The recovery phase triggered by the devastation wrought when Hurricane Melissa ripped through western Jamaica last October is officially coming to an end, with focus now set to be shifted to reconstruction. Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness made the announcement yesterday while warning that penalties will be imposed on persons who misuse government-issued hurricane housing grants. Holness’ disclosure came as he was delivering the keynote address during the official launch of the Chester Creek housing development in Chester Castle, Portmore, St Catherine.

For the first time in 40 years, new public housing flats will be built on Pearl's Hill in Outram. At over 60 storeys high and comprising around 1,700 units, the Build-To-Order (BTO) project will be the tallest public housing development in Singapore upon completion, said National Development Minister Chee Hong Tat in Parliament on Wednesday (March 4).The project will surpass The Pinnacle@Duxton, which currently holds the record as Singapore's tallest public residential complex, by more than 10 storeys.Chee said that building taller HDB flats «where possible» is part of his ministry's plans to find more ways to build more public housing by «intensifying» land usage.This comes after the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore in August last year updated its rules in line with how tall buildings and structures can be near airports, paving the way for residential developments to be taller by up to 15 storeys.«A 60-storey block can provide 50 per cent more flats compared to a 40-storey block, the height of most of our tallest HDB blocks today,» said Chee in a speech laying out his ministry's spending plans in the coming year.

HDB will introduce longer rent-free periods for coffee shops and supermarkets, along with bus services that start when residents collect their keys, as it seeks to reduce the inconvenience of those who move into new large-scale BTO estates. This was announced by Senior Minister of State for National Development Sun Xueling during her ministry’s budget debate in Parliament on Wednesday (March 4).She said a multi-agency committee, led by the Ministry of National Development (MND) and HDB, identified five areas to support residents moving into new large-scale BTO estates of more than 3,000 flats.These are: access to transport, cooked food and groceries, childcare services, sheltered linkedways and waste-management.Set up in mid-2024, the BTO Coordination Committee includes the Land Transport Authority, the National Environment Agency, the Early Childhood Development Agency, the Infocomm Media Development Authority and the People’s Association.«Every estate is different and there can be project-specific issues that cause some variation,» said SMS Sun.

The Ministry of National Development (MND) will study and review ways to better support housing options for singles, said Minister Chee Hong Tat at the ministry's Committee of Supply debate in Parliament on Wednesday (March 4).He pointed to the 2-room Flexi flats application rates for singles and seniors to explain why a robust supply is needed.«To do more for our singles and other groups of flat buyers, we will need to build more flats to ensure adequate supply,» Chee said.In the February 2026 Built-To-Order (BTO) sales exercise, the median application rate for first-timer was 6.7, with Tampines Nova and Redhill Peaks seeing applications above the median rate.

The cause of death for Katherine Hartley Short, the daughter of actor Martin Short, has been revealed.

A suspected Iranian drone struck the CIA station in Riyadh on Monday, just two days after the spy agency pinpointed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's location in the strike that killed him.

Banaras' Masaan Holi offers a unique, contemplative celebration with sacred ashes from cremation pyres, unlike the riot of colours elsewhere. Rooted in Shaivite traditions, it symbolizes life's cyclical nature and confronts mortality. While social media has amplified its spectacle, the ritual's profound, existential encounter remains, urging immersion beyond filtered frames.

[Nile Post] The government has issued a high-level alert following the release of the March-April-May (MAM) 2026 seasonal forecast, warning of warmer-than-normal temperatures and significant rainfall that could trigger a wave of natural disasters across the country.

[New Zimbabwe] AN official within the American government has disputed claims that their Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on support in Zimbabwe's health sector was centred on them getting access to the country's critical minerals.

[allAfrica]

[RFI] A new secretary-general of the United Nations will be appointed on 1 January, 2027 to succeed Antonio Guterres, with three current nominations on the table - former Senegalese president Macky Sall, plus former Chilean president Michelle Bachelet and the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Argentine Rafael Grossi.

The EU is putting pressure on Ukraine to restore the flow of Russian oil through the Druzhba pipeline, FT reports Read Full Article at RT.com

By precipitating industrial erosion, the dollar’s supremacy undermines the foundational sources of American might Read Full Article at RT.com

US President Donald Trump has compared Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky to 19th-century showman P.T. Barnum Read Full Article at RT.com

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has said Spain must be convinced to spend more on its army Read Full Article at RT.com

SINGAPORE — The High Court on March 4 allowed an appeal by Lim Oon Kuin, the 84-year-old founder of failed oil trading company Hin Leong, and imposed a term of 13.5 years.This means a shaving of four years off his original sentence.Justice Hoo Sheau Peng said the original jail term of 17.5 years' jail was «crushing» even with the usual one-third remission.Lim, who is better known as O.K. Lim, was sentenced in November 2024 for two counts of cheating and one count of abetting forgery, in what prosecutors described as «one of the most serious cases of trade financing fraud that has ever been prosecuted in Singapore».After a lengthy district court trial, he was found to have duped HSBC into disbursing US$111.6 million (S$143 million) to Hin Leong based on two fabricated oil sale contracts.He was also found to have instructed a former employee to forge documents for one of the bogus contracts.On March 4, Justice Hoo found that the district judge who sentenced Lim erred in according weight to the prosecution's arguments that Lim's offences had undermined public confidence in the oil sector.

