination certificates would need to pay between RM400 and RM600 compared to the actual price of RM300 for the shot,” he told a press conference at the Terengganu police contingent headquarters today.It is believed that there were also individuals from outside the state who went to the doctor to obtain fake vaccination certificates, he said.“Most of the customers dealt with the doctor online, so we will try to get information from emails in the laptop that was also confiscated from the clinic,” he said.Rohaimi said the doctor was believed to have carried out the activity alone in the treatment room without the help of other clinic staff.“Even though the doctor admitted to being an anti-vaxxer, he had already received the vaccine shot, probably because of his work,” he said.He said the suspect was also believed to have used an agent who was given a commission of RM50 to promote his services. The case was being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code.At the same press conference, Terengganu health department director Dr Kasemani Embong said the private clinic had been allowed to provide Covid-19 vaccinations for a fee since September last year.It was also found that the clinic had applied to be used as a Covid-19 vaccination centre, but the application was not approved, she said.


Spike in boats smuggling meth out of Myanmar, UN says

Asian drug trafficking networks are increasingly using sea routes to smuggle methamphetamines out of Myanmar and ramping up ketamine production as they seek to expand their business, the UN said Friday.
Meth from coup-hit Myanmar's northeastern Shan state – the regional epicentre for the drug's production – is being smuggled by boats to avoid tighter patrols on land routes through China and Thailand, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said in an annual report.
The border region between Myanmar, Laos and Thailand has long been a hotbed of illegal drug production and trafficking, particularly of meth and opium.
Increased drug patrols in China's southwestern Yunnan province and along Thailand's border with Myanmar led to a drop in meth seizures by Chinese and Thai authorities in 2022 as drug traffickers turned to alternative maritime routes.
"Traffickers have continued to ship large volumes through Laos and northern Thailand, but at the same time they have pushed significant supply through central Myanmar to the Andaman Sea where it seems few were looking," UNODC regional representative Jeremy Douglas said.
The report flagged high volumes of Myanmar-made meth heading into Bangladesh and India.
Health experts say use of the drug can lead to paranoia, hallucinations and violent behaviour and those withdrawing can experience psychosis.
Police across East and South East Asia seized nearly 151 tonnes of methamphetamines in 2022, down from the record of 172 tonnes set in 2021.
Wholesale and street prices for meth across the region fell or remained at record lows in 2022.
"The most powerful regional trafficking networks are able to operate with a high degree of certainty they can and will not be stopped," the UN report said.
Researchers also pointed to evidence that drug smuggling networks are looking to diversify what they sell.
In 2022, authorities across the region seized a record 27.4 tonnes of ketamine, an anaesthetic misused as a recreational party drug – up 167% on 2021.
"The discovery of a series of industrial-scale clandestine ketamine laboratories, processing warehouses, and storage facilities across the country has set off alarm bells in the region," the report said.
Large mixed shipments of meth and ketamine indicate organised crime groups are trying to push the two drugs as a package to increase demand for the anaesthetic, according to the report.


Germany finally admits committing genocide in Namibia during colonial rule

Germany for the first time on Friday admitted it had committed genocide in Namibia during its colonial occupation, with Berlin promising financial support worth more than €1 billion to aid projects in the southern African nation.“We will now officially refer to these events as what they are from today’s perspective: genocide,” said Foreign Minister Heiko Maas in a statement.He hailed the agreement after more than five years of negotiations with Namibia over events in the territory occupied by Germany from 1884 to 1915.German settlers killed tens of thousands of indigenous Herero and Nama people in 1904-1908 massacres, which historians have called the first genocide of the 20th century.“In light of the historical and moral responsibility of Germany, we will ask forgiveness from Namibia and the victims’ descendants for the atrocities committed, Maas said.In a “gesture to recognise the immense suffering inflicted on the victims”, Berlin will support the reconstruction and development of Namibia via a financial programme of over €1 billion (US$1.34 billion), he said, but made clear it was not compensation on a legal basis.The sum will be paid over 30 years, and must primarily benefit the descendants of the Hereo and Nama peoples.When Namibia became the colony of German South West Africa, German settlers deprived the indigenous tribes of their livestock and land until the Hereo revolted in 1904, killing around a hundred German settlers. A year later, the Nama also rebelled.German General Lothar von Trotha was sent to quell the uprisings and ordered his German troops to exterminate the tribes. At least 60,000 Hereos and 10,000 Namas were killed between 1904 and 1908.Colonial soldiers carried out mass executions, and exiled survivors to the desert where thousands died of thirst. They also established infamous concentration camps, such as the one on Shark Island.Although many architectural and culinary signs of Germany’s time in Namibia remain, the atrocities committed during colonisation have poisoned relations between the two nations for decades.After Germany lost World War I, the League of Nations mandated South Africa to administer the territory.Many German-speaking descendants of the colonisers still live in the capital, Windhoek, and in smaller towns.Although English is now Namibia’s sole official language, about 30,000 Namibians of German descent, or 2% of the country’s overall population, still speak German. Africa’s only German language newspaper, Die Allgemeine Zeitung is still published.The legacy of German colonisation can also be seen in the Lutheran Church, which is the largest religious denomination in the country.Many place names in Namibia carry names of German origin. The main road in the capital city, Windhoek retained the name Kaiserstrasse, or “Emperor Street” until Namibian independence from South Africa in 1990.


