The only North Korean arrested over the dramatic airport assassination of Kim Jong-Nam is to be freed, Malaysia&#39;s attorney general said Thursday.

The announcement came the day after two young women appeared in court charged with murdering the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un with a banned nerve agent.

It also came hours after Kuala Lumpur said it was abruptly ending a visa waiver programme that allows nationals of the isolated state to come and go freely.

Attorney general Mohamed Apandi Ali said Ri Jong-Chol would be released on Friday.

&quot;He is a free man. His remand expires and there is insufficient evidence to charge him,&quot; Apandi said.

Seven other North Koreans are wanted in connection with the killing, including a diplomat and an airline employee who are believed to be in Malaysia.

Four others are thought to have fled to Pyongyang on the day of the murder.

Ri was arrested days after Kim suffered an agonising death after being attacked at Kuala Lumpur International Airport as he waited to board a flight to Macau.

CCTV footage shows two women approaching the heavyset 45-year old and appearing to thrust a cloth in his face. 
Police say he suffered a seizure and died less than 20 minutes later, without reaching hospital.

Swabs of the dead man&#39;s face revealed traces of the VX nerve agent, a synthetic chemical so deadly that it is classed as a weapon of mass destruction.

South Korea has consistently pointed the finger of blame at North Korea for the assassination, citing what they say was a standing order from Kim Jong-Un to kill his half-brother, who lived in exile.

Pyongyang, which has never acknowledged Kim&#39;s identity, has denied the charge and disputes the autopsy, claiming Malaysia is in cahoots with its enemies.

The two countries, which had enjoyed relatively warm relations, have been at diplomatic daggers drawn since the killing. 
On Thursday Kuala Lumpur, which had earlier recalled its ambassador, said it was cancelling its visa-free travel deal with Pyongyang.

The government was implementing the change on the grounds of national security, Malaysian news agency Bernama quoted deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi as saying.&nbsp;

The cancellation will take effect on March 6, after which North Koreans entering Malaysia will be required to obtain a visa, the report added.

Two female suspects in the attack, Indonesian Siti Aisyah, 25, and Doan Thi Huong, 28, from Vietnam, were charged with murder on Wednesday.&nbsp;

The women, who were brought to court surrounded by heavily armed police and security officers, could face the death penalty if convicted of murder.

Both female suspects say they thought they were taking part in a prank video but police have dismissed the claims.&nbsp;

(AFP)

The announcement came a day after two women were charged with the murder of the North Korean leader's half-brother

The only North Korean arrested over the dramatic airport assassination of Kim Jong-Nam is to be freed, Malaysia's attorney general said Thursday. The announcement came the day after two young women appeared in court charged with murdering the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un with a banned nerve agent. It also came hours after Kuala Lumpur said it was abruptly ending a visa waiver programme that allows nationals of the isolated state to come and go freely. Attorney general Mohamed Apandi Ali said Ri Jong-Chol would be released on Friday. "He is a free man. His remand expires and there is insufficient evidence to charge him," Apandi said. Seven other North Koreans are wanted in connection with the killing, including a diplomat and an airline employee who are believed to be in Malaysia. Four others are thought to have fled to Pyongyang on the day of the murder. Ri was arrested days after Kim suffered an agonising death after being attacked at Kuala Lumpur International Airport as he waited to board a flight to Macau. CCTV footage shows two women approaching the heavyset 45-year old and appearing to thrust a cloth in his face. Police say he suffered a seizure and died less than 20 minutes later, without reaching hospital. Swabs of the dead man's face revealed traces of the VX nerve agent, a synthetic chemical so deadly that it is classed as a weapon of mass destruction. South Korea has consistently pointed the finger of blame at North Korea for the assassination, citing what they say was a standing order from Kim Jong-Un to kill his half-brother, who lived in exile. Pyongyang, which has never acknowledged Kim's identity, has denied the charge and disputes the autopsy, claiming Malaysia is in cahoots with its enemies. The two countries, which had enjoyed relatively warm relations, have been at diplomatic daggers drawn since the killing. On Thursday Kuala Lumpur, which had earlier recalled its ambassador, said it was cancelling its visa-free travel deal with Pyongyang. The government was implementing the change on the grounds of national security, Malaysian news agency Bernama quoted deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi as saying. The cancellation will take effect on March 6, after which North Koreans entering Malaysia will be required to obtain a visa, the report added. Two female suspects in the attack, Indonesian Siti Aisyah, 25, and Doan Thi Huong, 28, from Vietnam, were charged with murder on Wednesday. The women, who were brought to court surrounded by heavily armed police and security officers, could face the death penalty if convicted of murder. Both female suspects say they thought they were taking part in a prank video but police have dismissed the claims. (AFP)

Malaysia to free North Korean man arrested in Kim killing

The bodies of six passengers believed to be from a boat which capsized in rough seas off Malaysia have been found, a coast guard official said today.

The boat was carrying more than a dozen suspected illegal immigrants from Indonesia, said Awil Kamsari, a spokesman for the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency.

The six bodies, including those of three children, were recovered by Indonesian authorities in Indonesian waters, said Awil.

Two passengers were rescued alive by a fisherman and some villagers in waters near Sabah state on Borneo island on Wednesday evening and taken to hospital.

They told authorities the boat had been travelling from the southwestern coast of Sabah to Indonesia on Tuesday evening when it overturned and sank.

The coast guard said the boat likely sank shortly after it set sail due to bad weather and rough seas.

In January several bodies washed ashore at a beach in the Malaysian state of Johor after a boat believed to be carrying some 40 Indonesian illegal immigrants capsized in rough seas.

Another incident in January saw a tourist boat with Chinese tourists capsize off Sabah. Most were rescued after more than 30 hours.

(AFP)

The boat was carrying more than a dozen suspected illegal immigrants from Indonesia, an official said

The bodies of six passengers believed to be from a boat which capsized in rough seas off Malaysia have been found, a coast guard official said today. The boat was carrying more than a dozen suspected illegal immigrants from Indonesia, said Awil Kamsari, a spokesman for the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency. The six bodies, including those of three children, were recovered by Indonesian authorities in Indonesian waters, said Awil. Two passengers were rescued alive by a fisherman and some villagers in waters near Sabah state on Borneo island on Wednesday evening and taken to hospital. They told authorities the boat had been travelling from the southwestern coast of Sabah to Indonesia on Tuesday evening when it overturned and sank. The coast guard said the boat likely sank shortly after it set sail due to bad weather and rough seas. In January several bodies washed ashore at a beach in the Malaysian state of Johor after a boat believed to be carrying some 40 Indonesian illegal immigrants capsized in rough seas. Another incident in January saw a tourist boat with Chinese tourists capsize off Sabah. Most were rescued after more than 30 hours. (AFP)

Six bodies recovered after boat capsizes in Malaysia

Malaysia on Friday reopened a decades-old dispute with Singapore calling on the UN&#39;s top court to overturn a 2008 ruling granting its neighbour sovereignty over a tiny but strategic island.

In a filing to the International Court of Justice, Kuala Lumpur maintained new documents had been discovered in British archives backing its territorial claim to the islet.

For several decades, Malaysia had laid claim to the island it knows as Pulau Batu Puteh, while Singapore, which calls it Pedra Branca, argued sovereignty had passed to it tacitly.

The island is in a strategically important position, 7.7 nautical miles (14 kilometres) off Johor on the eastern approach to the Singapore Strait from the South China Sea.

Singapore had operated the Horsburgh Lighthouse on the granite island, whose names mean &quot;white rock&quot; in Malay and Portuguese, for more than 130 years without protest from its neighbour.

But in a new map of its maritime boundaries drawn up in 1980, Kuala Lumpur claimed the islet as its own.

After years of negotiations failed, the parties turned to the tribunal in The Hague, which in 2008 ruled the island belonged to Singapore.

But in its filing Friday, Malaysia asked the court to revise that judgement based on the discovery of three documents in the British national archives between August last year and the end of January.

They included internal correspondence from the Singapore colonial authorities in 1958, a British naval incident report from 1958 and a map from the 1960s.

Kuala Lumpur maintained these documents showed that &quot;officials at the highest levels in the British colonial and Singaporean administration appreciated that Pedra Branca/Pulau Batu Puteh did not form part of Singapore`s sovereign territory,&quot; the ICJ said in a statement.

Under the court&#39;s rules, states can ask for a judgement to be revised if new facts come to light within 10 years of the first ruling. 
The ICJ will now have to decide whether the case can proceed.

(AFP)

In a filing to the ICJ, Malaysia maintained new documents had been discovered in British archives backing its territorial claim to the islet

Malaysia on Friday reopened a decades-old dispute with Singapore calling on the UN's top court to overturn a 2008 ruling granting its neighbour sovereignty over a tiny but strategic island. In a filing to the International Court of Justice, Kuala Lumpur maintained new documents had been discovered in British archives backing its territorial claim to the islet. For several decades, Malaysia had laid claim to the island it knows as Pulau Batu Puteh, while Singapore, which calls it Pedra Branca, argued sovereignty had passed to it tacitly. The island is in a strategically important position, 7.7 nautical miles (14 kilometres) off Johor on the eastern approach to the Singapore Strait from the South China Sea. Singapore had operated the Horsburgh Lighthouse on the granite island, whose names mean "white rock" in Malay and Portuguese, for more than 130 years without protest from its neighbour. But in a new map of its maritime boundaries drawn up in 1980, Kuala Lumpur claimed the islet as its own. After years of negotiations failed, the parties turned to the tribunal in The Hague, which in 2008 ruled the island belonged to Singapore. But in its filing Friday, Malaysia asked the court to revise that judgement based on the discovery of three documents in the British national archives between August last year and the end of January. They included internal correspondence from the Singapore colonial authorities in 1958, a British naval incident report from 1958 and a map from the 1960s. Kuala Lumpur maintained these documents showed that "officials at the highest levels in the British colonial and Singaporean administration appreciated that Pedra Branca/Pulau Batu Puteh did not form part of Singapore`s sovereign territory," the ICJ said in a statement. Under the court's rules, states can ask for a judgement to be revised if new facts come to light within 10 years of the first ruling. The ICJ will now have to decide whether the case can proceed. (AFP)

Revise order on Singapore islet dispute in light of fresh evidence, Malaysia tells ICJ

Three Chinese passengers died and five are missing after a tourist boat sank in rough seas off eastern Malaysia, officials confirmed late on Sunday, with 22 people rescued following the shipwreck.

Twenty Chinese tourists and two of the vessel&#39;s three crew members were rescued and sent to a hospital in Kota Kinabalu after the boat sank off Malaysia&#39;s Sabah state on Borneo island, according to Malaysian officials.

The third crew member has not yet been found, bringing the total number of missing to six.

The sinking of the catamaran on Saturday, the first day of the Lunar New Year holiday, sparked a major air and sea search covering some 400 nautical square miles.

