Singapore badminton star Loh Kean Yew lost to Frenchman Alex Lanier in the men's singles final of the Singapore Badminton Open on Sunday (May 31).Loh claimed the opening game 21-17 against Lanier, drawing cheers from the crowd, before losing the second set 15-21.Loh then conceded the last set 14-21.The US$1 million (S$1.3 million) KFF Singapore Badminton Open was held at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. Loh will earn US$34,000 from this tournament.During the prize presentation, the 28-year-old briefly stepped onto the top rung of the podium as his name was announced, before quickly realising his mistake.The crowd then burst into laughter, along with Loh, who also apologised with a laugh.Ranked 14th, Loh had booked his place in the championship match with a hard-fought semi-final victory over Japan's Koki Watanabe on Saturday (May 30).The last Singaporean men's singles winner in this tournament was Wee Choon Seng in 1962.Loh is set to feature next in the June 2 to 7 Indonesia Open, a Super 1000 event, in Jakarta.[[nid:737034]]

Four persons were taken to hospital after a fire broke out at a Housing and Development Board (HDB) flat in Choa Chu Kang on Sunday (May 31).The incident happened at about 1.20pm in the living room of a 14th floor unit at Block 439 Choa Chu Kang Avenue 4. At least three Singapore Civil Defence Force fire engines and a light fire attack vehicle were at the scene. PHOTO: AsiaOne/Nuriyah Fatin When AsiaOne reached the scene at about 1.40pm, at least three Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) fire engines and a light fire attack vehicle were present. Police officers who were at the scene set up a cordon at the ground floor area beneath the affected unit as there were glass shards and debris on the ground.

A 22-year-old man was arrested by the police on Saturday (May 30) for his alleged involvement in a home break-in in Yishun.Police said in a statement on Sunday that they were alerted to a case of housebreaking at Block 225 Yishun Street 21 at about 9.50am on Saturday.The victim purportedly lost cash amounting to $520, bank cards, identity cards and a EZ-Link card.Officers from Woodlands Police Division and the Police Operations Command Centre identified and arrested the suspect at Block 744 Yishun Street 72 within four hours of the report being made.Except for the cash, all other items which were purportedly stolen, were recovered and seized as case exhibits.He will be charged in court on June 1 with the offence of housebreaking, an offence which carries a penalty of up to ten years imprisonment and a fine.Police advised homeowners to always secure all doors, roller shutters, windows and other openings with good quality grills and closed-shackle padlocks before leaving their premises, even if for a short while.Those who observe any suspicious persons or activity can call the police at 999.[[nid:736891]]

The first of 44 six-car trains for the Cross Island Line (CRL) has arrived in Singapore.In a social media post on Sunday (May 31), the Land Transport Authority showed the first trainset being unloaded from Jurong Port — where new MRT trains are typically unloaded at.Earlier in April, Acting Minister for Transport Jeffrey Siow had given the public a preview of the CR151 trains when he visited Qingdao rail depot.Similar to the trains for the Thomson-East Coast Line, each car on the new train will have five doors on each side.They will also have wider gangways — flexible connections between two train cars — for smoother passenger movement and a more comfortable journey, LTA said. 

Two accidents happened, almost simultaneously, along both sides of a stretch of the Pan Island Expressway (PIE) near Mount Pleasant Flyover on Saturday (May 30) morning.Police told AsiaOne that the accident along PIE towards Tuas, involving five cars and a motorcycle, happened at about 8.20am.  Map showing where the two accidents happened on Saturday (May 30) morning. GRAPHIC: Google Maps, Social media A 41-year-old male motorcyclist and an eight-year-old male car passenger were taken conscious to the National University Hospital and KK Women's and Children's Hospital by Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) ambulances, respectively.Videos of the accident posted on social media show emergency vehicles at the two rightmost lanes of the three-lane expressway. 