Dr M questions RM100 million house for ‘thief’

Dr Mahathir Mohamad today questioned the RM100 million house to be built for former prime minister Najib Razak despite the latter’s conviction of criminal charges and pending jail sentence.Speaking in the Dewan Rakyat, Mahathir said Najib was a convict who had been found guilty and sentenced to 12 years in jail and fined RM210 million in relation to funds from former 1MDB unit SRC International.“But he has not been sent to jail and he has not paid the fine,” he said.“Is this the service that the government now wishes to reward? So the prime ministers to come will all steal, because after they steal the money, they will get more money, and even the money that is stolen will be given back.“This is the new government and its new policies,” he added.MalaysiaNow previously reported that Najib had requested a “privilege” from the government in the form of a 2.8-acre residential property worth RM100 million in the capital city.The “privilege” to Najib would include the government surrendering the ownership of the premium land covering more than 120,000 square metres in Bukit Petaling, an exclusive hillock in the heart of Kuala Lumpur, as well as the construction of a bungalow on the site at a total cost of RM100 million.It is understood that Najib made a formal request to the government early this year following a site visit of the vacant land.Mahathir said the land and the house should have been explained in the budget tabled last month.“I myself was prime minister for 22 years but I never took any land, just my pension.“Here, though, after working for a while, stealing money, embezzling money, misusing money and misusing power, he is given a present of RM100 million.”Continuing to question the provision of the house for Najib, he said RM40 million for the house alone was a huge amount.“RM60 million for the land and RM40 million to build a house for this convict? Build the house for RM26 million, like the one I stayed in before.“But no, the one who did wrong here is given RM100 million. The finance minister should explain why money was given to a rogue.“This person should be in jail but instead, he is free to go to Singapore,” he said.


Frontliners, civil servants can still be paid if Budget 2021 is shot down, says Dr M

Dr Mahathir Mohamad today challenged the government’s stand that the 2021 budget is needed to channel funds to frontliners and civil servants, calling it an attempt to pressure MPs into approving the budget despite its many shortcomings.He said in a statement that in 1999, during his first tenure as prime minister, the 2000 budget was tabled in October but its debate discontinued as Parliament was dissolved the following month to pave the way for the 10th general election.“Once the election was over, the government with its new mandate received approval from the Dewan Rakyat for advance allocations for government spending for the first two or three months while awaiting the special budget conference which was held in February 2000.“These allocations ensured that administrative spending was not disrupted and that salaries, pensions and allowances for civil servants were not jeopardised.“They also covered the expenditure for other provisions whether for the various ministries or to help the people in their daily lives.“In this context, the finance minister and other government leaders have been very irresponsible in issuing threatening statements with the clear intention of pressuring MPs into passing the 2021 budget despite its many shortcomings.”There have been fears that the 2021 budget could be defeated, causing the collapse of the government and triggering pandemic-season snap polls which health authorities have warned against.In a recent interview with Bernama, Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz said the government would not be able to meet its financial commitments, including the salaries of civil servants and frontliners, if Budget 2021 is shot down in the Dewan Rakyat.Yesterday, MalaysiaNow reported that the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government had been in talks with parties from both sides of the divide to ensure that the budget is passed, ahead of MPs’ vote on the bill in the Dewan Rakyat on Nov 26.This followed speculation that several MPs from Umno who are facing corruption charges might turn their backs on PN by voting down the budget.The Yang di-Pertuan Agong, who issued several warnings to MPs not to derail the budget, had refused to invoke his constitutional powers to declare a state of emergency in order to prevent snap polls in the event that the budget is shot down.However, he declared a state of emergency on Wednesday in the Sabah constituency of Batu Sapi to prevent the by-election to replace incumbent Liew Vui Keong who died early last month.Mahathir said the finance minister and other government leaders had said that rejecting the budget would cause the people and civil servants to suffer.“If that is their stand, it means that MPs need to give a blank cheque and support the budget even despite its clear faults.”