The mission was halted on Sunday night due to bad weather, but will resume early Monday morning, an official from the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) said.&nbsp;

The boat left Saturday morning from the Sabah state capital Kota Kinabalu en route for Pulau Mengalum, an island known for its pristine beaches and dive sites.

The boat owner reported it missing on Saturday evening.

The skipper and a crew member were found alive earlier Sunday off a nearby island, before the discovery of the other survivors.

&quot;According to the skipper, the boat was &#39;broken&#39; after being hit by waves and sank,&quot; Ahmad Puzi Kahar, head of the MMEA, said in a statement.

The search and rescue involved officers from the maritime agency, police, navy and air force.

Malaysian navy chief Ahmad Kamarulzaman Ahmad Badaruddin said naval ships and a C130 aircraft were used in the search.

Roughs seas and strong winds hampered rescue efforts on Saturday night and Sunday, authorities said.

Prime Minister Najib Razak said he was closely monitoring developments.&nbsp;

Chinese President Xi Jinping &quot;demanded all-out search and rescue efforts&quot; by Malaysia, his country&#39;s official Xinhua news agency reported.

It added that an emergency team, led by an official from Beijing&#39;s national tourism administration, had been set up to handle the incident.

Soured relations

China&#39;s foreign ministry said its consulate in Kota Kinabalu had contacted Malaysian authorities and urged them to do everything they could to rescue the tourists.

&quot;Yesterday was the first day of the Chinese Lunar New Year and it should have been a happy day. Unfortunately, such a bad thing happened,&quot; China&#39;s consul-general in Sabah, Chen Peijie, was quoted as saying by Malaysia state news agency Bernama.

An earlier disaster involving Chinese visitors to Malaysia -- the unexplained disappearance of a Malaysia Airlines plane in March 2014 while en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing -- soured relations between the two nations.

Most of the 239 people on board were Chinese and Malaysian authorities were fiercely criticised for allegedly giving little or inaccurate information about the incident. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 
Saturday&#39;s shipwreck came about a week after another maritime tragedy off the southern Malaysian state of Johor.

Several bodies washed ashore at a beach near the east coast town of Mersing in Johor on Monday after a boat believed to be carrying some 40 Indonesian illegal immigrants capsized in rough seas.

(AFP) 
&nbsp;

Five passengers are still missing after a tourist boat sank in rough seas off eastern Malaysia, officials said

Three Chinese passengers died and five are missing after a tourist boat sank in rough seas off eastern Malaysia, officials confirmed late on Sunday, with 22 people rescued following the shipwreck. Twenty Chinese tourists and two of the vessel's three crew members were rescued and sent to a hospital in Kota Kinabalu after the boat sank off Malaysia's Sabah state on Borneo island, according to Malaysian officials. The third crew member has not yet been found, bringing the total number of missing to six. The sinking of the catamaran on Saturday, the first day of the Lunar New Year holiday, sparked a major air and sea search covering some 400 nautical square miles. The mission was halted on Sunday night due to bad weather, but will resume early Monday morning, an official from the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) said. The boat left Saturday morning from the Sabah state capital Kota Kinabalu en route for Pulau Mengalum, an island known for its pristine beaches and dive sites. The boat owner reported it missing on Saturday evening. The skipper and a crew member were found alive earlier Sunday off a nearby island, before the discovery of the other survivors. "According to the skipper, the boat was 'broken' after being hit by waves and sank," Ahmad Puzi Kahar, head of the MMEA, said in a statement. The search and rescue involved officers from the maritime agency, police, navy and air force. Malaysian navy chief Ahmad Kamarulzaman Ahmad Badaruddin said naval ships and a C130 aircraft were used in the search. Roughs seas and strong winds hampered rescue efforts on Saturday night and Sunday, authorities said. Prime Minister Najib Razak said he was closely monitoring developments. Chinese President Xi Jinping "demanded all-out search and rescue efforts" by Malaysia, his country's official Xinhua news agency reported. It added that an emergency team, led by an official from Beijing's national tourism administration, had been set up to handle the incident. Soured relations China's foreign ministry said its consulate in Kota Kinabalu had contacted Malaysian authorities and urged them to do everything they could to rescue the tourists. "Yesterday was the first day of the Chinese Lunar New Year and it should have been a happy day. Unfortunately, such a bad thing happened," China's consul-general in Sabah, Chen Peijie, was quoted as saying by Malaysia state news agency Bernama. An earlier disaster involving Chinese visitors to Malaysia -- the unexplained disappearance of a Malaysia Airlines plane in March 2014 while en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing -- soured relations between the two nations. Most of the 239 people on board were Chinese and Malaysian authorities were fiercely criticised for allegedly giving little or inaccurate information about the incident. Saturday's shipwreck came about a week after another maritime tragedy off the southern Malaysian state of Johor. Several bodies washed ashore at a beach near the east coast town of Mersing in Johor on Monday after a boat believed to be carrying some 40 Indonesian illegal immigrants capsized in rough seas. (AFP)

Malaysia shipwreck: 3 dead, 22 rescued, say officials

Ten people are confirmed dead and about 30 missing after a boat believed to be carrying Indonesian illegal immigrants capsized in rough seas off Malaysia, officials said Monday.

The bodies of six women and four men were washed ashore at a beach near the east coast town of Mersing earlier Monday, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency said.

&quot;We believe there were about 40 Indonesians on the boat and we believe they were illegal immigrants,&quot; an agency spokesman said.

The boat was headed from Indonesia to Malaysia when it capsized. Two passengers were rescued and taken to hospital but their condition was unknown.

A search is underway for the missing.

The agency said the craft probably sank because it was overloaded and hit by rough seas.&nbsp;

No further details were provided but such accidents are common.&nbsp;

Last November a speedboat believed to be carrying illegal Indonesian migrant workers returning from Malaysia sank near Batam Island, south of Singapore. More than 40 people were missing.

(AFP)

'We believe there were about 40 Indonesians on the boat and we believe they were illegal immigrants,' officials said

Ten people are confirmed dead and about 30 missing after a boat believed to be carrying Indonesian illegal immigrants capsized in rough seas off Malaysia, officials said Monday. The bodies of six women and four men were washed ashore at a beach near the east coast town of Mersing earlier Monday, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency said. "We believe there were about 40 Indonesians on the boat and we believe they were illegal immigrants," an agency spokesman said. The boat was headed from Indonesia to Malaysia when it capsized. Two passengers were rescued and taken to hospital but their condition was unknown. A search is underway for the missing. The agency said the craft probably sank because it was overloaded and hit by rough seas. No further details were provided but such accidents are common. Last November a speedboat believed to be carrying illegal Indonesian migrant workers returning from Malaysia sank near Batam Island, south of Singapore. More than 40 people were missing. (AFP)

Ten dead, 30 missing after boat capsizes off Malaysia

The deep-sea search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 ended on Tuesday without any trace being found of the plane that vanished in 2014 with 239 people on board, the three countries involved in the search said.

The location of Flight MH370 has become one of the world&#39;s greatest aviation mysteries since the plane disappeared en route to Beijing from the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur. &quot;Despite every effort using the best science available ... the search has not been able to locate the aircraft,&quot; Malaysian, Australian and Chinese authorities said in a statement.

The last search vessel left the area on Tuesday, the three countries said, after scouring 75,000 square mile&nbsp;area of the Indian Ocean sea floor. Malaysia, Australia and China had agreed in July to suspend the search if the plane was not found or new evidence uncovered once that area had been checked.

Australia in December 2016 dismissed an investigators&#39; recommendation to shift the search further north, saying that no new evidence had emerged to support it. A next-of-kin support group called Voice 370 said in a statement investigators could not leave the matter unsolved.

&quot;In our view, extending the search to the new area defined by the experts is an inescapable duty owed to the flying public in the interest of aviation safety,&quot; Voice 370 said. Most of the passengers were from China. The only confirmed traces of the plane have been three pieces of debris found washed up in Mauritius, the French island Reunion and an island off the coast of Tanzania.

As many as 30 other pieces of wreckage were found there and also at beaches in Mozambique, Tanzania and South Africa are suspected to have come from the plane.

(Reuters)

The Malaysia Airlines plane vanished in 2014 with 239 people on board

The deep-sea search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 ended on Tuesday without any trace being found of the plane that vanished in 2014 with 239 people on board, the three countries involved in the search said. The location of Flight MH370 has become one of the world's greatest aviation mysteries since the plane disappeared en route to Beijing from the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur. "Despite every effort using the best science available ... the search has not been able to locate the aircraft," Malaysian, Australian and Chinese authorities said in a statement. The last search vessel left the area on Tuesday, the three countries said, after scouring 75,000 square mile area of the Indian Ocean sea floor. Malaysia, Australia and China had agreed in July to suspend the search if the plane was not found or new evidence uncovered once that area had been checked. Australia in December 2016 dismissed an investigators' recommendation to shift the search further north, saying that no new evidence had emerged to support it. A next-of-kin support group called Voice 370 said in a statement investigators could not leave the matter unsolved. "In our view, extending the search to the new area defined by the experts is an inescapable duty owed to the flying public in the interest of aviation safety," Voice 370 said. Most of the passengers were from China. The only confirmed traces of the plane have been three pieces of debris found washed up in Mauritius, the French island Reunion and an island off the coast of Tanzania. As many as 30 other pieces of wreckage were found there and also at beaches in Mozambique, Tanzania and South Africa are suspected to have come from the plane. (Reuters)

Three years on & with no plane found, search for MH 370 ends

Jailed&nbsp;Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim lost his final bid for freedom on Wednesday when the federal court rejected his appeal to set aside his sodomy conviction and five-year jail term.

A five-member panel of judges ruled unanimously that there was no merit in Anwar&#39;s application for a review of his 2014 conviction, his final legal option for an acquittal. He will now have to serve out the remaining 16 months of his prison term.

&quot;This is not a fit or proper case for this court to exercise its inherent jurisdiction to initiate a review,&quot; Zulkefli Ahmad Makinudin, the Chief Judge of Malaya, said as he read excerpts from a 60-page ruling.

Anwar, once a rising star in the ruling party, is the greatest threat to Prime Minister Najib Razak and his coalition, after leading a three-party opposition alliance to stunning electoral gains in 2013.

He was convicted and jailed for sodomising a former aide, a charge that Anwar and his supporters say was a politically motivated attempt to end his career.

&quot;This is not the end of the road ... I have pleaded and reiterated my innocence but the judiciary has ignored my pleas,&quot; Anwar told reporters in the court after the verdict.

&quot;This is a long walk to freedom,&quot; he said.

His wife, children and grandchildren were in court. Crowds of supporters gathered outside in a show of support for their 69-year-old leader.

A former ruling party deputy prime minister, Anwar&#39;s legal troubles began soon after he fell out with then prime minister Mahathir Mohamad in the late 1990s and was sacked.

