TOP OF THE NEWS
With diabetes costing Singapore more than $1 billion a year, Health Minister Gan Kim Yong announced yesterday that he is "declaring war" on the disease. He will co-chair a new Diabetes Prevention and Care Taskforce, which will start with the aim of keeping the young healthy and tackling increasing childhood obesity.
TOP OF THE NEWS
In an effort to stem the flow of drivers defecting to the likes of Uber and Grab, taxi operators here are setting up private-hire and limousine arms of their own. It is understood that SMRT Corp, the third-largest taxi group here, has ordered a fleet of more than 300 new vehicles for this purpose, while rival cab companies are doing likewise.
WORLD
Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is under sustained fire from Western-backed forces, losing 25,000 of its fighters and much of its land in the two Middle East countries. But this has not stopped its expansion to Europe, North Africa and Afghanistan.
WORLD
Rowdy crowds took to the streets across Thailand with hoses and water guns as they celebrated the weeklong Songkran festival despite the worst water crisis in 20 years. The scene was more boisterous in Yangon, which was marking the equivalent festival of Thingyan.
WORLD
Rising star Paul Ryan has summarily ruled himself out as the Republican Party's nominee for the US presidential election. His denial added to the party's increasing despair over its two leading candidates, Mr Donald Trump and Senator Ted Cruz of Texas.
HOME
Police report on coin trinkets
The Monetary Authority of Singapore has lodged a police report over Singapore coins being made into jewellery and sold on a US website. It is illegal to "mutilate, destroy or deface" Singapore currency.
HOME
A church pastor is on trial for allegedly challenging another road user to a fight, then shutting the door on the man when he tried to get back in his van. Daniel Cheo Guan Beng, 46, and businessman Tay Kim Beng, 60, had their altercation along the Pan-Island Expressway last year.
BUSINESS
OCBC Bank's purchase of Barclays Bank's private banking business in Singapore and Hong Kong under- scores a future in which traditional banks have to cultivate the growth of high value-add services as fintech start-ups make inroads into "high volume, low value-add" services, says OCBC chief financial officer Darren Tan.
SPORT
Kiwis not at full strength but still fancied
The All Blacks may be without four injured players for this week's Singapore Sevens, having come off a heavy loss to Fiji in Hong Kong last Sunday. Nevertheless, expectations are just as high for the 12-time HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series winners, said full-back Kurt Baker.
LIFE
Hardcore Henry, a feature length version of the video game first-person shooter concept shot on GoPro cameras, has shiny new techniques, but lacks a narrative. But for some psychological reason, when the hyper-violence is viewed from a first-person perspective, the excitement is more palpable.
LIFE
Ben Affleck, who made his debut as the Caped Crusader in Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice, is returning as director in a new Batman movie. This was revealed at CinemaCon, the annual gathering of cinema operators in Las Vegas, on Tuesday.