US sets new record of 225,000 Covid cases in one day

For the second day in a row, the US on Friday notched a record number of coronavirus cases in 24 hours, reaching 225,201 new infections, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.In that same period, the country recorded 2,506 Covid-related deaths, according to real-time data provided by the Baltimore-based university at 8.30pm (0130 GMT Saturday).The US – the country with the most coronavirus cases and deaths in the world – has seen a dramatic resurgence in its epidemic in recent weeks.It had surpassed 200,000 new daily cases three times in the past month, peaking at more than 210,000 between Wednesday and Thursday.US health officials warned of a surge after millions of Americans travelled to celebrate last week’s Thanksgiving holiday despite pleas from authorities to stay home.For two weeks, the US has regularly topped 2,000 deaths per day, as it had in the spring at the height of the first wave of the country’s outbreak.The number of people hospitalised with Covid-19 is also steadily increasing, especially in the most populous states of California, Florida, New York and Texas, according to the Covid Tracking Project.The US has recorded more than 14.3 million Covid-19 cases and 278,000 related deaths since the start of the pandemic.


Myanmar rebels lock down town on China border as Covid spikes

A Myanmar ethnic rebel group has locked down a town on the porous China border following a Covid-19 spike, it said Thursday, as Beijing battles a Delta-driven outbreak that has spread across the country.Almost 2,000 cases had been detected in the town of Laiza, said a spokesman for the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), a rebel group that controls swathes of territory bordering China’s Yunnan province.The KIA has imposed a lockdown on the remote town of about 20,000 people since Nov 2 to contain the outbreak, Colonel Hein Wawm told AFP.People are not allowed to enter or leave the town and residents have been ordered to stay home unless buying food.Most of the cases were detected in a school, the spokesman said, adding that the group was working to arrange supplies of food to the town.A surge in cases in Myanmar in June and July spooked authorities on the other side of its 2,000km frontier with China, where officials are waging a “zero-case” war on Covid-19.Beijing closed border crossings and increased patrols to prevent a feared influx of Myanmar refugees fleeing post-coup violence.During the virus wave the KIA inoculated 10,000 people at their Laiza headquarters with Chinese jabs, a spokesman previously told AFP.China – the Myanmar junta’s main ally – has sent millions of vaccines doses to the military government. Beijing has refused to describe the army’s February ouster of a civilian administration as a coup.Daily infections in the Southeast Asian country of 54 million are falling, according to figures published by state media, which reported 1,180 new cases and 14 deaths on Wednesday.


Apple's market value ends above US$3 trillion for first time

Apple Inc's stock market value ended a trading session above US$3 trillion (RM14 trillion) for the first time on Friday, lifted by signs of improving inflation and bets that the iPhone maker will successfully expand into new markets.
Shares of the world's most valuable company jumped 2.3% to US$193.97, giving it a market capitalisation of US$3.05 trillion, Refinitiv data showed.
It was Apple's fourth straight record high close.
The Cupertino, California company's market capitalisation briefly peaked above US$3 trillion in intraday trading on Jan 3, 2022 before closing the session just below that mark.
Heavyweight growth stocks including Apple, Nvidia Corp and Tesla Inc rose sharply after a Commerce Department report showed the Personal Consumption Expenditure price index advanced less in May than in April, reflecting progress in the Federal Reserve's fight against inflation.
Apple has surged 49% so far in 2023 in a rally by several of Wall Street's most valuable companies, fuelled by bets that the Fed is nearing the end of its campaign of interest rate hikes, and by optimism about the potential for artificial intelligence.
Apple's most recent quarterly report in May showed revenue and profits fell but still beat analysts' expectations. Along with a steady track record of stock buybacks, the financial results reinforced its reputation as a safe investment at a time of global economic uncertainty.
"It's a testament to one of the greatest publicly traded companies that's ever existed. It continues to grow and diversify its revenue streams, has shareholder-friendly management, buys back shares, throws off a dividend and has a fortress balance sheet with strong and defendable cash flows," said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at B Riley Wealth.
Apple's US$3 trillion milestone follows the June 5 launch of a pricey augmented-reality headset, its riskiest bet since the introduction of the iPhone more than a decade ago.
The stock has climbed about 7% since then, compared to the S&P 500's 4% rise.
Recent gains in Apple's shares have outpaced analysts' estimates for the company's future earnings. It is now trading at over 29 times expected earnings, its highest since January 2022, according to Refinitiv data. That compares to a median PE ratio of about 13 for the S&P 500 technology index.
Four other US companies have valuations of more than US$1 trillion – Alphabet Inc, Amazon.com Inc, Nvidia and Microsoft Corp, which follows Apple with a market value of US$2.5 trillion.
Shares of Tesla and Meta Platforms Inc have more than doubled this year, while a 190% gain in shares of Nvidia has catapulted the chipmaker into the trillion-dollar club.