He then campaigned against corruption and nepotism and led a nationwide &quot;reformasi&quot;, or reform, protest movement. He was later jailed for the first time on charges of sodomy and graft.

&nbsp;

(Reuters)

Anwar Ibrahim,was convicted and jailed for sodomising a former aide

Jailed Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim lost his final bid for freedom on Wednesday when the federal court rejected his appeal to set aside his sodomy conviction and five-year jail term. A five-member panel of judges ruled unanimously that there was no merit in Anwar's application for a review of his 2014 conviction, his final legal option for an acquittal. He will now have to serve out the remaining 16 months of his prison term. "This is not a fit or proper case for this court to exercise its inherent jurisdiction to initiate a review," Zulkefli Ahmad Makinudin, the Chief Judge of Malaya, said as he read excerpts from a 60-page ruling. Anwar, once a rising star in the ruling party, is the greatest threat to Prime Minister Najib Razak and his coalition, after leading a three-party opposition alliance to stunning electoral gains in 2013. He was convicted and jailed for sodomising a former aide, a charge that Anwar and his supporters say was a politically motivated attempt to end his career. "This is not the end of the road ... I have pleaded and reiterated my innocence but the judiciary has ignored my pleas," Anwar told reporters in the court after the verdict. "This is a long walk to freedom," he said. His wife, children and grandchildren were in court. Crowds of supporters gathered outside in a show of support for their 69-year-old leader. A former ruling party deputy prime minister, Anwar's legal troubles began soon after he fell out with then prime minister Mahathir Mohamad in the late 1990s and was sacked. He then campaigned against corruption and nepotism and led a nationwide "reformasi", or reform, protest movement. He was later jailed for the first time on charges of sodomy and graft. (Reuters)

Malaysia: Opposition leader loses final court appeal against sodomy conviction

Malaysia&#39;s national soccer team has cancelled two friendly under-22 matches with Myanmar, in protest against the Southeast Asian nation&#39;s bloody crackdown on ethnic Rohingya Muslims, a team spokesman said on Thursday.

Muslim-majority Malaysia has been increasingly critical of Myanmar&#39;s handling of violence in northern Rakhine state that has sent hundreds of people fleeing across the border to Bangladesh, amid allegations of abuses by security forces.

The violence is the most serious bloodshed in Rakhine since communal clashes in 2012 that killed hundreds.

Referring to the cancellation of the games set for later this month, the spokesman told Reuters, &quot;It was a political decision because of the Rohingya issue.&quot; He declined to be identified because the topic is a sensitive one.

In a posting on social network Twitter on Wednesday, national football team Harimau Malaysia said, &quot;International matches between under-22 Harimau Malaysia vs Myanmar, which were scheduled to take place on Dec. 9 and 12 in Yangon, have been cancelled.&quot;

Last month, Malaysia said it was considering pulling out of a regional soccer tournament co-hosted by Myanmar over the Rohingya crackdown, but ministers later decided against this.

Such a withdrawal from the ASEAN Football Federation&#39;s Suzuki Cup would have run counter to the 10-nation grouping&#39;s long-standing policy of non-interference in other members&#39; affairs.

Myanmar&#39;s membership of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations should be reviewed because of the &quot;cruelty&quot; imposed on its ethnic Muslim community, Malaysia&#39;s sports minister Khairy Jamaluddin said on Wednesday.

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak is set to attend a gathering on Sunday to express concern over the Rohingya issue.

(Agencies)

Malaysia's protest comes as Rohingya Muslims flee to Bangladesh amid the most violence they've faced since clashes in 2012 killed hundreds

Malaysia's national soccer team has cancelled two friendly under-22 matches with Myanmar, in protest against the Southeast Asian nation's bloody crackdown on ethnic Rohingya Muslims, a team spokesman said on Thursday. Muslim-majority Malaysia has been increasingly critical of Myanmar's handling of violence in northern Rakhine state that has sent hundreds of people fleeing across the border to Bangladesh, amid allegations of abuses by security forces. The violence is the most serious bloodshed in Rakhine since communal clashes in 2012 that killed hundreds. Referring to the cancellation of the games set for later this month, the spokesman told Reuters, "It was a political decision because of the Rohingya issue." He declined to be identified because the topic is a sensitive one. In a posting on social network Twitter on Wednesday, national football team Harimau Malaysia said, "International matches between under-22 Harimau Malaysia vs Myanmar, which were scheduled to take place on Dec. 9 and 12 in Yangon, have been cancelled." Last month, Malaysia said it was considering pulling out of a regional soccer tournament co-hosted by Myanmar over the Rohingya crackdown, but ministers later decided against this. Such a withdrawal from the ASEAN Football Federation's Suzuki Cup would have run counter to the 10-nation grouping's long-standing policy of non-interference in other members' affairs. Myanmar's membership of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations should be reviewed because of the "cruelty" imposed on its ethnic Muslim community, Malaysia's sports minister Khairy Jamaluddin said on Wednesday. Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak is set to attend a gathering on Sunday to express concern over the Rohingya issue. (Agencies)

Malaysia cancels two soccer matches with Myanmar over Rohingya crackdown

To make it easy for Muslims to identify halal products, Ikiam along with the Malaysian Rubber Industry Smallholders Development Authority (Risda) is designing a logo that will carry a &lsquo;Made by Muslims&rsquo; stamp. The Department of Islamic Development Malaysia already has an official halal logo for products made within the country, but now wants to create a revised logo that states whether the products were also made in a halal environment. Unlike popular belief, the concept of halal covers more than just food and beverages, it also includes cosmetics and toiletries.

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This picture shows the entrance of a halal butchery in Lille, northern France. (AFP)
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The Malaysian Institute of International Islamic Corporation (Ikiam) is an organisation that works to help entrepreneurs of Malaysia capitalise on the global halal market. Halal is an Arabic term for something that is permissible within the ambit of Islam. Muslims around the world are governed by this rule, which defines what is officially allowed for consumption. For example, pork and its by-products along with alcohol are forbidden for Muslims. According to the Halal Research Council, the global halal food market is worth US$580,915 and is growing substantially every year.

Malaysia is a big contributor to the halal market. It, in fact, launched the first halal compliant airline in 2015. All meals on Rayani Air are halal and alcohol consumption is completely prohibited. The airline, however, shut down recently due to issues of negligence. 
&nbsp;

(Contributed by: Zeba Khan)

The new logo will authenticate products made under a halal environment

To make it easy for Muslims to identify halal products, Ikiam along with the Malaysian Rubber Industry Smallholders Development Authority (Risda) is designing a logo that will carry a ‘Made by Muslims’ stamp. The Department of Islamic Development Malaysia already has an official halal logo for products made within the country, but now wants to create a revised logo that states whether the products were also made in a halal environment. Unlike popular belief, the concept of halal covers more than just food and beverages, it also includes cosmetics and toiletries. This picture shows the entrance of a halal butchery in Lille, northern France. (AFP) × The Malaysian Institute of International Islamic Corporation (Ikiam) is an organisation that works to help entrepreneurs of Malaysia capitalise on the global halal market. Halal is an Arabic term for something that is permissible within the ambit of Islam. Muslims around the world are governed by this rule, which defines what is officially allowed for consumption. For example, pork and its by-products along with alcohol are forbidden for Muslims. According to the Halal Research Council, the global halal food market is worth US$580,915 and is growing substantially every year. Malaysia is a big contributor to the halal market. It, in fact, launched the first halal compliant airline in 2015. All meals on Rayani Air are halal and alcohol consumption is completely prohibited. The airline, however, shut down recently due to issues of negligence. (Contributed by: Zeba Khan)

'Made by Muslims': A new label in town

Fired-up Malaysians Goh V Shem and Tan&nbsp;Wee Kiong upset the powerful Chinese duo of Chai Biao and Hong Wei&nbsp;to reach the final of the men&#39;s doubles at the Olympic badminton&nbsp;on Tuesday. 
 
Roared on by a raucous contingent of home fans, the 12th-ranked&nbsp;pair closed out an impressive 21-18 21-17 win at the Riocentro to&nbsp;give Malaysia another chance to win its first ever Olympic gold&nbsp;medal. 
 
Malaysia have already secured at least two silver medals at the&nbsp;badminton, with Chan Peng Soon and Goh Liu Ying to contest the&nbsp;mixed doubles final against Indonesian duo Tontowi Ahmad and&nbsp;Liliyana Natsir. 
 
China&#39;s Fu Haifeng and Zhang Nan play Britain&#39;s Marcus Ellis and&nbsp;Chris Langridge in the other men&#39;s doubles semi-final later on&nbsp;Tuesday. 
 
The gold medal decider is on Friday. 
 
(Reuters)

The 12th-ranked?pair have given Malaysia another chance to win its first ever Olympic gold

Fired-up Malaysians Goh V Shem and Tan Wee Kiong upset the powerful Chinese duo of Chai Biao and Hong Wei to reach the final of the men's doubles at the Olympic badminton on Tuesday. Roared on by a raucous contingent of home fans, the 12th-ranked pair closed out an impressive 21-18 21-17 win at the Riocentro to give Malaysia another chance to win its first ever Olympic gold medal. Malaysia have already secured at least two silver medals at the badminton, with Chan Peng Soon and Goh Liu Ying to contest the mixed doubles final against Indonesian duo Tontowi Ahmad and Liliyana Natsir. China's Fu Haifeng and Zhang Nan play Britain's Marcus Ellis and Chris Langridge in the other men's doubles semi-final later on Tuesday. The gold medal decider is on Friday. (Reuters)

Rio Olympics 2016: Malaysians reach men's badminton doubles final

A Malaysian television show has apologised following an outcry on social media over a comedy skit featuring an actor in &quot;black-face&quot; makeup pretending to be US R&amp;B star Usher. 
 
The skit was a parody of a recent performance by popular Malaysian singer Yuna and Usher in the US in June, where they had hugged, sparking criticism in conservative Muslim-majority Malaysia. 
 
Malaysia bars hugging, kissing and foul language by performers on stage. It also prohibits women from baring skin between their shoulders and knees. 
 
In the spoof, a woman acting as Yuna bows in front of the comedian in &quot;black-face&quot; make up posing as Usher, instead of hugging him. 
 
The video, which was shared widely on social media, was broadcast on local Malay entertainment programme &quot;MeleTOP&quot; on Tuesday. 
 
The show tweeted late Wednesday: &quot;We would like to sincerely apologise to Yuna &amp; Usher for our recent parody video, which was poor judgement on our part.&nbsp;We have removed the video and would like to request everyone not to share it.&quot; 
 
Many on social media condemned the racism in the parody. 
 
&quot;Yuna made Malaysia proud all around the world and this is how you show her your appreciation,&quot; a Twitter user wrote.&nbsp;Yuna is a Muslim ethnic Malay whose soulful singing has made waves in the US.&nbsp;She recently released a new single featuring Usher called &quot;Crush&quot;. The R&amp;B star also appears in her music video for that hit track. 
 
