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

A MAN suspected of murdering his parents during an argument in their home at Kampung Sungai Penchala last night has been remanded for seven days from today. Kuala Lumpur police chief Allaudeen Abdul Majid said the 42-year-old suspect, who was arrested at about 10.30pm yesterday at the Penchala Sprint Highway Tunnel heading towards Kuala Lumpur, was taken to the Brickfields police headquarters and tested positive for three types of drugs ..read more

MALAYSIA rejects the assertion that an immediate ceasefire in Gaza would “only plant the seeds for the next war.” The Foreign Ministry (Wisma Putra), in a statement, said that it is the continued aggression by Israel against the innocents in Gaza and the Occupied Palestinian Territory at large that poses a real and ongoing threat to durable peace and the ultimate two-state solution ..read more

AUSTRALIA will impose a dramatic rise in fees on foreign buyers of existing homes who leave them empty, the government said today as it tries to ease a rental crisis. The centre-left Labour government said it would introduce new legislation next year to help alleviate tight supply that has left many renters struggling to find somewhere to live ..read more

POLICE are investigating if six-year-old Zayn Rayyan Abdul Matiin had been sexually assaulted before he was murdered. Selangor police chief Hussein Omar Khan told The Malaysian Insight his officers are probing into the possibility but declined to say more ..read more