As a country heavily reliant on imports, Singapore is particularly vulnerable to external shocks and supply chain disruptions.This vulnerability in the face of rising global uncertainties can, in turn, affect Singapore's survival, said Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment Zaqy Mohamad. SMS Zaqy, who is also Senior Minister of State for Defence, set out how Singapore intends to build options and flexibility to deal with different scenarios of disruption at the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment's (MSE) Committee of Supply debate on Wednesday (March 4).Citing disruptions during Covid-19 and Malaysia's ban on the export of live chickens in 2022, the senior minister of state cautioned that tiding through disruptions will become more challenging."We also need to manage our risks from animal disease, which add to further pressure on global food supply and prices.

The engine compartment of a Suzuki hatchback caught fire along Kaki Bukit Avenue 4 on Tuesday (March 3). A video of the incident posted in a motoring chatgroup shows flames and thick black smoke rising from the car's engine compartment.Based on the video, it is a Suzuki Swift hatchback, which is not an electric vehicle.In response to AsiaOne's queries, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted to the incident at about 3pm.The fire was extinguished using a hose reel, SCDF added.No injuries were reported and the cause of fire is under investigation.[[nid:730619]]editor@asiaone.com 

An overnight cycling race that took place at Seletar Mall in Sengkang last weekend has made quite a buzz on social media.While some expressed excitement over the Downmall Challenge — possibly the first of its kind in Singapore — others fretted over safety issues.On Sunday (March 1), Nasthasia Nadiah, who represented Singapore in cycling at the 2010 Youth Olympic Games, shared a first-person view as she raced through the mall from level four to level one.In the clip of her practice run, she can be seen manoeuvring her YT Capra bike around traffic cones, going down escalators, and navigating tight corridors. At the finish line, she rode her bike up a ramp. The TikTok video, which has garnered over 570,000 views as of Tuesday, also attracted numerous comments.Some praised the event for being interesting, with one calling it «one of the coolest things in Singapore». Others hoped that bigger malls such as VivoCity and Suntec City would hold such events so cyclists can have larger race courses. Some expressed interest and asked how to participate in future editions of the event. 

SINGAPORE — Some restaurants and food and beverage outlets with dine-in services will not charge customers the 10-cent deposit when they order bottled or canned drinks from April 1, the day the Beverage Container Return Scheme (BCRS) kicks in.For other food shops, such as those in hawker centres and coffee shops, collection of these containers could be challenging due to the porous nature of the dining areas. There could be multiple drink stalls within the same area.In these cases, the beverages will be sold with the 10-cent deposit, said Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment Janil Puthucheary on March 3, during the debate on his ministry's budget.Under the scheme administered by the National Environment Agency (NEA), customers will pay an additional 10 cents, which is a refundable deposit, for bottled and canned drinks ranging from 150ml to 3 litres.When containers bearing the «Deposit Mark» are returned at the reverse vending machine, customers can retrieve their deposits via their ez-link cards or their DBS PayLah! wallets. NEA is an agency under the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment.

Polls were kept open for two additional hours, and Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D) urged her supporters to stay in line.

New congressional maps are debuting in Texas and North Carolina as Republicans try to defend their majorities and Democrats hope they can flip both chambers.

Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova emphasized that the attitudes of the countries bordering the region and beyond are important

Admiral Brad Cooper says US destroyed hundreds of Iran's ballistic missiles, launchers, and drones

Kazem Jalali reminded that heads of state have legal and personal immunity

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's son, Nishant Kumar, is reportedly set to enter politics, marking a shift from his father's stance against dynastic succession. This move comes amid growing internal party pressure and concerns about leadership transition, with Nishant seen as a potential link to traditional JDU supporters.

Karnataka's Congress government is reconsidering its decision to fill 56,432 government posts without internal reservation for Scheduled Castes. Following pressure from SC communities and ministers, the cabinet will discuss introducing pro-rata internal reservation within the existing 15% SC quota.

The All India Muslim Personal Law Board has strongly condemned the US-Israel's actions against Iran, calling for immediate international intervention to secure a ceasefire. The board expressed sorrow over the reported martyrdom of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, and highlighted that targeting leadership and advocating regime change violates international law.

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has formed the committee of privileges. This important panel will examine complaints of breach of privilege. BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad will lead the 15-member committee. The panel includes members from both the ruling NDA and opposition parties. A complaint against Rahul Gandhi is pending Speaker's decision.

India faces a critical gap in tracking nearly 6 lakh babies born annually with congenital anomalies, as these conditions increasingly contribute to child mortality. To address this, Smile Train India and Birth Defects Research Foundation launched BIND, advocating for a National Birth Anomalies Registry to improve data, identify risk factors, and guide health planning for better prevention and care.

Their absences aren’t actually against the law. But because this is a high-profile case and none of the officers scheduled to appear Tuesday are in custody, questions persist about when they’ll finally make a public appearance.

A few years after he was released from prison after serving more than five years for fraud, Scott Brooks began targeting victims once again, a judge heard Tuesday as Brooks pleaded guilty mid-trial to six counts of fraud.

A class action lawsuit alleging Canada's Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program exploits the labour and Charter rights of agricultural workers can proceed, a judge decided last week.

Sixteen students and their professor from Queen's University are safe in Doha, Qatar, after their plan was turned around mid-air on Feb. 28.

Canadian expats and those trying to get back home from the Persian Gulf say they're living under the constant threat of missile and drone strikes, but are taking solace in what they describe as highly effective air-defence systems keeping them safe from harm.