Yuna, who swaddles her hair in a chic version of the Muslim hijab head covering worn by many Malay women, has come far since uploading her first song on Myspace in 2006. 
 
But she and other Malaysian female entertainers sometimes face criticism from religious authorities and online trolls over what they wear and what they do. 
 
(AFP)&nbsp; 
 
&nbsp;

The skit that sparked outcry was a parody of a recent performance by popular Malaysian singer Yuna and Usher in the US in June

A Malaysian television show has apologised following an outcry on social media over a comedy skit featuring an actor in "black-face" makeup pretending to be US R&B star Usher. The skit was a parody of a recent performance by popular Malaysian singer Yuna and Usher in the US in June, where they had hugged, sparking criticism in conservative Muslim-majority Malaysia. Malaysia bars hugging, kissing and foul language by performers on stage. It also prohibits women from baring skin between their shoulders and knees. In the spoof, a woman acting as Yuna bows in front of the comedian in "black-face" make up posing as Usher, instead of hugging him. The video, which was shared widely on social media, was broadcast on local Malay entertainment programme "MeleTOP" on Tuesday. The show tweeted late Wednesday: "We would like to sincerely apologise to Yuna & Usher for our recent parody video, which was poor judgement on our part. We have removed the video and would like to request everyone not to share it." Many on social media condemned the racism in the parody. "Yuna made Malaysia proud all around the world and this is how you show her your appreciation," a Twitter user wrote. Yuna is a Muslim ethnic Malay whose soulful singing has made waves in the US. She recently released a new single featuring Usher called "Crush". The R&B star also appears in her music video for that hit track. Yuna, who swaddles her hair in a chic version of the Muslim hijab head covering worn by many Malay women, has come far since uploading her first song on Myspace in 2006. But she and other Malaysian female entertainers sometimes face criticism from religious authorities and online trolls over what they wear and what they do. (AFP)

Malaysia TV show responds to social media outcry, apologises for 'black-face' Usher parody

Vietnam has warned that the inability of Southeast Asian nations to forge a unified front against Beijing&#39;s militarisation of the South China Sea is a &quot;test&quot; of the regional bloc in the face of its greatest security challenge. 
 
The unusually strong comments from a key claimant to the contested waters, comes as diplomats meet in Laos for the first summit since a UN-backed tribunal debunked Beijing&#39;s legal claim to vast stretches of the strategically vital sea. 
 
After talks stuttered on Sunday, Vietnam&#39;s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a late night statement warning that the South China Sea had become &quot;a test case for the unity and the central role of ASEAN&quot;. 
 
&quot;Many ministers stressed that in this context, ASEAN should promote solidarity, unity and a central role,&quot; the statement added. 
 
Diplomats met for a new round of crunch talks, called for by Laos today morning.&nbsp;As they came to a close, Indonesia&#39;s foreign minister, Retno Marsudi, expressed optimism that a statement would be agreed to, though diplomats previously told AFP it would likely be &quot;watered down&quot;. 
 
Staunch Beijing ally Cambodia has been accused of scuppering efforts by the bloc to issue a joint statement calling on Beijing to adhere to the UN tribunal&#39;s decision.&nbsp;Four ASEAN members - Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei have competing claims with Beijing over parts of the South China Sea.&nbsp; 
 
Most members of the bloc want to keep pressure on China over its campaign of island building in the strategic waters.&nbsp;But ASEAN operates on a tradition of consensus diplomacy, meaning a single nation can have an effective veto power if it disagrees with the others. 
 
China has been accused of teasing poorer members like Laos and Cambodia into fracturing regional unity with promises of aid and trade.&nbsp;Critics have long derided ASEAN for lacking real diplomatic clout. 
 
A failure to respond to the tribunal ruling or the region&#39;s key security issue will do little to counter those claims.&nbsp;The ongoing impasse in Vientiane has led to fears of a repeat of a 2012 summit in Cambodia, where the bloc failed to issue a joint communique for the first time in its history because of disagreements over the South China Sea. 
 
Chinese pressure was blamed last month for a startling show of discord by the bloc, when countries swiftly disowned a joint statement released by Malaysia after an ASEAN-China meeting.&nbsp;That statement had expressed alarm over Beijing&#39;s activities in the South China Sea. Cambodia and Laos were later fingered as being behind moves to block the joint statement. 
 
(AFP)

Four ASEAN members - Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei have competing claims with Beijing over parts of the South China Sea

Vietnam has warned that the inability of Southeast Asian nations to forge a unified front against Beijing's militarisation of the South China Sea is a "test" of the regional bloc in the face of its greatest security challenge. The unusually strong comments from a key claimant to the contested waters, comes as diplomats meet in Laos for the first summit since a UN-backed tribunal debunked Beijing's legal claim to vast stretches of the strategically vital sea. After talks stuttered on Sunday, Vietnam's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a late night statement warning that the South China Sea had become "a test case for the unity and the central role of ASEAN". "Many ministers stressed that in this context, ASEAN should promote solidarity, unity and a central role," the statement added. Diplomats met for a new round of crunch talks, called for by Laos today morning. As they came to a close, Indonesia's foreign minister, Retno Marsudi, expressed optimism that a statement would be agreed to, though diplomats previously told AFP it would likely be "watered down". Staunch Beijing ally Cambodia has been accused of scuppering efforts by the bloc to issue a joint statement calling on Beijing to adhere to the UN tribunal's decision. Four ASEAN members - Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei have competing claims with Beijing over parts of the South China Sea. Most members of the bloc want to keep pressure on China over its campaign of island building in the strategic waters. But ASEAN operates on a tradition of consensus diplomacy, meaning a single nation can have an effective veto power if it disagrees with the others. China has been accused of teasing poorer members like Laos and Cambodia into fracturing regional unity with promises of aid and trade. Critics have long derided ASEAN for lacking real diplomatic clout. A failure to respond to the tribunal ruling or the region's key security issue will do little to counter those claims. The ongoing impasse in Vientiane has led to fears of a repeat of a 2012 summit in Cambodia, where the bloc failed to issue a joint communique for the first time in its history because of disagreements over the South China Sea. Chinese pressure was blamed last month for a startling show of discord by the bloc, when countries swiftly disowned a joint statement released by Malaysia after an ASEAN-China meeting. That statement had expressed alarm over Beijing's activities in the South China Sea. Cambodia and Laos were later fingered as being behind moves to block the joint statement. (AFP)

Vietnam warns South China Sea is a 'test' of ASEAN

The pilot who flew missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, which is believed to have gone off route and crashed in the Indian Ocean, conducted a simulation of a similar path just weeks prior, New York magazine reported. 
 
Zaharie Ahmad Shah, the highly respected airman at the helm of the plane, used an elaborate home-built flight simulator to steer himself over the Strait of Malacca and into the remote southern Indian ocean, a course with striking resemblance to the route MH370 is believed to have taken. 
 
The finding, which casts a shadow of suspicion over the 53-year-old pilot, was published on Friday by New York magazine, which obtained a confidential document from Malaysian police investigating the incident. 
 
According to the document, the FBI recovered deleted data points from the flight simulator on Zaharie&#39;s hard drive. 
 
&quot;We found a flight path, that lead to the Southern Indian Ocean, among the numerous other flight paths charted on the flight simulator, that could be of interest,&quot; the document said, according to New York magazine. 
 
Although the paths are similar, the simulated flight&#39;s endpoint is located some 900 miles (1,450 kilometers) from the area where the plane is believed to have gone down. 
 
The Boeing 777 vanished for unknown reasons on March 8, 2014 en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people aboard mostly Chinese nationals. It remains one of the greatest mysteries in aviation history. 
 
The Malaysian government continues to maintain that it does not know what caused the incident. 
 
At the time Zaharie, an opposition supporter came under scrutiny amid unsubstantiated reports that he was upset over a jail sentence handed to Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, hours before the plane took off or was suicidal due to personal problems. 
 
But his family and friends strongly reject such claims as baseless. 
 
News of the simulated flight came the same day that Malaysia, Australia and China, the three nations leading the search, said that hope of finding the flight&#39;s final resting place is &quot;fading&quot; and that the massive hunt will be suspended if nothing turns up in the suspected crash zone. 
 
(AFP)

The FBI has managed to recover deleted data points from the flight simulator on the pilot's hard drive

The pilot who flew missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, which is believed to have gone off route and crashed in the Indian Ocean, conducted a simulation of a similar path just weeks prior, New York magazine reported. Zaharie Ahmad Shah, the highly respected airman at the helm of the plane, used an elaborate home-built flight simulator to steer himself over the Strait of Malacca and into the remote southern Indian ocean, a course with striking resemblance to the route MH370 is believed to have taken. The finding, which casts a shadow of suspicion over the 53-year-old pilot, was published on Friday by New York magazine, which obtained a confidential document from Malaysian police investigating the incident. According to the document, the FBI recovered deleted data points from the flight simulator on Zaharie's hard drive. "We found a flight path, that lead to the Southern Indian Ocean, among the numerous other flight paths charted on the flight simulator, that could be of interest," the document said, according to New York magazine. Although the paths are similar, the simulated flight's endpoint is located some 900 miles (1,450 kilometers) from the area where the plane is believed to have gone down. The Boeing 777 vanished for unknown reasons on March 8, 2014 en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people aboard mostly Chinese nationals. It remains one of the greatest mysteries in aviation history. The Malaysian government continues to maintain that it does not know what caused the incident. At the time Zaharie, an opposition supporter came under scrutiny amid unsubstantiated reports that he was upset over a jail sentence handed to Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, hours before the plane took off or was suicidal due to personal problems. But his family and friends strongly reject such claims as baseless. News of the simulated flight came the same day that Malaysia, Australia and China, the three nations leading the search, said that hope of finding the flight's final resting place is "fading" and that the massive hunt will be suspended if nothing turns up in the suspected crash zone. (AFP)

MH370 pilot flew similar route on home simulator few weeks prior to final flight: Report

Hopes of finding flight MH370&#39;s final resting place are &quot;fading&quot;, and the massive three-nation search for the doomed jet will be suspended if nothing is found in the suspected crash zone, Malaysia, Australia and China said today. 
 
With the designated search area due to be fully scanned within weeks, transport ministers from the three countries made their announcement after holding talks on the future of the unprecedented deep-sea hunt for the Malaysia Airlines passenger plane. 
 
&quot;With less than 10,000 square kilometres of the high priority search area remaining to be searched, ministers acknowledged that despite the best efforts of all involved the likelihood of finding the aircraft is fading,&quot; said a joint statement after the meeting in Malaysia&#39;s administrative capital Putrajaya. 
 
Unless &quot;credible new evidence&quot; turns up by the time the current operations are completed, &quot;the search would not end, but be suspended&quot; until solid new information pointing to a crash site emerges, they said. 
 
&quot;The suspension does not mean the termination of the search. Ministers reiterated that the aspiration to locate MH370 has not been abandoned,&quot; said the statement by meeting host Liow Tiong Lai, Australia&#39;s Darren Chester and China&#39;s Yang Chuantang. 
 