Batshuayi fires Belgium to World Cup win over Canada

Michy Batshuayi's first-half goal proved enough for a below-par Belgium to squeeze to a 1-0 win over a Canada side playing their first World Cup match for 36 years on Wednesday.
Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois saved Alphonso Davies' early penalty and Batshuayi opened the scoring against the run of play in the 44th minute.
John Herdman's Canada, roared on by their vocal support, also had another strong penalty appeal turned down and dominated the second half to no avail.
Belgium were without injured record goalscorer Romelu Lukaku and struggled throughout with the pace of Canada's forwards.
But the 2018 semi-finalists clung on to move top of what could prove a hotly-contested Group F after Croatia and Morocco's goalless draw earlier on Wednesday.
"Was it technically our 'worst game', yes, when you measure the performance," admitted Belgium coach Roberto Martinez. "Was it the 'worst game', no, because we won.
"We defended well and we needed our goalkeeper."
Canada will head into their game against Croatia on Sunday still full of confidence after more than matching the team ranked second in the world, who next face Morocco.
"They showed tonight that they do belong here. It's been a long time since we've been back," said Herdman, the first coach to lead teams at women's and men's World Cups.
"I'm sure they (the fans) walked away proud and feeling like we are a football nation.
"I think this group stage is wide open now after the Croatia-Morocco result."
The North Americans, matching Belgium in formation by playing three at the back, made a bright start and Jonathan David's low effort was deflected wide.
From the resulting corner, Tajon Buchanan's strike was blocked by Yannick Carrasco with his arm and a penalty was awarded after a VAR check in the 11th minute.
But Davies produced a weak effort which was saved low to his right by Courtois, before David lashed the rebound over the crossbar.
Belgium's ageing defence were struggling with the pace of the Canada attackers and Junior Hoilett got in behind before firing a shot wide.
The underdogs kept coming, as Courtois palmed away right wing-back Alistair Johnston's fierce drive and David headed off target.
VAR controversy
Canada had a big penalty appeal turned down despite a VAR review when Axel Witsel was outpaced by Richie Laryea inside the area and then tripped his opponent.
Belgium grabbed the lead out of nothing when a simple long ball over the top from Toby Alderweireld found the run of Batshuayi who hammered home left-footed.
There was still time for Canada to create, and waste, another glorious opportunity before the break, as Laryea's low cross was fired over on the slide by Buchanan from six yards out.
Martinez made a double substitution at half-time to try and stem the tide, with Thomas Meunier replacing Carrasco and Everton youngster Amadou Onana coming into the midfield.
Canada could have levelled just minutes after the restart, though, as David headed wide from Stephen Eustaquio's delicious cross after the Porto midfielder had nutmegged Kevin De Bruyne.
Herdman's men continued to flood forward, but could not find the finishing touch required, with Buchanan miskicking horribly from the edge of the box.
The more men Canada committed, the more dangerous Belgium looked on the break and Laryea made a wonderful last-ditch tackle to deny Batshuayi a second goal.
Substitute Cyle Larin, the top scorer in Concacaf qualifying for the tournament, headed too close to Courtois in a frantic finale.
De Bruyne could have put the game to bed but blazed into the crowd, while Larin sent another header spinning over Courtois' bar as Belgium fell over the line.


