NEARLY 200 Rohingya refugees, mostly women and children, were stranded on a beach in western Indonesia today after local authorities said they would not accept the new arrivals, AFP witnessed.  The refugees arrived by boat at 3am, the latest in what has been the largest influx of the persecuted Myanmar minority since 2015 ..read more

NATURAL Resources, Environment and Climate Change Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad said the suggested new water tariffs for Peninsula Malaysia and Labuan will be brought up at next week’s cabinet meeting. He said that the existing water tariffs, including for domestic accounts, are expected to be reviewed when the new mechanism is used in in the future ..read more

PRIME Minister Anwar Ibrahim today officiated the closing ceremony of the Madani Government One-Year Anniversary Programme at the grounds of the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil. Also present were Deputy Prime Ministers Zahid Hamidi and Fadillah Yusof and ministers from the unity government ..read more

POLICE have collected 228 DNA samples from residents at Idaman Apartment, Damansara Damai as part of the investigation to search for the killer of six-year-old autistic boy Zayn Rayyan Abdul Matiin, said Selangor police chief Hussein Omar Khan adding the large-scale operation, which involved house-to-house checks, began yesterday and would continue until today. “As of this morning, 5,628 people and 2,484 units have already been checked. There are 18 residential blocks in the area ..read more

A PHILIPPINE boat and a Chinese Coast Guard ship collided near a hotly contested reef today, with both countries trading blame for the latest such confrontation in the disputed South China Sea.   The incident happened during a Philippine resupply mission to a tiny garrison on Second Thomas Shoal in the Spratly Islands, which is a flashpoint for Manila and Beijing.  ..read more

SEBERANG Perai Tengah police chief Tan Cheng San said 113 motorcycles were seized and 334 summonses were issued in “Ops Samseng Jalanan”, conducted along the North-South Highway near Taman Sama Gagah, Seberang Jaya early this morning involving over 100 officers, combining the Bukit Aman traffic investigation and enforcement department, the Penang contingent, and the district headquarters. “In the four-hour operation that ended at midnight, summonses were issued for various offences including riding without a licence, expired licence, no insurance coverage, registration number not in accordance ..read more

THE US Federal Reserve is widely expected to hold interest rates at a 22-year high for a third consecutive meeting on Wednesday as it continues to fight elevated inflation. With the financial markets all but certain that another pause is coming, traders and analysts are now debating how soon the US central bank will start cutting interest rates, and how rapidly it will then do so.  ..read more

THE Penang government targets to reclaim about 161.87ha of land each year for the Silicon Island project and intends to start the construction of the first factory on that island as early as 2026. Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said a 2.02ha area had been reclaimed since work began in early October by using two boats, with each having the capacity to transport 7,000 cubic metres of sand ..read more

TORNADOES and severe weather yesterday churned across the US state of Tennessee, heavily damaging homes, causing blackouts and leaving at least six people dead, authorities said. Three of the deaths occurred in a northern suburb of Nashville, capital of the southeastern US state ..read more

MALAYSIA is concerned over frivolous and vexatious attempts by any parties employing various tactics to undermine and disrupt ongoing criminal proceedings against Spanish arbitrator Gonzalo Stampa. Law and Institutional Reform Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Azalina Othman Said said a motion filed on December 4 was nothing more than an attempt to subvert the rule of law ..read more