The use of the term &quot;suspended&quot; was an apparent nod to anguished families who have stepped up demands recently for authorities not to fully abandon efforts to locate the aircraft. 
 
The Boeing 777 vanished March 8, 2014 en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people aboard, mostly Chinese nationals, in what remains one of the greatest mysteries in aviation history. 
 
The Australian-led operation is scouring the seafloor within a 120,000-square-kilometre belt of remote Indian Ocean where authorities believe the passenger jet went down. 
 
(AFP)

Until new information pointing to a crash site emerges, the hunt will be suspended but not terminated

Hopes of finding flight MH370's final resting place are "fading", and the massive three-nation search for the doomed jet will be suspended if nothing is found in the suspected crash zone, Malaysia, Australia and China said today. With the designated search area due to be fully scanned within weeks, transport ministers from the three countries made their announcement after holding talks on the future of the unprecedented deep-sea hunt for the Malaysia Airlines passenger plane. "With less than 10,000 square kilometres of the high priority search area remaining to be searched, ministers acknowledged that despite the best efforts of all involved the likelihood of finding the aircraft is fading," said a joint statement after the meeting in Malaysia's administrative capital Putrajaya. Unless "credible new evidence" turns up by the time the current operations are completed, "the search would not end, but be suspended" until solid new information pointing to a crash site emerges, they said. "The suspension does not mean the termination of the search. Ministers reiterated that the aspiration to locate MH370 has not been abandoned," said the statement by meeting host Liow Tiong Lai, Australia's Darren Chester and China's Yang Chuantang. The use of the term "suspended" was an apparent nod to anguished families who have stepped up demands recently for authorities not to fully abandon efforts to locate the aircraft. The Boeing 777 vanished March 8, 2014 en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people aboard, mostly Chinese nationals, in what remains one of the greatest mysteries in aviation history. The Australian-led operation is scouring the seafloor within a 120,000-square-kilometre belt of remote Indian Ocean where authorities believe the passenger jet went down. (AFP)

MH370 hopes 'fading', search to be suspended

Goldman Sachs&#39; work with Malaysian sovereign wealth fund 1MDB is under the spotlight over US government&#39;s allegations that billions of dollars were diverted for the personal use of officials in the south-east Asian country. 
 
The Wall Street bank helped 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a development company owned by the government of Malaysia, raise $6.5 billion in three bond sales in 2012 and 2013 to invest in energy projects and real estate to boost the Malaysian economy. 
 
Instead, more than $2.5 billion raised from those bonds was misappropriated by high-level 1MDB officials, their relatives and associates, US department of justice civil lawsuits filed in court on Wednesday said. 
 
Prosecutors said the money was used to buy artwork, including paintings by Vincent Van Gogh and Claude Monet, luxury properties in New York and London and gambling debts in Las Vegas. 
 
Goldman Sachs, which earned close to $600 million to arrange and underwrite the 1MDB bonds, has not been accused of any wrongdoing. 
 
&quot;We helped raise money for a sovereign wealth fund that was designed to invest in Malaysia. We had no visibility into whether some of those funds may have been subsequently diverted to other purposes,&quot; a spokesman for the bank said. 
 
The FBI and other US regulators, including New York&#39;s department of financial services, have been investigating Goldman Sachs&#39; business relationship with 1MDB. 
 
The Wall Street bank had deep ties with 1MDB and Malaysia. In May 2012, it had helped 1MDB raise $1.75 billion in a bond deal it dubbed &quot;Project Magnolia&quot;, and $1.75 billion in a separate bond issue it called &quot;Project Maximus&quot; in October 2012. 
 
The justice department said that the offering circulars for the two bonds contained &quot;material misrepresentations and omissions&quot; over what the proceeds of the bonds would be used for and the nature of the relationship between 1MDB and International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC), an entity owned by the Abu Dhabi government. 
 
IPIC guaranteed one bond directly and another one indirectly. The US government&#39;s allegations were that no reference to IPIC&#39;s indirect guarantee was included on the second bond offering circular. 
 
After 1MDB received the proceeds of the 2012 bonds, approximately $1.3 billion was misappropriated and fraudulently diverted to bank accounts in Switzerland and Singapore, according to the lawsuits. 
 
In 2013, Goldman helped 1MDB raise $3 billion, in a transaction referred to as &quot;Project Catalyze&quot;. The Department of Justice lawsuit said that more than $1.26 billion in proceeds from that bond was diverted to overseas shell company accounts. 
 
US authorities said that the offer document used to sell the bond failed to disclose that individuals connected to 1MDB would receive hundreds of millions of dollars from the bond proceeds within days of its closing. 
 
&quot;This fact would have been material to the bond transaction, as it would have alerted investors to the possibility of conflicts of interest and related-party transactions,&quot; one of the lawsuits said. 
 
(Reuters)&nbsp;

FBI and other US regulators have been probing Goldman Sachs' business relationship with 1MDB, Malaysian government's development company

Goldman Sachs' work with Malaysian sovereign wealth fund 1MDB is under the spotlight over US government's allegations that billions of dollars were diverted for the personal use of officials in the south-east Asian country. The Wall Street bank helped 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a development company owned by the government of Malaysia, raise $6.5 billion in three bond sales in 2012 and 2013 to invest in energy projects and real estate to boost the Malaysian economy. Instead, more than $2.5 billion raised from those bonds was misappropriated by high-level 1MDB officials, their relatives and associates, US department of justice civil lawsuits filed in court on Wednesday said. Prosecutors said the money was used to buy artwork, including paintings by Vincent Van Gogh and Claude Monet, luxury properties in New York and London and gambling debts in Las Vegas. Goldman Sachs, which earned close to $600 million to arrange and underwrite the 1MDB bonds, has not been accused of any wrongdoing. "We helped raise money for a sovereign wealth fund that was designed to invest in Malaysia. We had no visibility into whether some of those funds may have been subsequently diverted to other purposes," a spokesman for the bank said. The FBI and other US regulators, including New York's department of financial services, have been investigating Goldman Sachs' business relationship with 1MDB. The Wall Street bank had deep ties with 1MDB and Malaysia. In May 2012, it had helped 1MDB raise $1.75 billion in a bond deal it dubbed "Project Magnolia", and $1.75 billion in a separate bond issue it called "Project Maximus" in October 2012. The justice department said that the offering circulars for the two bonds contained "material misrepresentations and omissions" over what the proceeds of the bonds would be used for and the nature of the relationship between 1MDB and International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC), an entity owned by the Abu Dhabi government. IPIC guaranteed one bond directly and another one indirectly. The US government's allegations were that no reference to IPIC's indirect guarantee was included on the second bond offering circular. After 1MDB received the proceeds of the 2012 bonds, approximately $1.3 billion was misappropriated and fraudulently diverted to bank accounts in Switzerland and Singapore, according to the lawsuits. In 2013, Goldman helped 1MDB raise $3 billion, in a transaction referred to as "Project Catalyze". The Department of Justice lawsuit said that more than $1.26 billion in proceeds from that bond was diverted to overseas shell company accounts. US authorities said that the offer document used to sell the bond failed to disclose that individuals connected to 1MDB would receive hundreds of millions of dollars from the bond proceeds within days of its closing. "This fact would have been material to the bond transaction, as it would have alerted investors to the possibility of conflicts of interest and related-party transactions," one of the lawsuits said. (Reuters)

Goldman Sachs under spotlight in Malaysian fund scandal

The US Justice Department said today it is moving to seize more than $1 billion in assets linked to Malaysia&#39;s 1Malaysia Development Berhad state investment fund. 
 
The assets are &quot;associated with an international conspiracy to launder funds misappropriated&quot; from 1MBD, which was established by Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak to support economic investment, the Justice Department said. 
 
US Attorney General Loretta Lynch will reveal details of the seizure effort later today. 
 
The scandal around the embezzlement of billions of dollars from the fund, much of them borrowed, has battered Najib&#39;s government. 
 
Authorities from Singapore to Switzerland and the United States have joined in tracking down missing funds of 1MDB, which is owned by the Malaysian Finance Ministry also headed by Najib. He also chaired the company&#39;s advisory board until it was dissolved in May. 
 
Switzerland and Singapore have frozen millions of dollars worth of assets on suspicion of 1MDB-related embezzlement and money-laundering but so far no major figures have been brought to justice. 
 
In July 2015, The Wall Street Journal revealed that Najib had received payments totaling $681 million in his personal bank accounts in 2013. Subsequent reports said the money originated from 1MDB and may have exceeded $1 billion, which 1MDB denies. 
 
The government later acknowledged the payments, but called them a &quot;personal donation&quot; from the Saudi royal family. 
 
(AFP)

The scandal around the embezzlement of billions of dollars from the fund, much of them borrowed, has battered Najib's government

The US Justice Department said today it is moving to seize more than $1 billion in assets linked to Malaysia's 1Malaysia Development Berhad state investment fund. The assets are "associated with an international conspiracy to launder funds misappropriated" from 1MBD, which was established by Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak to support economic investment, the Justice Department said. US Attorney General Loretta Lynch will reveal details of the seizure effort later today. The scandal around the embezzlement of billions of dollars from the fund, much of them borrowed, has battered Najib's government. Authorities from Singapore to Switzerland and the United States have joined in tracking down missing funds of 1MDB, which is owned by the Malaysian Finance Ministry also headed by Najib. He also chaired the company's advisory board until it was dissolved in May. Switzerland and Singapore have frozen millions of dollars worth of assets on suspicion of 1MDB-related embezzlement and money-laundering but so far no major figures have been brought to justice. In July 2015, The Wall Street Journal revealed that Najib had received payments totaling $681 million in his personal bank accounts in 2013. Subsequent reports said the money originated from 1MDB and may have exceeded $1 billion, which 1MDB denies. The government later acknowledged the payments, but called them a "personal donation" from the Saudi royal family. (AFP)

US moves to seize $1 billion in assets of Malaysian 1MDB fund

Singapore will call for tenders for waste and water infrastructure projects, estimated to cost a total of S$9.5 billion ($7.03 billion), as the land-scarce nation looks for more ways to manage refuse and treat used water. 
 
PUB, Singapore&#39;s national water agency, will request for consultancy and construction tenders from the third quarter for the second phase of its deep tunnel sewerage system. This includes extending the existing system and transporting used water from municipal and industrial sources to a new treatment plant. 
 
Singapore is a hub for water technology and is working towards becoming self-sufficient in water by 2061, when a supply agreement with Malaysia expires. 
 
Tenders will also be called for a planned integrated waste management facility, which will be able to process different kinds of waste and will have an incineration capacity of 5,800 tonnes per day, the PUB and the National Environment Agency of Singapore said in a statement on Monday. 
 
