While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, Aug 2, 2026
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PN secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan (middle) flanked by BN president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (left) and BN Negeri Sembilan chairman Mohamad Hasan (right) cheering the results in their favour in the Aug 1 state election at UMNO Negeri Sembilan headquarters in Seremban.
ST PHOTO: MUZLIZA MUSTAFA
Anwar’s PH loses Negeri Sembilan
Barisan Nasional (BN) declared that it had reclaimed Negeri Sembilan after the Aug 1 state polls, with official results showing it took 25 out of the 36 seats, together with its ally Perikatan Nasional (PN).
This means that Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s Pakatan Harapan (PH) has lost the central state after two terms in power here, in a third consecutive setback at the state elections after huge losses in Johor in July and Sabah in November 2025.
According to official results, PH won 11 seats, down from the 17 in the previous 2023 state election, while PN won seven seats, up from the five it won in 2023.
At the Negeri Sembilan election, BN had worked out an informal electoral pact with PN, after gaining the support of PN’s Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) in the Johor election.
Bomb kills three, injures 21 near Moscow restaurant
PHOTO: REUTERS
A homemade bomb carried by a woman killed three people and injured at least 21 in an explosion near an upscale restaurant in central Moscow on the evening of Aug 1, the authorities said.
The explosion occurred just before 8pm local time close to an upscale Italian restaurant located in one of Moscow’s seven Stalin-era skyscrapers at Kudrinkskaya Square, the police said.
Russia’s Anti-Terrorism Committee said that an unidentified woman had tried to get into the restaurant but was stopped by a security guard, the state RIA news agency reported.
13 dead after tourist plane crashes in Peru
PHOTO: EPA
At least 13 people died when a small plane carrying tourists to view Peru’s famed Nazca Lines archaeological site crashed, police said on Aug 1.
“We have information that 11 passengers and two crew members have died,” Police Major Jorge Andrade told reporters from the crash site in the country’s south.
The incident occurred shortly after 1pm (2am on Aug 2 in Singapore) after the plane took off from the airport in Pisco, located about 240km south of the capital Lima.
Nepal mourns ‘big loss’ of mountaineer Nirmal Purja
PHOTO: AFP
Nepal was mourning on Aug 1 the loss of mountaineer Nirmal Purja, with Prime Minister Balendra Shah leading the nation in paying tributes to the braveheart who etched his name in record books.
The 43-year-old British-Nepali mountaineer was killed alongside nine other climbers after they were caught in a deadly avalanche on Pakistan’s Broad Peak, his expedition company said.
Nepal premier Shah described the deaths of Purja and the other climbers as a tragedy that shocked the nation, while in Kathmandu, a large billboard at the main city square displayed a picture of Purja in climbing gear with the message: “You will be remembered.”
UEFA, CONCACAF declare lost confidence in FIFA chief
PHOTO: AFP
FIFA president Gianni Infantino is under unprecedented fire after regional confederations UEFA and CONCACAF said on Aug 1 they had lost confidence in his leadership following his abandoned plan to sell a stake in World Cup commercial rights.
The dramatic fallout from Infantino’s scrapped US$4.2 billion (S$5.3 billion) proposal has exposed growing unease within world soccer over his leadership style, with UEFA leading a chorus of criticism that could complicate his re-election hopes.
FIFA’s proposal had triggered a fierce backlash from regional confederations who said they were blindsided by Infantino’s plans to sell stakes to private investors in a new unit that would run FIFA events, including the World Cup.