As conflicts evolve, there is a need for more networks of flexible and issue-based arrangements to complement multilateral co-operation, said Defence Minister Chan Chun Sing.In his address at a Shangri-La Dialogue plenary session on May 31, Chan said that while multilateral institutions are the pillars of international co-operation, countries cannot be «held hostage by the lowest common denominator» as new domains evolve rapidly.Instead, nations should develop flexible partnerships with like-minded countries, forming «coalitions of the able and willing».«These serve as the connecting beams of our cooperative lattice - to bridge gaps, test ideas and path-find in new and uncharted territories,» he said.Chan said that with these networks, countries can work to build trust in domains such as cyber and artificial intelligence.He highlighted how Singapore has worked with the Netherlands and South Korea to start global discussions on military AI governance.

Coordinating Minister for Public Services and Minister for Defence Chan Chun Sing hosted Australia's Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles to a late-night meal at Lau Pa Sat.Marles, who is also Australia's Minister for Defence, is in Singapore to attend the 23rd Shangri-La Dialogue (SLD). In a Facebook video uploaded by Chan on Saturday (May 30), the two leaders were seen clad in casual polo tees for a «late-night» makan at the tourist hotspot on Friday.«Australians know a good barbecue when they see one. That is why I introduced Richard to our version of it - satay and BBQ chicken wings,» wrote Chan.Their table had a spread of satay, barbecue chicken wings, fried hokkien mee, fried carrot cake, beer and what appears to be sugarcane juice.

SINGAPORE – After months of emotional turmoil, Rose (not her real name) was relieved to finally hear her son’s apology in January.Her 28-year-old son Ben (not his real name) said he wanted to take responsibility for his actions when he was high on Kpods, or etomidate-laced vapes, in 2024 and 2025.Under the influence of the substance, he attacked his mother in November 2024. Determined to help him get clean, Rose called the police on him then. That did not deter him from vaping, and when his mother locked him out of their home in July 2025, he climbed over the parapet outside their flat and tried to enter through the window.He was sentenced to 10 weeks’ jail on May 18 after being convicted of three charges, including violating a personal protection order and using criminal force on a police officer.Although Rose, 57, said she was sad to see her son incarcerated, she was also relieved that he has turned over a new leaf. Ben has stopped using Kpods since August 2025, and has been regularly attending group sessions at an addiction recovery centre.

A 50-year-old man was pinned to his seat after his vehicle skidded and hit a lamp post at Tengah Link on Friday (May 29).In a video posted on the Facebook page Singapore Road Accident, over 10 buses were seen stuck along Bukit Batok Road and unable to turn into Tengah Link due to the crash.At 5.59pm, Tower Transit announced that bus services 452, 453, 674, 831G, 870, 871, 872 and 992 towards Tengah would be diverted. When contacted by AsiaOne, the police said they were alerted to the accident at around 4pm and the driver was believed to have «self-skidded» at the junction.He was taken unconscious to the hospital, and police investigations are ongoing.

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has launched a national initiative - Screen Smart from the Start - to support parents in fostering healthy digital habits with their children.Speaking at National Family Festival Family Carnival at Singapore Expo today (May 31), PM Wong said that the national movement by the Ministry of Digital Development and Information will help families foster healthy digital habits from young.He said that new challenges will naturally emerge as society evolves with developments such as digitalisation, and this will influence how people interact with one another and how families raise children.Pointing out that although digitalisation creates new opportunities for both parents and children to access knowledge at their fingertips, this also creates new challenges as excessive screen time could affect children's development and socialisation skills. This, in turn, causes kids to gradually grow distant from their families.PM Wong also noted that managing technology and screen time has become a «more intense» challenge today due to addictive features, harmful content, and toxic online interactions.

A 68-year-old male driver and his passenger were taken to hospital on Saturday (May 30) after the taxi he was driving crashed into a tree and caught fire following an accident with another car in Hougang.The accident happened at about 3.50pm along Yio Chu Kang Road outside Bowen Secondary School.  Map showing where the accident happened. GRAPHIC: Google Maps, Social media An eyewitness, surnamed Tan, told AsiaOne that she was on her way to Kovan in a Grab car when she noticed traffic slowing down near the school."As the accident had just happened, there were no first responders yet. But several passers-by, construction workers and motorists stopped to help. 

