Top stories from The Straits Times on Sunday, March 17

Good morning! Here are our top stories to kick-start your Sunday, March 17


New Zealand mosque shootings death toll rises to 50, families wait to bury victims

Residents cry after leaving flowers in tribute to victims in Christchurch, on March 17, 2019. PHOTO: AFP

The bodies of the victims had not yet been released to families because investigations were ongoing.

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Teens getting too soft? Student campers at OBS with trolleys spark debate

A photo showing a group of students pulling hiking trailers behind them while on an Outward Bound Singapore expedition sparked debate.
A photo showing a group of students pulling hiking trailers behind them while on an Outward Bound Singapore expedition sparked debate. PHOTO: COURTESY OF DELANE LIM

A photo of the campers with their trailers has generated some discussion on whether teenagers in Singapore are getting too pampered, needing a trolley to wheel their bags during a camp meant to foster resilience and ruggedness.

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HDB owners flouting rules by adding extra 'floor'

Mezzanine floors erected in properties to create a separate space have increased in popularity as properties become more expensive and more people are finding ways to increase their own living space. PHOTO: ALLOYIOUS KOH/CARPENTERS

Even though HDB rules outlaw such modifications, one owner spent a whopping $40,000 to double the living areas in his 700 sq ft apartment.

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High speed, then a failed climb for doomed Ethiopia flight

Families of victims from Kenya and Rwanda lay flowers on March 15, 2019, as they visit the crash site. PHOTO: AFP

A voice from the cockpit of the Boeing 737 Max requested to climb to 14,000 feet above sea level - about 6,400 feet above the airport - before urgently asking to return.

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Paris luxury stores looted, burned in 'yellow vest' riots

Protesters look at the destroyed window of a Hugo Boss store during clashes with riot police forces on the Champs-Elysees in Paris on March 16, 2019. PHOTO: AFP

President Emmanuel Macron cut short a ski weekend in the Pyrenees mountains as hooded protesters went on the rampage in Paris, leaving a trail of destruction in the touristic heart of the city.

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Tan Cheng Bock says application to register Progress Singapore Party has in-principle approval

Dr Tan Cheng Bock (second, left), a six-term MP who retired from politics in 2006, applied to register the Progress Singapore Party on Jan 16 this year. PHOTO: FACEBOOK/DR TAN CHENG BOCK

"We have proposed some minor changes to the ROS's amendments and are now waiting for their final reply," he wrote on Facebook.

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Lunch With Sumiko: 'It's an economic referendum', says Indonesia's V-P candidate Sandiaga Uno

Vice-presidential candidate Sandiaga Uno waving to the crowd in Kemang on Feb 17 (left). He had attended the launch of an "I'm SandiUno" app and met youth volunteers and supporters at a cafe there. Later at an interview in his camp's media centre (be
Vice-presidential candidate Sandiaga Uno waving to the crowd in Kemang on Feb 17 (left). He had attended the launch of an "I'm SandiUno" app and met youth volunteers and supporters at a cafe there. Later at an interview in his camp's media centre (right), he spoke about the need to keep the campaign's messaging focused. ST PHOTOS: KELVIN CHNG

Mr Sandiaga believes jobs and the cost of living are the key issues in the presidential election.

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Fire engulfs 7 shophouses in Geylang Road early Sunday, 60 firefighters deployed

The Singapore Civil Defence Force said that the fire had spread quickly as the shophouse units shared a common roof, and had a high density of furniture and other combustible materials in some of them. PHOTO: FACEBOOK/SINGAPORE CIVIL DEFENCE FORCE

The fire had spread quickly as the shophouse units shared a common roof, and had a high density of furniture and other combustible materials in some of them.

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K-pop sex scandal: Anger, disappointment, but no surprise

Seungri, a member of K-pop boy band BigBang, arriving at the Seoul Metropolitan Policy Agency last Thursday for questioning on suspicion that he drugged girls and sent them to VIP customers of a club that he co-owned. He was later found to be in a ch
Seungri, a member of K-pop boy band BigBang, arriving at the Seoul Metropolitan Policy Agency last Thursday for questioning on suspicion that he drugged girls and sent them to VIP customers of a club that he co-owned. He was later found to be in a chat group where illicit videos of singer-songwriter Jung Joon-young having sex with women were shared. PHOTO: DPA

Student Kim Yeo-joo has been deleting K-pop songs all week as a snowballing sex scandal involving BigBang member Seungri and FT Island leader Choi Jong-hoon rocked South Korea and brought to light the widespread abuse of women in the patriarchal society.

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Children flee after getting caught spray painting carpark wall; police investigating

The girl, who was spray painting the wall of the carpark, fled after being shouted at. PHOTOS: MR MERVIN CHOO

A 17-year-old student, who filmed the incident, also shouted at the kids and threatened to call the police.

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