Latest news with #LeeHuiLi
Straits Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Russian Boeing 737 lands safely after turning back with cabin pressure issue, flight data shows
Find out what's new on ST website and app. MOSCOW - A Russian passenger plane operated by S7 Airlines landed safely on Friday after turning back to Novosibirsk airport in Siberia to check its cabin pressure systems, flight tracking data showed. S7 had said in a statement earlier on Friday that the plane, which had been flying to the southern Russian resort city of Sochi, had been forced to return to its departure airport "to check the cabin pressure control system." The tracking website indicated that the plane, a Boeing 737 with seating capacity for 176 passengers manufactured in 2001, landed safely. The website had earlier indicated that the plane sent an emergency signal. The site tracked it turning back and then repeatedly circling and flying in large loops to use up its fuel before landing. The airline said in a statement that a replacement aircraft had been prepared to carry passengers to their original destination of Sochi. The Western Siberian Transport Prosecutor's office said it had been monitoring the incident. The incident comes a day after an An-24 passenger plane crashed in Russia's far east as it was preparing to land, killing all 48 people on board in an incident that spotlighted the continued use of old, Soviet-era aircraft. REUTERS Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore SMRT to pay lower fine of $2.4m for EWL disruption; must invest at least $600k to boost reliability Singapore MRT service changes needed to modify 3 East-West Line stations on Changi Airport stretch: LTA Asia Live: Thailand-Cambodia border clashes continue for second day Singapore Etomidate found in blood of 2 people involved in fatal Punggol Road accident in May: HSA Singapore More students to get Smart Buddy watches; most schools to go cashless by end-2025 Singapore Vape disposal bins at 23 CCs for users to surrender e-vaporisers, without facing penalties Business Microsoft Singapore managing director Lee Hui Li dies while on sabbatical Singapore Kopi, care and conversation: How this 20-year-old helps improve the well-being of the elderly
Straits Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
South Korean military plane entering defence zone ‘regrettable': Japan
Find out what's new on ST website and app. TOKYO - Japan's top government spokesman said on July 25 that it is 'regrettable' that the Self-Defence Forces (SDF) were forced to scramble fighter jets after a South Korean military airplane entered the Japanese air defence identification zone without notice earlier in July . Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told a press conference that the government has asked South Korea to take measures to prevent similar incidents, while calling Seoul an important partner with which Tokyo will continue to closely collaborate. On July 24 , South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported that Japan's SDF fighters scrambled to deal with a South Korean C-130 transport aircraft after it accidentally entered Japan's air defence identification zone on July 13. The C-130 initially intended to overfly Japanese territory for a military exercise in Guam, but it failed to obtain the Japanese authorities' permission in advance due to insufficient communication. The plane subsequently took a flight course to avoid Japan. Bad weather and the need for refuelling forced the airplane to change the route again and make an emergency landing at the US military's Kadena Air Base in the southern Japanese prefecture of Okinawa, triggering the SDF's response, Yonhap reported. An air defence identification zone is a wider area than sovereign airspace and is defined by each country for national security purposes. KYODO NEWS Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore SMRT to pay lower fine of $2.4m for EWL disruption; must invest at least $600k to boost reliability Singapore MRT service changes needed to modify 3 East-West Line stations on Changi Airport stretch: LTA Asia Live: Thailand-Cambodia border clashes continue for second day Singapore Etomidate found in blood of 2 people involved in fatal Punggol Road accident in May: HSA Singapore More students to get Smart Buddy watches; most schools to go cashless by end-2025 Singapore Vape disposal bins at 23 CCs for users to surrender e-vaporisers, without facing penalties Business Microsoft Singapore managing director Lee Hui Li dies while on sabbatical Singapore Kopi, care and conversation: How this 20-year-old helps improve the well-being of the elderly
Straits Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Sustaining Sri Lanka's reforms critical to safe-guarding macroeconomic stability, IMF says