Blaming Mahathir's 'viciousness', DAP man tells Anwar to break Malay monopoly in civil service

Penang Deputy Chief Minister II P Ramasamy has urged Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to reform the civil service, saying the sector is currently dominated by the Malays due to what he said were policies implemented by former leader Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
"The old argument in favour of a Malay domination of the civil service to counterbalance the Chinese domination of the economy is no longer valid," the DAP leader said.
"This was among the arguments used by former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad to institutionalise Malay hegemony in the public sector, particularly the civil service," said Ramasamy, adding that there was also "covert racial discrimination" when it came to the prospect of promotions for non-Malays in the public sector.
Ramasamy said there had been a policy of "counterbalancing" Chinese economic dominance by bringing in foreign investors, as well as through the growth of government-linked companies.
"Given the diversification of the economy as to ownership and control, it doesn’t make sense to ensure that the civil service remains completely in the hands of the Malays.
"Such a racial policy cannot be defended anymore, not when the unity government is in power," he said, using the phrase to describe Anwar's coalition government, formed in the aftermath of the general election last year.
Adding that Anwar was aware of the need to break the Malays' monopoly of the civil service, Ramasamy said he did not agree with the excuse that non-Malays shy away from the civil service due to a lack of promotional prospects.
He said the current government must not pay lip service, but instead undo the policies which he said Mahathir had introduced.
"Ideologically, there is no love lost between Anwar and Mahathir, but surely Anwar should not forget that undermining the viciousness of Mahathirism begins by reforming the civil service, among others.
"The reformist agenda under the unity government might be submerged, but with Pakatan Harapan as the anchor, there is no running away from what was promised to the rakyat."


US parents targeted with misleading warnings on Covid-19 jabs

Registered nurse Melody Butler seeks to provide science-based answers to American parents as she urges them to vaccinate their children against Covid-19.But her efforts to do so on social media through Nurses Who Vaccinate – a volunteer group she founded – is up against a deluge of claims that the shots are dangerous.The claims are designed to evoke fear: a 16-year-old girl said to have been “permanently damaged” by Pfizer-BioNTech’s shot. An image of a 17-year-old playing basketball juxtaposed with a photo of a boy hooked up to machines in a hospital after allegedly suffering “blood clots in his brain” following vaccination.Such claims are nearly impossible to verify without access to private medical records, allowing them to escape content moderation on social media platforms and spread doubt about the safety of vaccination“A lot of times these stories are being used and the stories are being manipulated by anti-vaccine organisations,” Butler told AFP. “Their main goal is to scare people away from vaccinating.”When talking to mothers like herself, Butler says she “will never say that adverse reactions don’t happen, because they do happen,” but she emphasised that evidence does not point to a high risk of severe side effects from Covid-19 vaccination.The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that children have most commonly reported arm pain or fever following vaccination.Personal appealsParents have also been targeted with misleading posts featuring obituary photos of vaccinated teenagers who later died. The posts claim a direct link to the shots, but no such deaths have been confirmed.CDC spokesman Martha Sharan said that officials investigate all reports of serious reactions but cannot comment on individual cases.The CDC has “not detected any unusual or unexpected patterns for deaths following immunisation that would indicate that Covid vaccines are causing or contributing to deaths, outside of the five confirmed deaths following the Janssen vaccine,” she said, using another name for the Johnson & Johnson shot.US regulators recently authorised the Pfizer-BioNTech shot for young children – the only one of the vaccines currently allowed for this use.Even when parents acknowledge that vaccination can protect children from severe Covid-19, this can be pushed to the background by claims of vaccine injury, said Tara Kirk Sell, a public health researcher at Johns Hopkins University.“Science has shown us that those types of efforts at persuasion really work,” she said.Disinformation purveyors know that a personal story will resonate, especially with parents, “because you just think about your child in distress and how terrible that would be.”‘Conspiracy narrative’Texas resident Katie Vitale Pickett, a mother whose children are too young to be vaccinated, is worried about their health – and about the impact of inaccurate claims circulating online.“The way the misinformation and anecdotes were shared, like medical fact, was really bothersome… It was presented as on equal footing or standing with sound medical advice from doctors,” said Pickett, whose vaccine advocacy led to her being kicked out of a Facebook group for mothers.Facebook says it regularly removes false claims about Covid-19 and vaccination. It also applies labels affirming that vaccines are monitored for safety, and flags posts that have been fact-checked by independent organisations, including AFP.But Sell pointed out that “authoritative sources only go so far, and only with a certain population.”A “conspiracy narrative” surrounding the pandemic has turned people away from public health advice, she said, adding: “It’s really hard to take apart that narrative, because it’s not just one piece of misinformation you have to combat.”Anti-vaccine claims are an online fixture but are now focused on Covid-19, undermining efforts to combat the pandemic.This was evident in a Kaiser Family Foundation poll from late October that found two-thirds of the parents expressed concern that the vaccine may affect their child’s future fertility, despite this claim having been repeatedly debunked.Stories about alleged negative outcomes from vaccination are much more evocative than those on the success of preventive medicine, said Sell, urging experts to find new ways to talk about public health.“Health providers always try to provide the numbers, and that’s just not convincing to a lot of people. These stories are what’s convincing them.”


