1 Bush fire state memorial
Families, firefighters and politicians yesterday honoured in a solemn public ceremony the 25 people killed in the recent bush fires in Australia's New South Wales state. The bush fires, which lasted about five months, killed 19 civilians, three Australian volunteer firefighters and three United States firefighters.
2 S. Korea on highest alert
South Korea has raised its virus alert level to red, the highest, as the number of coronavirus cases spiked further to 604 and the death toll hit six. More than half of the cases are linked to the Shincheonji Church of Jesus in the south-eastern city of Daegu. The virus has affected all of the country's eight major cities and nine provinces.
3 Tesla to build gigafactory
Electric vehicle and clean energy company Tesla received approval from a German court last Thursday to continue to cut down forest near the capital Berlin to build its first European car and battery factory, a decision that was a defeat for local environmental activists. The contract for buying the land was quickly signed and the first Teslas made in Germany are scheduled to roll off the Grunheide factory next year.
4 Hardliners lead Iran polls
Iranian hardliners headed for victory in parliamentary polls, sweeping Teheran and other cities. The preliminary results were seen as a repudiation of President Hassan Rouhani's engagement with outside powers. Preliminary results showed that hardliners won a majority of the 290 seats.
5 Macron's plans for Europe
French President Emmanuel Macron offers the kind of strong leadership Europe needs, but his strategic ambitions for the continent are not getting headway among European Union members, says global affairs correspondent Jonathan Eyal.
6 Fukushima food ban lifted
All food items from Fukushima, Japan, can now be imported into Singapore. A ban, imposed after the nuclear plant meltdown in the prefecture after the 2011 tsunami and earthquake, was lifted last month. The lifting of the ban marks the end of a series of import controls on produce from across Japan over the past decade. But consumers said they were still wary about those from Fukushima.
7 S'pore link to match-fixing
An international investigation into football match-fixing in the Kenyan Premier League has cast the spotlight on a Singapore connection. Investigators say suspicious travel patterns of a convicted match-fixer show ties to Singaporean fugitive Wilson Raj Perumal, who has been convicted overseas for rigging matches.
8 S'pore a data centre titan
Singapore might be a small city-state with limited land area, but it is a global titan when it comes to being a market for data centres. It is ranked sixth in the world in attracting data centres to set up shop, and is the only Asian city to make the top 10, according to a study that evaluated 1,162 data centres in 38 global markets, with each data centre scored across 12 weighted criteria.
9Training for NSG disrupted
The coronavirus outbreak has hit not only the National School Games (NSG) competition but also training. For Nanyang Junior College volleyballers, alumni have not been allowed back to spar with them as a precautionary move, while student-athletes in schools such as Crescent Girls' School have seen pre-NSG meets called off or postponed.
10 Virus fears hit arts scene
Surveys and online groups have been set up to determine the challenges faced by the arts community in Singapore owing to the coronavirus outbreak. Revenue has dropped by at least 50 per cent in the past month for a number of arts practitioners, according to one independent survey involving 277 respondents.
StraitsTimes Digital
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Healthcare's unsung heroes
Dr Melissa Tien, Dr Nelson Chua and senior staff nurse Xie Linlin are among many healthcare workers who volunteered to work on the front line to fight the disease known as Covid-19. str.sg/blurb231
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Panellists discuss Budget measures
Higher reliance on China supply chains and greater globalisation are among factors cited by a panel for the more severe impact of the coronavirus outbreak, compared with Sars in 2003, with a broader range of firms needing help. str.sg/blurb232