(Reuters)&nbsp;

Aiming to be self-sufficient in water by 2061, when a supply pact with Malaysia expires, the country is looking at ways to treat used water

Singapore will call for tenders for waste and water infrastructure projects, estimated to cost a total of S$9.5 billion ($7.03 billion), as the land-scarce nation looks for more ways to manage refuse and treat used water. PUB, Singapore's national water agency, will request for consultancy and construction tenders from the third quarter for the second phase of its deep tunnel sewerage system. This includes extending the existing system and transporting used water from municipal and industrial sources to a new treatment plant. Singapore is a hub for water technology and is working towards becoming self-sufficient in water by 2061, when a supply agreement with Malaysia expires. Tenders will also be called for a planned integrated waste management facility, which will be able to process different kinds of waste and will have an incineration capacity of 5,800 tonnes per day, the PUB and the National Environment Agency of Singapore said in a statement on Monday. (Reuters)

Singapore to call for tenders in $7 billion waste and water projects

Adverse weather has caused a delay of up to eight weeks in the Indian Ocean search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, search officials said on Wednesday, pushing the hunt well beyond an expected conclusion date of mid-2016. 
 
The jet carrying 239 passengers and crew disappeared enroute from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8, 2014 in one of aviation&#39;s great mysteries. A wing part, known as a flaperon, washed up on the French island of Reunion in July 2015. 
 
Crash investigators have otherwise confirmed no other trace of the plane. An undersea search of the southern Indian Ocean, history&#39;s costliest such effort, has turned up nothing. 
 
&quot;Poor weather conditions have severely impacted search operations,&quot; the Joint Agency Coordination Centre in charge of the search said in a statement. 
 
&quot;Progress has slowed, with only a minimal area searched&quot; since the start of the southern hemisphere winter, it added. 
 
The search has covered 110,000 sq km (42,000 sq miles) of ocean floor, leaving just 10,000 sq km (3,800 sq miles) unchecked, said the agency, which represents the Australian, Malaysian and Chinese authorities spearheading the effort. 
 
The poor weather will permit some use of deep tow equipment, but an autonomous underwater vehicle that surveys the most difficult stretches can only be launched in the calmer conditions of spring and summer, the agency added. 
 
If the weather remains hostile or equipment fails, the search &quot;may continue well beyond the winter months,&quot; it said. 
 
The agency had originally expected to wrap up its search of about 120,000 sq km (46,000 sq miles) of ocean floor in mid-2016. 
 
(Reuters)

In one of aviation's great mysteries, the jet carrying 239 passengers and crew disappeared on March 8, 2014

Adverse weather has caused a delay of up to eight weeks in the Indian Ocean search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, search officials said on Wednesday, pushing the hunt well beyond an expected conclusion date of mid-2016. The jet carrying 239 passengers and crew disappeared enroute from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8, 2014 in one of aviation's great mysteries. A wing part, known as a flaperon, washed up on the French island of Reunion in July 2015. Crash investigators have otherwise confirmed no other trace of the plane. An undersea search of the southern Indian Ocean, history's costliest such effort, has turned up nothing. "Poor weather conditions have severely impacted search operations," the Joint Agency Coordination Centre in charge of the search said in a statement. "Progress has slowed, with only a minimal area searched" since the start of the southern hemisphere winter, it added. The search has covered 110,000 sq km (42,000 sq miles) of ocean floor, leaving just 10,000 sq km (3,800 sq miles) unchecked, said the agency, which represents the Australian, Malaysian and Chinese authorities spearheading the effort. The poor weather will permit some use of deep tow equipment, but an autonomous underwater vehicle that surveys the most difficult stretches can only be launched in the calmer conditions of spring and summer, the agency added. If the weather remains hostile or equipment fails, the search "may continue well beyond the winter months," it said. The agency had originally expected to wrap up its search of about 120,000 sq km (46,000 sq miles) of ocean floor in mid-2016. (Reuters)

Indian Ocean search for missing Malaysia MH370 aircraft slows due to bad weather

More children are falling victim to contagious diseases in Muslim-majority Malaysia, worrying health authorities as parents reject immunisation programmes for fear the vaccines used infringe strict religious rules. 
 
The deaths of five children in June from diphtheria, a disease that can be prevented by vaccines, provoked an outcry among doctors and spurred calls for an edict by religious authorities to compel Muslim families to immunise children. 
 
&quot;Our concern is, if it&#39;s left uncontrolled, in the long-term we might see a significant effect on the nation as a whole,&quot; health minister S Subramaniam told Reuters in an interview. 
 
Although Muslim religious authorities have waived the stringent halal requirement if suitable vaccines are not available, concerns have redoubled recently that some may contain substances such as pig DNA, forbidden by Islam. 
 
Paediatrician Musa Mohamad Nordin said there was a lot of misinformation in Malaysia&#39;s Muslim community, mostly ethnic Malays who form 61 per cent of a population of about 30 million that includes substantial ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities. 
 
&quot;I&#39;m upset, and also saddened, that some religious teachers are spreading rumours that vaccines contain a composition that is not permissible by Islamic jurisprudence,&quot; added Musa, a member of Malaysia&#39;s Federation of Islamic Medical Associations. 
 
Only a few families have rejected vaccinations, but the number has more than doubled in the past three years to reach 1,541 in 2015, Subramaniam said, which is reflected in a rise in vaccine-preventable diseases, from diphtheria to measles. 
 
As with anti-vaccination movements elsewhere, many Malaysians who refuse vaccinations worry about potential side effects or efficacy, Subramaniam said. It is not clear what provoked the suspicions over pig DNA. 
 
But three-quarters of the parents who rejected immunisation last year in the northern state of Kedah, which has the highest rates of vaccine refusal in Malaysia, cited doubts over their halal status, a survey showed. 
 
Malaysia&#39;s highest Islamic body, the National Fatwa Council, has ruled vaccination permissible under Islamic law, even allowing vaccines with non-halal components, in the absence of halal alternatives. 
 
The council has not yet decided on an edict of mandatory vaccinations for Muslims, Federal Territory Mufti Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri said in an interview. 
 
&quot;On the whole, we find that vaccines have been very beneficial to society,&quot; Zulkifli added. 
 
&#39;Parents rights&#39; 
 
Last Sunday, parents at a vaccination forum on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, the capital, recounted the side effects their children suffered. 
 
Parents should have the right to refuse vaccination, said alternative medicine practitioner Arif Faizal, 36. 
 
&quot;There is no law compelling mandatory vaccines, and even on the global level, very few countries support such a move,&quot; he told Reuters. 
 
Others felt vaccinations were essential, however. 
 
&quot;As Muslim parents, we have a responsibility to protect our children,&quot; said Wan Normaniza Wan Hasan, a teacher and mother of six. 
 
(Reuters)

In the Muslim-majority country, parents fear the vaccine used in immunisation programmes infringes on strict religious rulings

More children are falling victim to contagious diseases in Muslim-majority Malaysia, worrying health authorities as parents reject immunisation programmes for fear the vaccines used infringe strict religious rules. The deaths of five children in June from diphtheria, a disease that can be prevented by vaccines, provoked an outcry among doctors and spurred calls for an edict by religious authorities to compel Muslim families to immunise children. "Our concern is, if it's left uncontrolled, in the long-term we might see a significant effect on the nation as a whole," health minister S Subramaniam told Reuters in an interview. Although Muslim religious authorities have waived the stringent halal requirement if suitable vaccines are not available, concerns have redoubled recently that some may contain substances such as pig DNA, forbidden by Islam. Paediatrician Musa Mohamad Nordin said there was a lot of misinformation in Malaysia's Muslim community, mostly ethnic Malays who form 61 per cent of a population of about 30 million that includes substantial ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities. "I'm upset, and also saddened, that some religious teachers are spreading rumours that vaccines contain a composition that is not permissible by Islamic jurisprudence," added Musa, a member of Malaysia's Federation of Islamic Medical Associations. Only a few families have rejected vaccinations, but the number has more than doubled in the past three years to reach 1,541 in 2015, Subramaniam said, which is reflected in a rise in vaccine-preventable diseases, from diphtheria to measles. As with anti-vaccination movements elsewhere, many Malaysians who refuse vaccinations worry about potential side effects or efficacy, Subramaniam said. It is not clear what provoked the suspicions over pig DNA. But three-quarters of the parents who rejected immunisation last year in the northern state of Kedah, which has the highest rates of vaccine refusal in Malaysia, cited doubts over their halal status, a survey showed. Malaysia's highest Islamic body, the National Fatwa Council, has ruled vaccination permissible under Islamic law, even allowing vaccines with non-halal components, in the absence of halal alternatives. The council has not yet decided on an edict of mandatory vaccinations for Muslims, Federal Territory Mufti Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri said in an interview. "On the whole, we find that vaccines have been very beneficial to society," Zulkifli added. 'Parents rights' Last Sunday, parents at a vaccination forum on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, the capital, recounted the side effects their children suffered. Parents should have the right to refuse vaccination, said alternative medicine practitioner Arif Faizal, 36. "There is no law compelling mandatory vaccines, and even on the global level, very few countries support such a move," he told Reuters. Others felt vaccinations were essential, however. "As Muslim parents, we have a responsibility to protect our children," said Wan Normaniza Wan Hasan, a teacher and mother of six. (Reuters)

Malaysians rejecting vaccine causes preventable, fatal disease

A grenade attack on a bar in Malaysia wounded eight people, including a Chinese national, the police said on Tuesday, ruling out terrorism as a motive.

The attack on the Movida bar in Puchong, a town on the outskirts of&nbsp;the capital, Kuala Lumpur, took place&nbsp;early&nbsp;Tuesday morning&nbsp;when customers were watching a live screening of the Euro soccer tournament.

&quot;We are still investigating who the suspects are, but the motives could be business rivalry, revenge, or one or more of the victims could have been a target,&quot; said Selangor state deputy police chief, Abdul Rahim Jafaar, to reporters.

In a similar attack in 2014, a man was killed while 12 others were wounded after&nbsp;a bomb exploded outside a&nbsp;pub&nbsp;in Kuala Lumpur. 
 
(Reuters)

Customers at the bar were watching a live screening of the Euro 16 football tournament

A grenade attack on a bar in Malaysia wounded eight people, including a Chinese national, the police said on Tuesday, ruling out terrorism as a motive. The attack on the Movida bar in Puchong, a town on the outskirts of the capital, Kuala Lumpur, took place early Tuesday morning when customers were watching a live screening of the Euro soccer tournament. "We are still investigating who the suspects are, but the motives could be business rivalry, revenge, or one or more of the victims could have been a target," said Selangor state deputy police chief, Abdul Rahim Jafaar, to reporters. In a similar attack in 2014, a man was killed while 12 others were wounded after a bomb exploded outside a pub in Kuala Lumpur. (Reuters)

Grenade attack on Malaysian pub wounds 8, police rule out terrorism

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak today sacked his former deputy from the ruling party, and said he needed more time to think about a cabinet reshuffle. 
 