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India affirms it will begin exporting Covid-19 vaccines ‘within weeks’

India will begin exporting locally made coronavirus vaccines within a fortnight of their domestic launch, a foreign ministry official has told the BBC.The official dismissed reports that India would ban exports of vaccines it is producing in order to meet local demand as it plans one of the world’s biggest inoculation programmes, seeking to immunise about 300 million people by July.India makes about 60% of vaccines used globally and many countries are eagerly waiting for it to begin shipping doses.The country’s drugs regulator has given the green light to two vaccines: one developed by AstraZeneca with Oxford University (Covishield) and one by local firm Bharat Biotech (Covaxin).The foreign ministry official confirmed that India’s plan to help other countries was on track.“Within a fortnight of the rollout of the vaccines we will allow exports to some of our South Asian neighbours. India is completely conscious of its commitments to neighbours and the rest of the world as the world’s biggest vaccine maker.”Federal Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan told reporters in Delhi that India plans to roll out Covid-19 vaccines by the middle of this month.The CEO of the Serum Institute of India, which is manufacturing the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine in India, also sought to clarify the confusion over exports.Adar Poonawalla had been quoted in the media as saying that India would not allow exports of his vaccine for “several months”. He had told the Associated Press that his company has been barred from exporting the vaccine and selling it in the private market.But on Tuesday he told the BBC his firm was allowed to export the vaccine for government immunisation programmes abroad, and expects to deliver on agreements with Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia and Morocco in the next few weeks.Bangladesh has already ordered 30 million doses of the vaccine in the first phase, Reuters reported. The country’s health secretary told local media in December that it expected the first batch of the jab by February.Serum Institute and Bharat Biotech have a combined stockpile of more than 70 million doses of vaccines and will scale up production enormously to meet the rising demand.On Tuesday, the two vaccine makers released a joint statement saying both the companies would provide “global access for our Covid-19 vaccines”.


An architectural solution to Malaysia’s chronic floods?

The massive floods which caused havoc in major cities in the Klang Valley last month have given rise to the question of whether a reconsideration of the architecture in residential areas could help prevent damage of a similar extent in the event of future disasters.Traditional Malay houses, for example, are built on stilts which allow them to escape most of the mud and sludge carried by the current of floodwaters. Terrace houses and bungalows, on the other hand, sit squarely on the ground, leaving them vulnerable to anything carried their way.Azari Mat Yasir, a lecturer in architecture at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, said modern homes could adopt the features of traditional houses otherwise known as “rumah panggung” for their distinctive stilt legs.However, this does not mean that current technology should be laid aside, he added.“Using old technology doesn’t mean we should return to building houses out of wood, as such structures are limited in terms of their practicality in this day and age,” he said.The huge floods which left more than 50 dead saw areas like Taman Sri Muda in Shah Alam, Selangor, among the worst affected. There, water levels rose to the point where almost entire vehicles were submerged.Other spots such as Bukit Lanchong in Subang Jaya were cut off from the surrounding areas and residents had to be evacuated by boat.Even after receding, the floodwaters left homes covered in mud. In some places, residents were forced to use water jets to clean up their houses.Azari said individuals who wish to pattern their homes after the “rumah panggung” concept should ensure that the ground level is left empty.This means that there can be no walls or rooms on the bottom floor.“Many home owners follow the current trends,” he said. “But it’s easier for their architect to design the house according to their needs and not just following whatever happens to be the trend at the moment.”He nonetheless warned that homes elevated on stilts would not be able to evade every flood, especially those with strong currents.“Currents also bring along all manner of garbage and wood, things like that,” he said.“This can destroy the structure of houses which rest solely on a series of linked poles.”Consulting firm Humanitarian Capital said houses on stilts could be built in flood-prone areas.But its director Hafiz Amirrol said many had forgotten traditional concepts of architecture in their scramble to be modern.“It would make sense for them to return to this type of house,” he said to MalaysiaNow.But he, too, agreed that this would not be a long-term solution.Hafiz, who had helped build temporary homes for flood victims in Kuala Krai alongside Mercy Malaysia, said the construction of houses on stilts would be reactive and impractical.“What then would be a solution? Don’t develop or live in areas which are known to be flood-prone locations,” he said.Adding that a solution to floods could not be found through the perspective of home designs alone, he said it would also involve area planning, nature-based solutions, community-based disaster risk reduction and management, and the empowerment of local authorities.Water catchment areas are also vital to ensure that too much water does not flow into rivers too quickly.“If everyone collected rainwater like we did in the past for rainwater harvesting, it would also help to reduce the floods,” he said.


