What's News: March 17, 2017

The Russians allegedly directed the 2014 hacking of 500 million Yahoo accounts.
The Russians allegedly directed the 2014 hacking of 500 million Yahoo accounts. PHOTO: REUTERS

TOP OF THE NEWS

Dutch say 'no' to populism

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte fought off a stiff challenge from far-right firebrand Geert Wilders, winning praise and drawing expressions of relief from fellow European leaders yesterday for having beaten back the seemingly relentless march of populist politicians. But Mr Rutte will struggle to form a government.


TOP OF THE NEWS

S'pore passport top in Asia

The Singapore passport is ranked top in Asia and No. 4 in the world in this year's Henley & Partners Visa Restrictions Index. Singapore passport holders enjoy visa-free access to 173 countries and territories, putting it level with seven other countries, including the UK and France. It was tied for No. 5 in the world last year with Japan.


WORLD

US charges 2 Russian spies

The US Justice Department has charged two Russian intelligence officers with directing a sweeping criminal conspiracy that broke into 500 million Yahoo accounts in 2014, deepening the rift between the US and Russian authorities on cyber security. The stolen data was allegedly used to spy on a range of targets, including the White House.


WORLD

Firms shamed on China TV

US shoemaker Nike and Japanese retailer Muji were among the firms singled out by a name-and-shame programme aired by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV. Nike was criticised for claiming a line of basketball shoes had high-tech air cushions when they did not.


OPINION

Modi's post-election effect

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has emerged significantly stronger from elections in five of India's 29 states, including its biggest, Uttar Pradesh. Having decimated Congress in the heartland, Mr Modi needs to find a rival to target in the next election, writes Ravi Velloor.


HOME

Checklist for used-car buyers

A checklist is available for buyers of used cars to help them ensure they have done the necessary checks on a car before buying it. The checklist was developed by consumer watchdog Case and motor industry partners, as car woes remain the foremost reason for complaints.


HOME

NUS top Asian varsity again

The National University of Singapore beat Peking University and Tsinghua University to be ranked the top varsity in Asia by the Times Higher Education magazine - the second year in a row. Nanyang Technological University ranked fourth, slipping from No. 2 spot.


BUSINESS

Flexible industrial zoning

A more flexible approach to industrial land zoning will benefit companies with changing business needs, as they scale back manufacturing operations in favour of activities such as research and development. The Government is piloting such an approach in a new JTC multi-tenanted building in Woodlands North Coast - due to be completed in the second half of 2019.


SPORT

Top clubs to play in Singapore

The Republic will host the International Champions Cup (ICC) Singapore for four years, until 2020, giving local fans a chance to watch top-flight overseas teams in action. English Premier League leaders Chelsea, German giants Bayern Munich and Italian club Inter Milan will take part in the July 25-29 round-robin tournament at the National Stadium.


LIFE

Arts with Julie Andrews

English actress and singer Julie Andrews, 81, plays a woman running an arts programme for a group of kids in a new Netflix series for pre-schoolers called Julie's Greenroom.


What it should have been

In yesterday's report, "Language of poets and presidents", we included the late president S R Nathan among a group of notable Malayalee Singaporeans. Mr Nathan was a Tamil Singaporean. Another of Singapore's presidents, the late Devan Nair, was a Malayalee Singaporean.

We are sorry for the error.


Straits Times Digital

VIDEO

Three so tasty

Have a great meal at three dining spots that are among the bronze winners in the Best Asian Restaurants list.

http://str.sg/threebest

VIDEO

Inspect these gadgets

Check out this Mobot Harley and other latest cool tech buys at IT Show 2017 in Suntec.

http://str.sg/ITshowtech

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on March 17, 2017, with the headline What's News: March 17, 2017. Subscribe