Former deputy prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin was sacked from the United Malay National Organisation (UMNO), along with Mukhriz Mahathir, the son of former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad. 
 
Both have been tough critics of Razak, calling for his resignation following allegations of graft and mismanagement at scandal-hit state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). 
 
Razak, who chaired the advisory board of 1MDB, has faced intense pressure following revelations that up to $1 billion had been deposited into his personal account. Razak has denied any wrongdoing. 
 
He also said he needed more time to think about a cabinet reshuffle. He announced his plan to rejig the lineup after the ruling coalition won the Sarawak state elections by an increased majority last month. 
 
&quot;I need more time to think about it,&quot; he told reporters. 
 
The last cabinet reshuffle was last July, when Razak culled leaders critical of his handling of 1MDB. 
 
Malaysia&#39;s ruling coalition, Barisan Nasional, coasted to victory in two by-elections earlier this month, defying a political movement led by Mahathir who has sought to turn voters against Razak. 
 
The wins, along with a landslide win in the Borneo state of Sarawak last month, prompted some political experts to believe Razak may call snap polls. 
 
Razak dismissed these rumours. 
 
&quot;(National) polls are not governed by by-elections. National polls are governed by various other factors,&quot; he said. 
 
(Reuters)

Yassin was among Razak's toughest critic, calling for his resignation after $1 billion appeared in his personal bank account

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak today sacked his former deputy from the ruling party, and said he needed more time to think about a cabinet reshuffle. Former deputy prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin was sacked from the United Malay National Organisation (UMNO), along with Mukhriz Mahathir, the son of former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad. Both have been tough critics of Razak, calling for his resignation following allegations of graft and mismanagement at scandal-hit state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). Razak, who chaired the advisory board of 1MDB, has faced intense pressure following revelations that up to $1 billion had been deposited into his personal account. Razak has denied any wrongdoing. He also said he needed more time to think about a cabinet reshuffle. He announced his plan to rejig the lineup after the ruling coalition won the Sarawak state elections by an increased majority last month. "I need more time to think about it," he told reporters. The last cabinet reshuffle was last July, when Razak culled leaders critical of his handling of 1MDB. Malaysia's ruling coalition, Barisan Nasional, coasted to victory in two by-elections earlier this month, defying a political movement led by Mahathir who has sought to turn voters against Razak. The wins, along with a landslide win in the Borneo state of Sarawak last month, prompted some political experts to believe Razak may call snap polls. Razak dismissed these rumours. "(National) polls are not governed by by-elections. National polls are governed by various other factors," he said. (Reuters)

Malaysian PM sacks his former deputy, considers cabinet reshuffle

The head of Malaysia&#39;s anti-graft body will step down on August 1, the agency said on Thursday, more than two years before the scheduled end of a term that included an investigation of Prime Minister Najib Razak. 
 
The revelations of the investigation, first reported by the Wall Street Journal last year, have shaken investors in Southeast Asia&#39;s third-biggest economy and dented confidence in Najib&#39;s ruling coalition. 
 
Abu Kassim Mohamed, the chief commissioner of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), asked for his contract to be terminated earlier than expected, the agency said in a statement. 
 
&quot;There was no pressure from any parties towards the decision made by Abu Kassim to shorten his contract,&quot; it said, dismissing speculation in domestic media that pressure from the Prime Minister&#39;s office might have prompted the resignation. 
 
The Prime Minister&#39;s office did not immediately respond to a request from Reuters seeking comment. 
 
Under Abu Kassim, who took on his role in the beginning of 2010, the anti-graft body began investigations into allegations of graft and financial mismanagement at state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) and the transfer of 2.6 billion Ringgit ($647.09 million) to Najib&#39;s bank accounts. 
 
Malaysia&#39;s attorney-general cleared Najib of any criminal offences or corruption in January. Najib has denied any wrongdoing and said he did not take any money for personal gain. 
 
Abu Kassim&#39;s contract was to have run until December 4, 2018, the anti-graft body said, adding that the request to cut short his tenure followed an offer to be a visiting expert at the International Anti-Corruption Academy in Austria. 
 
&quot;The request was made after I got the opportunity to improve Malaysia and MACC&#39;s name and international standing,&quot; Abu Kassim told reporters, adding that he will stay in the civil service until mandatory retirement in 2020. 
 
A second vacancy is coming up as his deputy, Shukri Abdull, will retire on October 3, Abu Kassim added, in a video of the news conference released by the agency. 
 
Najib was widely criticised last year after the government replaced Attorney General Abdul Gani Patail, who had led investigations into 1MDB, with Mohamed Apandi Ali. It cited Patail&#39;s failing health for the change ahead of his retirement. 
 
($1 = 4.0180 ringgit) 
 
(Reuters)

Abu Kassim Mohamed, the chief commissioner of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, will vacate the post on August 1

The head of Malaysia's anti-graft body will step down on August 1, the agency said on Thursday, more than two years before the scheduled end of a term that included an investigation of Prime Minister Najib Razak. The revelations of the investigation, first reported by the Wall Street Journal last year, have shaken investors in Southeast Asia's third-biggest economy and dented confidence in Najib's ruling coalition. Abu Kassim Mohamed, the chief commissioner of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), asked for his contract to be terminated earlier than expected, the agency said in a statement. "There was no pressure from any parties towards the decision made by Abu Kassim to shorten his contract," it said, dismissing speculation in domestic media that pressure from the Prime Minister's office might have prompted the resignation. The Prime Minister's office did not immediately respond to a request from Reuters seeking comment. Under Abu Kassim, who took on his role in the beginning of 2010, the anti-graft body began investigations into allegations of graft and financial mismanagement at state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) and the transfer of 2.6 billion Ringgit ($647.09 million) to Najib's bank accounts. Malaysia's attorney-general cleared Najib of any criminal offences or corruption in January. Najib has denied any wrongdoing and said he did not take any money for personal gain. Abu Kassim's contract was to have run until December 4, 2018, the anti-graft body said, adding that the request to cut short his tenure followed an offer to be a visiting expert at the International Anti-Corruption Academy in Austria. "The request was made after I got the opportunity to improve Malaysia and MACC's name and international standing," Abu Kassim told reporters, adding that he will stay in the civil service until mandatory retirement in 2020. A second vacancy is coming up as his deputy, Shukri Abdull, will retire on October 3, Abu Kassim added, in a video of the news conference released by the agency. Najib was widely criticised last year after the government replaced Attorney General Abdul Gani Patail, who had led investigations into 1MDB, with Mohamed Apandi Ali. It cited Patail's failing health for the change ahead of his retirement. ($1 = 4.0180 ringgit) (Reuters)

Malaysia's anti-graft panel chief to step down

Malaysian police have rescued 29 Filipinas who had been trafficked to work in bars, the Philippines embassy in Kuala Lumpur said today. 
 
The women were rescued from two bars in the town of Bintulu in the Malaysian state of Sarawak on June 9 after the embassy brought reports of trafficked women to Malaysian police, a statement by the embassy said. 
 
Also arrested during the raid were three Filipinos who served as agents and caretakers of the women, it said. 
 
It gave no further details on the case of the 29 women. 
 
But it said some individuals and agencies were allegedly offering work in Malaysia to people who enter as tourists, promising to convert them to employment visas in exchange for payment. 
 
&quot;The embassy reminds Filipinos to be vigilant and not to deal with unlicensed individuals or purported placement agencies, especially online, as they could end up being trafficked,&quot; it said.&nbsp; 
 
Malaysia&#39;s relatively developed economy is a magnet for migrants -- many of them illegal -- from around Southeast Asia, including large numbers of Filipinos. 
 
(AFP)

They were rescued from two bars in Bintulu in the state of Sarawak after the Philippines embassy brought reports of trafficking

Malaysian police have rescued 29 Filipinas who had been trafficked to work in bars, the Philippines embassy in Kuala Lumpur said today. The women were rescued from two bars in the town of Bintulu in the Malaysian state of Sarawak on June 9 after the embassy brought reports of trafficked women to Malaysian police, a statement by the embassy said. Also arrested during the raid were three Filipinos who served as agents and caretakers of the women, it said. It gave no further details on the case of the 29 women. But it said some individuals and agencies were allegedly offering work in Malaysia to people who enter as tourists, promising to convert them to employment visas in exchange for payment. "The embassy reminds Filipinos to be vigilant and not to deal with unlicensed individuals or purported placement agencies, especially online, as they could end up being trafficked," it said. Malaysia's relatively developed economy is a magnet for migrants -- many of them illegal -- from around Southeast Asia, including large numbers of Filipinos. (AFP)

Malaysian cops rescue 29 Filipinas from bars

Malaysia said it will host a two-day meeting with Australia and China beginning Monday to discuss next steps in the fruitless search for missing flight MH370. 
 
Malaysian state-run Bernama news agency late yesterday quoted a transport ministry official saying the meeting will focus on &quot;the future direction of the search operation for MH370&quot;. 
 
The three countries have said previously they will call off the Australian-lead hunt for the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 if nothing is found in a designated search area in the remote Indian Ocean. 
 
So far 105,000 square kilometres (40,500 square miles) of the 120,000-square-kilometre seafloor search zone has been covered without success. 
 
Recent bad weather has delayed the expected completion of the search to August, Australian authorities said earlier this month. 
 
The jet disappeared en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 passengers and crew on board in March 2014 and is presumed to have crashed into the sea far off Western Australia&#39;s coast. 
 
Several pieces of debris have been found thousands of kilometres from the suspected crash area but they have so far shed no light on what caused the disaster.&nbsp; 
(AFP)

The three countries are trying to work out the future direction of the 'fruitless search'

Malaysia said it will host a two-day meeting with Australia and China beginning Monday to discuss next steps in the fruitless search for missing flight MH370. Malaysian state-run Bernama news agency late yesterday quoted a transport ministry official saying the meeting will focus on "the future direction of the search operation for MH370". The three countries have said previously they will call off the Australian-lead hunt for the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 if nothing is found in a designated search area in the remote Indian Ocean. So far 105,000 square kilometres (40,500 square miles) of the 120,000-square-kilometre seafloor search zone has been covered without success. Recent bad weather has delayed the expected completion of the search to August, Australian authorities said earlier this month. The jet disappeared en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 passengers and crew on board in March 2014 and is presumed to have crashed into the sea far off Western Australia's coast. Several pieces of debris have been found thousands of kilometres from the suspected crash area but they have so far shed no light on what caused the disaster. (AFP)

Missing MH370 flight: Malaysia, Australia, China to meet on next step

Authorities in Malaysia have uncovered an immigration racket involving the sabotage of a computerised passport-screening system at its main international airport, police said today, raising worries about human-trafficking and security.

The immigration department fired&nbsp;15 officials on Tuesday, took disciplinary action against 22 and said it was investigating more in connection with the security breach at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, which could have been going on for years.

Police said arrests were imminent.