SINGAPORE – A woman from Singapore died in Bhutan on May 30 after she reported feeling unwell during a hike to an iconic Buddhist site.She had been on a tour organised by Chan Brothers and was descending from Tiger’s Nest Monastery when she told the accompanying guide that she was feeling unwell, said the travel company in reply to queries on May 30.“Immediate assistance, including CPR, was administered on site while emergency arrangements were activated,” Chan Brothers said. She was later taken to Paro Hospital.The woman had been part of a tour group that left Singapore on the company’s chartered flight on May 26, and was participating in scheduled activities before the incident, Chan Brothers said.The monastery, one of Bhutan’s most sacred Buddhist sites, clings to a granite cliff 900m above Paro Valley, according to Chan Brothers’ website. It sits 3,120m above sea level.

SINGAPORE – A T-shirt slogan from his new line of merchandise reads “Smash beyond limits”.On May 29, Loh Kean Yew exemplified the catchphrase with a splendid comeback as he edged closer to making a breakthrough at the US$1 million (S$1.3 million) KFF Singapore Badminton Open.The world No. 14 matched his best performance at his home open, which he achieved in 2022, with a 16-21, 21-6, 21-8 victory over Chinese Taipei’s 18th-ranked Chi Yu-jen in their 55-minute men’s singles quarter-final.It was the third time in successive days he had gone the distance and won, much to the delight of the deafening 6,260-strong crowd at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.Loh said: “I’m happy to win in a Super 750 quarter-final, and it makes it even more meaningful to win in Singapore.”

A 24-year-old Singaporean has become one of the 13 finalists in Icelandair's global search for a «really bad photographer».The Icelandic carrier took to social media on Thursday (May 28) to announce the list of finalists for its campaign which closed applications on April 30.Singapore's Mikael is amongst finalists from cities like Hamburg and Paris, who are in the running for a 10-day trip to Iceland in June with travel expenses covered, and a whopping US$50,000 (S$64,000).According to Icelandair, the campaign drew 127,642 applications, which were whittled down to «the best of the worst» — 13 individuals aged between 24 and 73.

Singapore's defence minister Chan Chun Sing met with his Malaysian counterpart Mohamed Khaled Nordin on Saturday (May 30) at the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue. The call at Shangri-La Hotel, where Asia's premier security summit is being held, saw both defence ministers reaffirming the warm and longstanding bilateral ties between the two countries.They also discussed ways to further enhance mutual trust and understanding between the two defence establishments, Singapore's Ministry of Defence (Mindef) said on Saturday. According to Mindef, the two defence establishments hold regular interactions across a wide range of activities, including bilateral and multilateral exercises, visits, professional exchanges, and cross-attendance of courses.The ministry added that these regular interactions underscore the warm and longstanding defence relations between the two countries, and help strengthen mutual understanding and trust.

SINGAPORE - The big question hanging over this year's Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia's premier defence forum, is: «Where is China?»For the second year running, Chinese Defence Minister Dong Jun has given the free-wheeling Singapore security meeting a miss, skipping opportunities to meet US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth as well as counterparts from Australia, France, Britain, Japan and other nations.In his place, Beijing sent a low-profile delegation of People's Liberation Army «experts and scholars» - a step down from the usual high-powered presence.A highlight of the dialogue's annual programme has been a robust speech by China's defence minister or senior official laying out Beijing's defence doctrine and outlook on global tensions. But the speech helmed by China has been dropped from this year's programme, like in 2025.Even Hegseth took note.«I wish my counterpart was here at this conference, but I look forward to other options when we can cross paths and communicate, talk about things where often actions at sea or actions in the air are perceived differently,» he said during his own keynote speech on Saturday.