Top stories from The Straits Times on Monday, Dec 17

Good morning! Here are our top stories to kick-start your Monday, Dec 17.


Relief over climate deal but critics want faster emission cuts

Michal Kurtyka (4th from left), president of the United Nations climate talks and State Secretary of Poland's Ministry of Energy, and other officials posing for a photo following discussions on climate change. PHOTO: EPA-EFE

They say world remains dangerously off track even with current pledges to cut emissions.

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More than 40 injured in blast at two-storey Sapporo izakaya bar

Firefighters working at the site where a large explosion occurred at a restaurant in Sapporo, in Hokkaido, on Dec 16, 2018. PHOTO: EPA-EFE/JIJI PRESS

Police are investigating the cause of the blast, suspected to be a gas explosion, that occurred at about 8.30pm local time.

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Look back 2018: Year of transition for politics

PHOTOS: ARIFFIN JAMAR, MARK CHEONG, ST FILE, GOV.SG

The leadership transition in the ruling People's Action Party was a major headliner in an eventful year for domestic politics. Here's a look at the issues that dominated the national discourse.

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Challenges for 4G leaders at home and from abroad

ST PHOTO: ARIFFIN JAMAR

They must navigate a tense external environment and get voters' buy-in.

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Low-income groups to get targeted help for healthier lifestyles

Residents from Choa Chu Kang at a zumba session at Choa Chu Kang Park, on Dec 16, 2018. ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN

Government to tailor specific policies, programmes to reach vulnerable Singaporeans.

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Sleep-deprived Singapore: How people can get more ZZZs they need

Sleep deprivation can be due to underlying medical conditions, the most common of which are chronic insomnia and obstructive sleep apnea. PHOTO: ST FILE

According to various sleep surveys, Singaporeans are among the world's most sleep-deprived people.

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Farewell, Black Lion of Moulmein

An aerial view of the sprawling compound of the Communicable Disease Centre. The CDC ceased operations last Thursday and will be demolished. It has been replaced by the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (left of the black building), a new 330-bed fa
An aerial view of the sprawling compound of the Communicable Disease Centre. The CDC ceased operations last Thursday and will be demolished. It has been replaced by the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (left of the black building), a new 330-bed facility. The land that the CDC occupied has been zoned for residential use, according to the Urban Redevelopment Authority. ST PHOTOS: NEO XIAOBIN

Shutters come down on facility that sheltered infectious disease patients for 105 years.

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Causes Week: Creating 'micro' ways to volunteer

Ms Sherry Soon, who set up Be Kind SG last year, with 69-year-old How Shap Nooi, a resident of a home that the group visits. ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG

Be Kind SG offers volunteers the flexibility of joining the group in one or more activities.

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HQ Trivia and Vine co-founder Colin Kroll dies apparently of drug overdose: Police

Co-founder of the popular HQ Trivia app, Colin Kroll, in New York, on Dec 1, 2017. PHOTO: NYTIMES

Before creating HQ Trivia, Kroll co-founded the six-second video app Vine, which was sold to Twitter in 2012 and closed down last year.

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Money falls from sky onto busy Hong Kong street

Money was seen falling from the sky at Sham Shui Po, Hong Kong, on Dec 15, 2018. PHOTO: FACEBOOK/MAN HIM HUNG

What would you do if money started falling from the sky?

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