While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, Aug 7, 2026
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Former Malaysian prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob will be charged on Aug 7 in Kuala Lumpur. The case against him is thought to relate to the declaration of assets.
PHOTO: BERNAMA
Former Malaysia PM Ismail Sabri to be charged
Former Malaysian prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob will be charged on Aug 7 at the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court.
Based on a court system check, the charge against the Bera MP will be read before Judge Suzana Hussin at 9am on Aug 7.
The case against Ismail Sabri is believed to be related to the declaration of assets.
He had previously been summoned on multiple occasions to record his statement regarding his asset declaration to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission.
Trump signs order targeting ‘birth tourism’
PHOTO: AFP
US President Donald Trump on Aug 6 made another attempt to curb birthright citizenship, signing an order targeting those who he said enter the country under the guise of tourism while actually intending to give birth.
“They’ve taken birthright citizenship and they’ve made a joke out of it,” Trump told journalists in the Oval Office.
The US Supreme Court struck down his previous effort to restrict the constitutionally granted right in a late June ruling that Trump described as “very unfortunate.”
Jailed ex-US Marine may be near death in Russia
PHOTO: REUTERS
A former US Marine jailed in Russia since 2022 and allegedly tortured and injected with mind-altering drugs, slipped into a stupor in June and may be close to death, according to two hostage advocacy groups and his sister.
The White House and the State Department have urged Moscow to release Robert Gilman, 32, so he can receive urgent medical treatment in the US, said Eric Lebson, chief strategy officer of Global Reach, an advocacy group representing his family.
Gilman is being fed through a tube, he said.
Zelensky to make first trip to Serbia since Russia invasion
PHOTO: REUTERS
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky will on Aug 8 make his first visit to Serbia since Russia’s invasion, a senior Ukrainian official told AFP, highlighting the symbolic importance of the visit to Moscow’s traditional ally.
“We need to pull the Serbs away from Russia’s side,” the source said, calling Zelensky’s visit to Belgrade a “slap in the face for the Russians”.
Zelensky – who has toured much of the world to whip up support for Ukraine’s defence against the Russian invasion – has not visited the country since he became president in 2019.
UEFA says boycott of World Cups stands
PHOTO: AFP
European football’s governing body UEFA said they would maintain their boycott of the men’s and women’s World Cups on Aug 6 despite FIFA withdrawing the plan to open up their competitions to private investment.
UEFA’s initial threat issued on July 30 to boycott FIFA competitions is widely credited in being pivotal in the plan being shelved.
Although that was one of their conditions to be met for them to withdraw their threat, they said on Aug 6 the second one had not been met.