Find out what's new on ST website and app. Supported by a US$2.9 billion (S$3.7 billion) programme from the International Monetary Fund, Sri Lanka is gradually recovering from its worst financial crisis in decades, triggered by a record dollar shortage in 2022. WASHINGTON - Sustaining Sri Lanka's reform momentum is critical to safeguarding the country's macroeconomic stability, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on July 25 after its staff concluded a visit to the island nation. Supported by a US$2.9 billion (S$3.7 billion) programme from the global lender, Sri Lanka is gradually recovering from its worst financial crisis in decades, triggered by a record dollar shortage in 2022 . Sri Lanka's economy grew by 5 per cent in 2024, and the World Bank predicts it will post 3.5 per cent growth in 2025. But the island nation needs to tackle global headwinds from 30 per cent US tariffs, which could impact about $3 billion in exports . Colombo is in talks with Washington to attempt to reduce the tariff rate before it is implemented on Aug 1. 'While the economic outlook is positive, downside risks have increased on the back of potentially high tariffs on Sri Lanka's exports, persistent trade policy uncertainty, and heightened geopolitical tensions,' said Mr Evan Papageorgiou, IMF Mission Chief for Sri Lanka, said in a statement after wrapping up a visit to Colombo this week. Any shocks from the US tariffs will be addressed within the IMF programme, he added. Sri Lanka's upcoming budget, expected to be presented to Parliament in November, will need to include stronger tax revenues and lower public spending to maintain a primary balance target of 2.3 per cent of GDP in the medium-term, the IMF said. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore MRT service changes needed to modify 3 East-West Line stations on Changi Airport stretch: LTA Singapore HDB resale price growth moderates in Q2, more flats sold Singapore Etomidate found in blood of 2 people involved in fatal Punggol Road accident in May: HSA Asia Live: Thailand-Cambodia border clashes continue for second day Business Microsoft Singapore managing director Lee Hui Li dies while on sabbatical Singapore Private residential home prices up 1 per cent in Q2: URA Life Navigating tight carparks in bigger and bigger cars Singapore Kopi, care and conversation: How this 20-year-old helps improve the well-being of the elderly 'Monetary policy should remain prudent and prioritise price stability,' the statement said backing continued central bank independence. Sri Lanka held its benchmark interest rate steady at 7.75 per cent on July 23, but the central bank chief said further easing was possible as the island nation awaits the outcome of tariff talks with the US. Apparel, Sri Lanka's second-largest foreign exchange earner, is particularly exposed – the sector exports 40 per cent of its output to the US and brought in $4.8 billion in 2024. It employs around 300,000 people, most of them women. REUTERS
Straits Times
6 days ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
USAID analysis found no evidence of massive Hamas theft of Gaza aid
FILE PHOTO: Parcels of humanitarian aid await transfer into Gaza, at the Gaza side of the Kerem Shalom crossing in the Gaza Strip, July 24, 2025. REUTERS/Amir Cohen EDITOR'S NOTE: REUTERS PHOTOGRAPHS WERE REVIEWED BY THE IDF AS PART OF THE CONDITIONS OF THE EMBED. NO PHOTOS WERE REMOVED./File Photo WASHINGTON - An internal U.S. government analysis found no evidence of systematic theft by the Palestinian militant group Hamas of U.S.-funded humanitarian supplies, challenging the main rationale that Israel and the U.S. give for backing a new armed private aid operation. The analysis, which has not been previously reported, was conducted by a bureau within the U.S. Agency for International Development and completed in late June. It examined 156 incidents of theft or loss of U.S.-funded supplies reported by U.S. aid partner organizations between October 2023 and this May. It found 'no reports alleging Hamas' benefited from U.S.-funded supplies, according to a slide presentation of the findings seen by Reuters. A State Department spokesperson disputed the findings, saying there is video evidence of Hamas looting aid, but provided no such videos. The spokesperson also accused traditional humanitarian groups of covering up "aid corruption." The findings were shared with the USAID's inspector general's office and State Department officials involved in Middle East policy, said two sources familiar with the matter, and come as dire food shortages deepen in the devastated enclave. Israel says it is committed to allowing in aid but must control it to prevent it from being stolen by Hamas, which it blames for the crisis. The U.N. World Food Program says nearly a quarter of Gaza's 2.1 million Palestinians face famine-like conditions, thousands are suffering acute malnutrition, and the World Health Organization and doctors in the enclave report starvation deaths of children and others. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore MRT service changes needed to modify 3 East-West Line stations on Changi Airport stretch: LTA Singapore HDB resale price growth moderates in Q2, more flats sold Singapore Etomidate found in blood of 2 people involved in fatal Punggol Road accident in May: HSA Asia Live: Thailand-Cambodia border clashes continue for second day Business Microsoft Singapore managing director Lee Hui Li dies while on sabbatical Singapore Private residential home prices up 1 per cent in Q2: URA Business Singapore factory output grows at faster pace of 8% in June, better than expected Singapore Kopi, care and conversation: How this 20-year-old helps improve the well-being of the elderly The U.N. also estimates that Israeli forces have killed more than 1,000 people seeking food supplies, the majority near the militarized distribution sites of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), the new private aid group that uses a for-profit U.S. logistics firm run by a former CIA officer and armed U.S. military veterans. The study was conducted by the Bureau of Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) of USAID, which was the largest funder of assistance to Gaza before the Trump administration froze all U.S. foreign aid in January, terminating thousands of programs. It has also begun dismantling USAID, whose functions have been folded into the State Department. The analysis found that at least 44 of the 156 incidents where aid supplies were reported stolen or lost were 'either directly or indirectly' due to Israeli military actions, according to the briefing slides. Israel's military did not respond to questions about those findings. The study noted a limitation: because Palestinians who receive aid cannot be vetted, it was possible that U.S.