News Today

Reyes blasts Capello's tactics and selection
MADRID - REAL Madrid's Jose Antonio Reyes has taken a swipe at coach Fabio Capello's defensive tactics, and the way he selects players out of position. The Spain winger, on loan from Arsenal, is frustrated at his lack of opportunities. Like... [Read more]

Malaysia backs Musharraf's Mid-East plan
KUALA LUMPUR - MALAYSIA, the chair of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC), denied yesterday that a new Middle East peace initiative driven by Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf would undermine the grouping. General Musharraf has proposed bringing together leaders of influential... [Read more]

Three advisers appointed for divestments
JTC Corp has appointed three banks to advise it on its planned property sales, which include a billion-dollar industrial property trust.Singapore's largest industrial landlord yesterday named DBS Bank as well as global investment banks UBS and Goldman Sachs as advisers on... [Read more]

Town prepares for more flooding
KOTA TINGGI (JOHOR) - MOTORCYCLE trader Ham Hon Eng has been working overtime to get a lift installed in the second storey of his shophouse.While many residents and businessmen here are almost paralysed by worry over a possible third wave of... [Read more]

Foreigners to be enlisted in terror fight
A NEW front is being opened in the fight against terror and crime here as the authorities enlist the help of foreigners, working and living among the population, in their security efforts.For a start, the Jurong police division is reaching out... [Read more]

Descendants of Japanese war collaborators set to lose assets
SEOUL - SOUTH Korea is set to confiscate the property of about 40 descendants of people who collaborated with Japan during its 1910-1945 colonial rule, a minister said yesterday. The move comes after a special law was enacted in December 2005... [Read more]

Thailand shows it's still the Land of Smiles
FOR a few days last week, it looked like Bangkok was the last place to be seen if you were Singaporean. An ongoing diplomatic row appeared to be on the verge of worsening after Singapore beat Thailand in the first leg... [Read more]

Joint military exercise in July still on
THAILAND'S Air Chief Marshal Chalit Pukbhasuk yesterday said a joint Thai-Singapore military exercise planned for July would go ahead as scheduled. The air force chief, who is vice-chairman of the military Council for National Security, told reporters there was no truth... [Read more]

New 7-member committee
Members of the current Youth Challenge management committee, which took office last October: President Looi Teck Kheong The 42-year-old lawyer, who is married and has four children, has no prior experience in charity work. First vice-president Tang Wing Fai The 36-year-old... [Read more]

Move to prevent 'cheap sale' of state assets
SHANGHAI - CHINA yesterday announced new rules aimed at guaranteeing that state assets identified as key to the nation's economic security are not sold too cheaply to foreigners.Private deals will be strictly controlled and will require approvals from national and provincial... [Read more]

More major operations done without 'knockout' anaesthesia
SOME major operations can now be done without the patient being completely knocked out under general anaesthesia. In regional anaesthesia, doctors paralyse just that part of the body undergoing surgery. Epidurals, administered to control pain in the lower bodies of women... [Read more]