Rescuers seek up to 100 missing people after Japan mudslides bury buildings

Rain hampered Japanese rescuers searching for missing people on Sunday after mudslides triggered by torrential rains hit the central city of Atami, killing two women, a local city official said on Sunday.About 130 buildings were buried as floods, landslides and cascading mud deluged houses on Saturday in the seaside city 90 km southwest of Tokyo, Yuta Hara, a spokesman for Atami city hall, told Reuters by phone.An official said more people, possibly 100, could still be missing under the mudslides but warned that details were not immediately clear. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity as is often policy at Japanese bureaucracies, stressed that aggressive rescue operations were underway to find survivors.The floods are a reminder of the natural disasters – including earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunami – that plague Japan, where the capital Tokyo is to host the summer Olympics starting this month.“I just wanted to cry when I saw what had happened,” said Naoto Date, a 55-year-old actor who returned to his hometown around in the early hours on Saturday to check the damage.“The mud rushed down the hill and it became a river,” Date said. “Many elderly people live there, and the thought that there might be people who failed to escape from the disaster makes me really sad.”Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga asked people in the affected areas to remain on alert and take precautions after he and cabinet ministers met on Sunday to discuss the disaster amid heavy rain in central and eastern Japan.Up to 1,000 rescuers from the Shizuoka prefectural police, firefighters and military continued their search and rescue efforts, but their operations were constantly interrupted due to the ground loosening and warnings of secondary damage from rain, Atami’s Hara said.In the affected area where intermittent rain continued, about 400 people had been evacuated as of Sunday afternoon.Heita Kawakatsu, governor of Shizuoka prefecture, told a news conference the development of residential areas near the disaster-hit area may have reduced the mountain’s ability to retain water and caused the disaster, Kyodo news agency said.“The prefecture will examine the causal relationship between the two factors,” Kyodo quoted Kawakatsu as saying.Atami is home to hot spring resorts and situated on a steep slope into a bay. The water, mud and debris are believed to have flowed along a river for about 2km to the sea, local media said.Local TV aired footage of collapsed and half-submerged houses. Social media images showed partially submerged cars and rescue workers wading through waist-high water.


Unfair to punish Najib for lawyer's mistakes, says dissenting judge

The sole dissenting judge in Najib Razak’s review application today held that it was unfair for the former prime minister to pay the price for the mistakes of his counsel in the SRC International appeal hearing.
Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Abdul Rahman Sebli, who chaired a five-member bench, said Najib’s counsel Hisyam Teh Poh Teik was denied the opportunity to submit as he said that he was not prepared to do so after taking the case at the last minute.
"The counsel did not submit after informing the panel of judges that he was unprepared to do so. This led to only one party submitting before the earlier panel, which was the deputy public prosecutor V Sithambaram.
"The applicant (Najib) was not heard at all. The applicant was at a great and substantial injustice. He was in a disadvantaged state, as he was not represented during the appeal. It is unfair that the applicant paid the highest price for the mistakes of his counsel.
"The applicant’s only interest was to see his lawyer act for him in his best interests, nothing more and nothing less," the judge said in allowing Najib’s application to review the decision of the previous Federal Court panel which upheld his conviction, 12-year jail sentence and fine for the misappropriation of RM42 million in SRC International funds.
In the 4-1 majority judgment, the four judges who dismissed the former prime minister’s application were Federal Court judges Vernon Ong Lam Kiat, Rhodzariah Bujang and Nordin Hassan, and Court of Appeal judge Abu Bakar Jais.
In his decision, Rahman said the previous bench should have let Najib address the panel before the prosecution made its submissions.
"This did not happen, the prosecution was allowed to submit for two full days… this was surreal," said the judge, adding that the conviction should be quashed as there was no legal representation.
Rahman also opined that an adjournment should have been granted, not to scuttle the case, but to allow for the former prime minister to find a new counsel.
"The applicant (Najib) has the right to effective counsel. In the present case, the earlier panel denied the applicant the right to have effective counsel. The counsel was shackled."
"The previous panel said that it had given Najib’s counsel four months to prepare. This was not true. The four months were for Messrs Shafee and Co, Najib’s previous counsel. They were not for his new counsel Hisyam. Hence, the application for review for the adjournment must be granted," said Rahman.
On July 28, 2020, then High Court judge Mohd Nazlan Ghazali, who is now a Court of Appeal judge, sentenced Najib to 12 years in jail and fined him RM210 million for the misappropriation of RM42 million in SRC International funds.
On Dec 8, 2021, the Court of Appeal upheld the High Court's decision and rejected Najib’s appeal to set aside his conviction and jail sentence, as well as the fine.
On Aug 23, 2022, a five-member bench of the Federal Court led by Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat dismissed the appeal by the former Pekan MP to overturn the conviction and sentence. Najib began his 12-year jail term at Kajang Prison that same day. Najib then filed the review application to quash the earlier Federal Court verdict. He also filed for a royal pardon in September last year.
On Jan 5 this year, he likewise filed a petition before the United Nations Human Rights Council Working Group on Arbitrary Detention to ask for a release from prison or retrial of his SRC International case following the appeal hearing at the Federal Court which he claimed had serious defects and was contrary to the rules of international justice.