-funded supplies went to administrative officials of Hamas, the Islamist rulers of Gaza. One source familiar with the study also cautioned that the absence of reports of widespread aid diversion by Hamas 'does not mean that diversion has not occurred.' The war in Gaza began after Hamas attacked Israel in October 2023, killing 1,200 people and capturing 251 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. Nearly 60,000 Palestinians have been killed since the Israeli assault began, according to Palestinian health officials. ISRAEL SAYS HAMAS DIVERTS HUMANITARIAN AID Israel, which controls access to Gaza, has said that Hamas steals food supplies from U.N. and other organizations to use to control the civilian population and boost its finances, including by jacking up the prices of the goods and reselling them to civilians. Asked about the USAID report, the Israeli military told Reuters that its allegations are based on intelligence reports that Hamas militants seized cargoes by "both covertly and overtly" embedding themselves on aid trucks. Those reports also show that Hamas has diverted up to 25% of aid supplies to its fighters or sold them to civilians, the Israeli military said, adding that GHF has ended the militants' control of aid by distributing it directly to civilians. Hamas denies the allegations. A Hamas security official said that Israel has killed more than 800 Hamas-affiliated police and security guards trying to protect aid vehicles and convoy routes. Their missions were coordinated with the U.N. Reuters could not independently verify the claims by Hamas and Israel, which has not made public proof that the militants have systematically stolen aid. GHF also accuses Hamas of massive aid theft in defending its distribution model. The U.N. and other groups have rejected calls by GHF, Israel and the U.S. to cooperate with the foundation, saying it violates international humanitarian principles of neutrality. In response to a request for comment, GHF referred Reuters to a July 2 Washington Post article that quoted an unidentified Gazan and anonymous Israeli officials as saying Hamas profited from the sales and taxing of pilfered humanitarian aid. AID GROUPS REQUIRED TO REPORT LOSSES The 156 reports of theft or losses of supplies reviewed by BHA were filed by U.N. agencies and other humanitarian groups working in Gaza as a condition of receiving U.S. aid funds. The second source familiar with the matter said that after receiving reports of U.S.-funded aid thefts or losses, USAID staff followed up with partner organizations to try to determine if there was Hamas involvement. Those organizations also would "redirect or pause" aid distributions if they learned that Hamas was in the vicinity, the source said. Aid organizations working in Gaza also are required to vet their personnel, sub-contractors and suppliers for ties to extremist groups before receiving U.S. funds, a condition that the State Department waived in approving $30 million for GHF last month. The slide presentation noted that USAID partners tended to over-report aid diversion and theft by groups sanctioned or designated by the U.S. as foreign terrorist organizations - such as Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad - because they want to avoid losing U.S. funding. Of the 156 incidents of loss or theft reported, 63 were attributed to unknown perpetrators, 35 to armed actors, 25 to unarmed people, 11 directly to Israeli military action, 11 to corrupt subcontractors, five to aid group personnel 'engaging in corrupt activities,' and six to 'others," a category that accounted for 'commodities stolen in unknown circumstances,' according to the slide presentation. The armed actors 'included gangs and other miscellaneous individuals who may have had weapons,' said a slide. Another slide said "a review of all 156 incidents found no affiliations with" U.S.-designated foreign terrorist organizations, of which Hamas is one. 'The majority of incidents could not be definitively attributed to a specific actor,' said another slide. 'Partners often largely discovered the commodities had been stolen in transit without identifying the perpetrator.' It is possible there were classified intelligence reports on Hamas aid thefts, but BHA staff lost access to classified systems in the dismantlement of USAID, said a slide. However, a source familiar with U.S. intelligence assessments told Reuters that they knew of no U.S. intelligence reports detailing Hamas aid diversions and that Washington was relying on Israeli reports. The BHA analysis found that the Israeli military 'directly or indirectly caused' a total of 44 incidents in which U.S.-funded aid was lost or stolen. Those included the 11 attributed to direct Israeli military actions, such as airstrikes or orders to Palestinians to evacuate areas of the war-torn enclave. Losses indirectly attributed to Israeli military included cases where they compelled aid groups to use delivery routes with high risks of theft or looting, ignoring requests for alternative routes, the analysis said. REUTERS