&quot;We have identified the suspects.&nbsp;We are still investigating but we will make arrests soon,&quot;&nbsp;deputy police chief Noor Rashid Ibrahim told reporters today.

International and domestic syndicates were involved, Noor Rashid said, and he suggested the motive was human trafficking.

&quot;The syndicates overseas collaborate with the syndicates here. These overseas syndicates &ndash; their responsibility is to bring the man over and collect payments, while the syndicates here, their job is to accept. These are the ones that tried to penetrate the system,&quot; he said.

Authorities said last week the airport&#39;s passport-verification system was deliberately disrupted at certain times of the day, possibly since 2010, raising suspicion people were being smuggled through immigration when it was down.

The revelations come after the auditor-general said in a report tabled in parliament two weeks ago that&nbsp;the immigration system was not functioning satisfactorily.

Human rights groups have questioned Malaysia&#39;s efforts to combat human trafficking after the discovery of mass graves of suspected migrants near the border with Thailand last year.

Malaysia has an estimated two million illegal migrant laborers, many of whom work in the electronics, palm oil and construction sectors.

The immigration system breach has also raised concern about security.

Authorities in the Muslim-majority country have arrested about 170 people since the beginning of last year for suspected militant activity.

Last month, Malaysia deported three foreign suspected militants and arrested 14 Malaysians on suspicion of links to Islamic State, including an aircraft technician.

In March, deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said police had foiled an Islamic State plot to kidnap Prime Minister Najib Razak and other senior ministers last year.

Opposition lawmaker R. Sivarasa said the sabotage warranted a major criminal investigation and called for the police and the anti-corruption commission to look into it.

Scam involved the sabotage of a computerised passport-screening system at country's main international airport, could have been going on for years

Authorities in Malaysia have uncovered an immigration racket involving the sabotage of a computerised passport-screening system at its main international airport, police said today, raising worries about human-trafficking and security. The immigration department fired 15 officials on Tuesday, took disciplinary action against 22 and said it was investigating more in connection with the security breach at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, which could have been going on for years. Police said arrests were imminent. "We have identified the suspects. We are still investigating but we will make arrests soon," deputy police chief Noor Rashid Ibrahim told reporters today. International and domestic syndicates were involved, Noor Rashid said, and he suggested the motive was human trafficking. "The syndicates overseas collaborate with the syndicates here. These overseas syndicates – their responsibility is to bring the man over and collect payments, while the syndicates here, their job is to accept. These are the ones that tried to penetrate the system," he said. Authorities said last week the airport's passport-verification system was deliberately disrupted at certain times of the day, possibly since 2010, raising suspicion people were being smuggled through immigration when it was down. The revelations come after the auditor-general said in a report tabled in parliament two weeks ago that the immigration system was not functioning satisfactorily. Human rights groups have questioned Malaysia's efforts to combat human trafficking after the discovery of mass graves of suspected migrants near the border with Thailand last year. Malaysia has an estimated two million illegal migrant laborers, many of whom work in the electronics, palm oil and construction sectors. The immigration system breach has also raised concern about security. Authorities in the Muslim-majority country have arrested about 170 people since the beginning of last year for suspected militant activity. Last month, Malaysia deported three foreign suspected militants and arrested 14 Malaysians on suspicion of links to Islamic State, including an aircraft technician. In March, deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said police had foiled an Islamic State plot to kidnap Prime Minister Najib Razak and other senior ministers last year. Opposition lawmaker R. Sivarasa said the sabotage warranted a major criminal investigation and called for the police and the anti-corruption commission to look into it.

Malaysia uncovers immigration racket raising trafficking, security fears

Prime Minister Najib Razak&#39;s government threw its support in parliament this week behind an Islamic penal code that includes amputations and stoning, shocking some of his allies and stoking fears of further strains in the multi-ethnic country.

Critics believe the scandal-tainted prime minister is using &#39;hudud&#39;, the Islamic law, to shore up the backing of Muslim Malay voters and fend off attacks on his leadership ahead of critical by-elections next month and a general election in 2018.

The government on Thursday unexpectedly submitted to parliament a hudud bill that had been proposed by the Islamist group Parti Islam se-Malaysia&#39;s (PAS).

Although debate on the law was deferred to October by PAS leader Abdul Hadi Awang, its submission to parliament brought criticism from leaders across the political spectrum, including allies of the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition, who represent the ethnic Chinese and Indian communities.

Najib sought to ease tensions with his allies on Friday, saying the bill was &quot;misunderstood&quot;.

&quot;It&#39;s not hudud, but what we refer to as enhanced punishment,&quot; he told a news conference after meeting leaders of his ruling United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) party.

&quot;It applies only to certain offences and this comes under the jurisdiction of the Syariah court and is only applicable to the Muslims. It has nothing to do with non-Muslims.&quot; 
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<h5>Many fear such a move would open doors for other states to bring in the Islamic penal code. Hudud stipulates ancient religious punishments for Muslims who violate the law.</h5>
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He added that the punishments would be limited and canings meted out under the law would not injure or draw blood.

Earlier in the day, the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA), a key party in the BN coalition, called the submission of the hudud bill to parliament &quot;unconstitutional&quot;.

&quot;As we repeatedly pointed out, the implementation of Hudud law is against the spirit of the Federal Constitution, and would ruin the inter-ethnic relationship in the country,&quot; MCA President Liow Tiong Lai said.

Arguments for and against the introduction of hudud have divided Malaysia for years. Most of the Southeast Asian country&#39;s states implement sharia, the Islamic legal system, but its reach is restricted by federal law.

Still, the hudud bill appears doomed as the UMNO-led coalition lacks the two-thirds majority needed to pass it into law.

The Islamist party PAS is pushing for a constitutional amendment that would allow hudud to be implemented in Kelantan, a northern state where nightclubs are banned and there are separate public benches for men and women. 
 
&nbsp;

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Even bad coffee is better than no coffee at all. David Lynch <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/amwriting?src=hash">#amwriting</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/writing?src=hash">#writing</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/writingtip?src=hash">#writingtip</a> <a href="https://t.co/ho15a54eLB">pic.twitter.com/ho15a54eLB</a>
&mdash; The UnNovelist (@TheUnNovelist) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheUnNovelist/status/736501099331489792">May 28, 2016</a></blockquote>

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Many fear such a move would open doors for other states to bring in the Islamic penal code. Hudud stipulates ancient religious punishments for Muslims who violate the law.

&nbsp;

EYEING POLLS

Critics say that Najib, with an eye on by-elections for two parliamentary seats on June 18, is seeking to appease the majority Muslim votebank with his stand on hudud and to deflect attention from a multi-billion-dollar scandal at the state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).

They allege Najib was a beneficiary of 1MDB&#39;s funds, after about $680 million was deposited in his bank account before a 2013 election. Najib has denied any wrongdoing.

Some political heavyweights in Najib&#39;s party have questioned whether he can lead them to victory in the 2018 general election. However, he has consolidated power by sacking dissenters within UMNO, which has ruled Malaysia since 1957, and using a controversial and repressive colonial-era sedition law to silence other critics.

Najib seized on the resounding victory of a coalition partner in a Borneo state election earlier month as evidence that he and his government remain popular. The by-elections in peninsula Malaysia are likely to be a closer contest.

&quot;Najib did not want the 1MDB global scandal to become the issue in both by-elections,&quot; said Lim Kit Siang, parliamentary leader of the Democratic Action Party, adding that Najib has ensured the focus will now be on hudud.

People freak out as government decides to base legal code on religion instead of independent moral and intellectual principles

Prime Minister Najib Razak's government threw its support in parliament this week behind an Islamic penal code that includes amputations and stoning, shocking some of his allies and stoking fears of further strains in the multi-ethnic country. Critics believe the scandal-tainted prime minister is using 'hudud', the Islamic law, to shore up the backing of Muslim Malay voters and fend off attacks on his leadership ahead of critical by-elections next month and a general election in 2018. The government on Thursday unexpectedly submitted to parliament a hudud bill that had been proposed by the Islamist group Parti Islam se-Malaysia's (PAS). Although debate on the law was deferred to October by PAS leader Abdul Hadi Awang, its submission to parliament brought criticism from leaders across the political spectrum, including allies of the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition, who represent the ethnic Chinese and Indian communities. Najib sought to ease tensions with his allies on Friday, saying the bill was "misunderstood". "It's not hudud, but what we refer to as enhanced punishment," he told a news conference after meeting leaders of his ruling United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) party. "It applies only to certain offences and this comes under the jurisdiction of the Syariah court and is only applicable to the Muslims. It has nothing to do with non-Muslims." Many fear such a move would open doors for other states to bring in the Islamic penal code. Hudud stipulates ancient religious punishments for Muslims who violate the law. He added that the punishments would be limited and canings meted out under the law would not injure or draw blood. Earlier in the day, the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA), a key party in the BN coalition, called the submission of the hudud bill to parliament "unconstitutional". "As we repeatedly pointed out, the implementation of Hudud law is against the spirit of the Federal Constitution, and would ruin the inter-ethnic relationship in the country," MCA President Liow Tiong Lai said. Arguments for and against the introduction of hudud have divided Malaysia for years. Most of the Southeast Asian country's states implement sharia, the Islamic legal system, but its reach is restricted by federal law. Still, the hudud bill appears doomed as the UMNO-led coalition lacks the two-thirds majority needed to pass it into law. The Islamist party PAS is pushing for a constitutional amendment that would allow hudud to be implemented in Kelantan, a northern state where nightclubs are banned and there are separate public benches for men and women. Even bad coffee is better than no coffee at all. David Lynch #amwriting #writing #writingtip pic.twitter.com/ho15a54eLB — The UnNovelist (@TheUnNovelist) May 28, 2016 Many fear such a move would open doors for other states to bring in the Islamic penal code. Hudud stipulates ancient religious punishments for Muslims who violate the law. EYEING POLLS Critics say that Najib, with an eye on by-elections for two parliamentary seats on June 18, is seeking to appease the majority Muslim votebank with his stand on hudud and to deflect attention from a multi-billion-dollar scandal at the state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). They allege Najib was a beneficiary of 1MDB's funds, after about $680 million was deposited in his bank account before a 2013 election. Najib has denied any wrongdoing. Some political heavyweights in Najib's party have questioned whether he can lead them to victory in the 2018 general election. However, he has consolidated power by sacking dissenters within UMNO, which has ruled Malaysia since 1957, and using a controversial and repressive colonial-era sedition law to silence other critics. Najib seized on the resounding victory of a coalition partner in a Borneo state election earlier month as evidence that he and his government remain popular. The by-elections in peninsula Malaysia are likely to be a closer contest. "Najib did not want the 1MDB global scandal to become the issue in both by-elections," said Lim Kit Siang, parliamentary leader of the Democratic Action Party, adding that Najib has ensured the focus will now be on hudud.

Outrage in multi-ethnic Malaysia as government backs Islamic law

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