Morning Briefing: Top stories from The Straits Times on July 23

Good morning! Here are our top stories to kick-start your Thursday, July 23.

Trump says sending federal agents to more US cities to fight violent crime

Mr Trump said "we have no choice but to get involved" with a rising death toll in some major cities.

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Accusations of spying behind closure of Chinese consulate in Houston

One diplomat described the Houston consulate as the "epicentre" of research theft by the Chinese military in the United States.

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Don't expect first Covid-19 vaccinations until early 2021: WHO's Ryan

WHO was working to expand access to potential vaccines and to help scale-up production capacity.

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Changi Village Hawker Centre among new places visited by infectious Covid-19 patients; 3 new dorm clusters

There were 310 new coronavirus cases confirmed by MOH on Wednesday, taking Singapore's total to 48,744.

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New social compact, activist governments needed for a post-Covid-19 world, says Tharman

Mr Tharman said that navigating the post-Covid-19 world requires "a certain activism" on the part of government".

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Coronavirus: Tourism sector faces headwinds but can reinvent itself to overcome challenges, says Chan Chun Sing

In the immediate future, there will be opportunities for Singapore to connect with and serve travellers from higher-end markets.

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Sengkang Town Council to take over Punggol East lawsuit: MND

The transfer of the lawsuit will take effect at the end of this month.

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Life after politics: 5 backbenchers on highs and lows of their time as MPs

What were Mr Teo Ser Luck's proudest moments? How did "instant MP" Chia Shi-Lu win over residents?

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Hong Kong Covid-19 cases hit daily peak, government orders face masks in indoor venues

Hong Kong added 113 new Covid-19 cases, with the source of infections for about half of them unknown.

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Mike Pompeo tells British MPs China 'bought' WHO chief Tedros

Mr Pompeo said there was firm intelligence to show that a deal had been done to get Dr Tedros the job of WHO director-general.

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