IS claims twin suicide blasts in Baghdad

The Islamic State (IS) group claimed responsibility for a twin suicide bombing that killed 32 people and wounded 110 at a crowded market in central Baghdad on Thursday.It was the deadliest attack on the city in three years, when another suicide bomber targeted the same area.The first attacker drew a crowd at the bustling market in the capital’s Tayaran Square by claiming to feel sick, then detonated his explosives belt, the interior ministry said.As more people then flocked to the scene to help the victims, a second suicide bomber set off his explosives.The open-air market, where second-hand clothes are sold at stalls, had been teeming with people after the lifting of nearly a year of Covid-19 restrictions across the country.An AFP photographer at the scene said security forces had cordoned off the area, where blood-soaked clothes were strewn across the muddy streets and paramedics were rushing to take away the casualties.The health ministry said those who lost their lives had died on the scene of the attack, and that most of the wounded had been treated and released from hospital.After midnight, IS posted a claim of responsibility for the attack on its online propaganda channels.Such violence was commonplace in Baghdad during the sectarian bloodletting that followed the US-led invasion of 2003 and later on as IS swept across much of Iraq and also targeted the capital.But with the group’s territorial defeat in late 2017, suicide bombings in the city became rare. Baghdad’s concrete blast walls were dismantled and checkpoints across the city removed.‘Senseless and barbaric’President Barham Saleh led political figures in condemning Thursday’s attack, saying the government would “stand firmly against these rogue attempts to destabilise our country”.Pope Francis, who hopes to visit Iraq in March, deplored the “senseless act of brutality”.The US, the United Nations and the European Union strongly condemned the attack.US acting secretary of state Daniel Smith said the bombings “were vicious acts of mass murder and a sobering reminder of the terrorism that continues to threaten the lives of innocent Iraqis”.UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres issued an appeal “to the people of Iraq to reject any attempts to spread fear and violence aimed at undermining peace, stability and unity.”The EU called the attack “senseless and barbaric” and reiterated its “full support to the Iraqi authorities in the fight against extremism and terrorism”.The UN’s Iraq mission offered condolences to the victims and said: “Such a despicable act will not weaken Iraq’s march towards stability and prosperity.”Iran also denounced the attack, with foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh saying his government was ready to assist Iraq “in the struggle against terrorism and extremism”.The attack, he said, was meant “to disrupt the peace and stability of Iraq and to provide a pretext for foreigners to maintain their presence there”.Elections loomingThe attack comes as Iraqis prepare for an election, events often preceded by bombings and assassinations.The 2018 attack took place just a few months before Iraq’s last round of parliamentary elections.Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi had originally set this year’s general election for June, nearly a year ahead of schedule, in response to widespread protests in 2019.But authorities are in talks over rescheduling them to October, to give electoral authorities more time to register voters and new parties.The IS seized a third of Iraq in 2014 and was dangerously close to the capital, but a ferocious three-year fight by Iraqi troops pushed them back.Still, the group’s sleeper cells have continued to operate in desert and mountain areas, typically targeting security forces or state infrastructure with low casualty attacks.The US-led coalition that had been supporting Iraq’s campaign against IS has significantly drawn down its troop levels over the past year, citing the increased capabilities of Iraqi forces.The US, which provides the bulk of the force, has 2,500 troops left in Iraq – down from 5,200 a year ago.They are mainly in charge of training, providing drone surveillance and carrying out air strikes while Iraqi security forces handle security in urban areas.