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4,500 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes seized at Tuas; Malaysian driver held
Singapore's Immigration and Checkpoints Authority stopped a Malaysia-registered trailer at Tuas Checkpoint on Sept 4 and found 4,500 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes hidden under a load of concrete piles. The 26-year-old Malaysian driver was arrested and handed to Singapore Customs with the seized cigarettes.
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Anwar: Malaysia will not be transit point for Israel-bound military cargo
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said Malaysia will not allow the country to be used as a transit point for shipments supporting Israel's military operations, and any suspicious cargo will be inspected and investigated. His statement follows the seizure of three Israel-bound containers at the Port of Tanjung Pelepas in Johor on Aug 19, and an earlier detention of a container from the Philippines on Aug 7. Malaysia has no diplomatic relations with Israel and regulates sensitive exports under the Strategic Trade Act 2010.
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Three containers bound for Israel seized at Tanjung Pelepas port
Malaysian authorities held three containers at Tanjung Pelepas port in mid-August that were destined for Israel's Ashdod port. A separate container from the Philippines, bound for Israeli security firm Elbit Systems, was seized on August 7. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said Malaysia will not be a transit point for trade that supports Israel.
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Two ex-convicts held in Johor, 11 crimes cleared
Police in Iskandar Puteri arrested two former prisoners, aged 26 and 27, suspected of 11 offences including house break-ins, shop break-ins and a project site store robbery. The arrests around Tanjung Kupang and Kangkar Pulai cleared four house break-ins, one shop break-in, one store robbery, one trespassing case and four parcel thefts.
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Malaysia detains three more Israel-bound containers at Tanjung Pelepas
Malaysian authorities have seized three additional containers bound for Ashdod Port in Israel at Tanjung Pelepas port in Johor, following an earlier Aug 7 detention of a container suspected of carrying weapons to Israeli defence firm Elbit Systems. The containers, carrying electric bike parts from a Chinese manufacturer, remain at the port as investigations continue.
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NTU team gets US$100,000 from OpenAI for AI policy prediction tool
Four researchers at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore are building an AI tool that predicts how economic policies such as cash handouts affect spending. The project is one of 14 worldwide selected from over 400 submissions to OpenAI's April call for proposals, and will receive US$100,000 (S$126,800) for six months of development and testing. The system is trained on anonymised transaction data from more than a million users of a South Korean budgeting app.
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24 Festive Drums draws 14,399 students from 352 schools
At the Educity Sports Complex in Iskandar Puteri, Deputy Education Minister Wong Kah Woh said 14,399 students from 352 schools have taken part in 24 Festive Drums as of 2025, with 68,781 participants since the art form began in Johor Bahru in 1988. The national-level Elite Competition 2026 featured 46 teams and 1,220 drummers, and an application for UNESCO recognition was submitted in March.
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Singapore's top medical award goes to 17 doctors including Prof Anantharaman
Seventeen pioneer doctors and dentists, including emergency medicine pioneer Prof Venkataraman Anantharaman and paediatrician Dr Bua Kong Poh, received the Eminent Academician title from the Singapore Medical Academy. The ceremony was held at the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine's medical sciences building on September 12, with Health Minister Ong Ye Kung speaking.
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Hong Kong principal sacked over SAFRA Jurong swearing seeks S$154,700
A Hong Kong school principal fired after swearing at security guards at SAFRA Jurong in May is seeking about HK$960,000 (S$154,700) in an unfair dismissal claim. Lee Cheuk-hing, former principal of San Wui Commercial Society Secondary School, was in Singapore on a study tour from May 20 to 24 when the incident occurred. His case was briefly heard at Hong Kong's Labour Tribunal on Sept 8, with trial set for Dec 1.
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Chinese national pleads not guilty to kidnapping compatriot in Alor Setar
A 27-year-old Chinese man, Wang Hao, pleaded not guilty at the Alor Setar Sessions Court to kidnapping a 33-year-old Chinese woman at a house in Taman Amira, Jalan Langgar, on Aug 7. The judge denied bail and set Oct 11 for mention. The case follows an Aug 8 police raid in which two suspects were shot dead and six people were arrested across Kedah, Penang and Kuala Lumpur.
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PUB tells commuters to avoid Jalan Boon Lay and Jurong Port Road junction over flash-flood risk
PUB has advised the public to avoid two locations in western Singapore on the morning of Sept 10 because of the risk of flash floods. Jalan Boon Lay from International Road to Enterprise Road and the junction of Pesawat Drive and Jurong Port Road were flagged for an hour from about 8.26am and 8.29am respectively, with heavy rain expected over many areas from 8am to 9.30am.
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Data centre boom spills into construction, power and tech supply chain
Malaysia's data centre capacity could reach eight to nine gigawatts by 2030, opening an RM128 billion to RM162 billion market for mechanical and electrical works, analysts say. About 3.8GW is already under construction or backed by signed power agreements, with contractors such as Kerjaya Prospek, Gamuda and IJM Corp among those winning work, including an RM858 million fit-out contract in Iskandar Puteri.
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Lien Heng Cup lion dance championship returns to Kuching Sept 26-27 with RM25,500 prize pool
The Lien Heng Cup-Lien Heng Lion Dance Open Championship 2026 will be held on Sept 26 and 27 at The Hills in Kuching, offering RM25,500 in prizes including RM8,000 for the champion. Kuching South mayor Dato Wee Hong Seng said at least 23 teams from Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore are expected, with organisers targeting 30. A 'Lion Spirit' photography competition with professional camera, mobile phone and short video categories will run alongside.