While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, July 30

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Implanted Chinese malware potentially gives China's army the ability to disrupt US military operations, it has been claimed.

Implanted Chinese malware potentially gives China's army the ability to disrupt US military operations, it has been claimed.

PHOTO: REUTERS

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Possible Chinese malware in US systems a ‘time bomb’

The Biden administration believes China has implanted malware in key US power and communications networks in a “ticking time bomb” that could disrupt the military in event of a conflict, The New York Times reported on Saturday.

The Times, quoting US military, intelligence and security officials, said the malware potentially gave China’s People’s Liberation Army the ability to disrupt US military operations if Beijing were to move against Taiwan at some point.

The systems affected, the Times said, could allow China not only to cut off water, power and communications to US military bases, but also to homes and businesses across the United States.

The report comes two months after Microsoft warned that state-sponsored Chinese hackers had infiltrated critical US infrastructure networks.

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Saudi to host Ukraine talks early next month, says WSJ

Saudi Arabia is set to host talks in August about Ukraine, inviting Western states, Ukraine and major developing countries, including India and Brazil, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday.

The meeting would bring senior officials from up to 30 countries, including Indonesia, Egypt, Mexico, Chile and Zambia, to Jeddah on Aug 5 and 6, the report said, citing diplomats involved in the discussion.

Ukraine and Western officials hope that the talks, which exclude Russia, can lead to international backing for peace terms favouring Ukraine, it said.

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Judge throws out Trump defamation lawsuit against CNN

Getty Images via AFP

A federal judge has dismissed a US$475 million (S$630 million) defamation lawsuit that Donald Trump filed against CNN for describing his claim that the 2020 election was stolen as the “Big Lie.”

Trump, in the suit filed in a US District Court in Florida in October, had alleged that the use of the phrase by the cable television news network associated the former US president with tactics used by Adolf Hitler.

US District Court Judge Raag Singhal, who was appointed by Trump, the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, tossed out the suit.

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Bronny James seen playing piano after hospital release

LeBron James shared a video of eldest son Bronny James playing the piano on Saturday, five days after the teenager suffered a cardiac arrest during practice with his college team.

The video posted on Instagram by NBA superstar James showed 18-year-old Bronny playing on the piano with younger brother Bryce and sister Zhuri watching nearby.

“A man of many talents,” LeBron James can be heard to say after the brief performance.

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Max Verstappen wins Belgium Grand Prix sprint race

Red Bull’s two-time world champion Max Verstappen was pleased that his car was able to “fly” despite the wet and tricky conditions as he won the Belgium Grand Prix sprint race on Saturday.

The start of the sprint was delayed by heavy rain, similar to how practice on Friday was hit by the treacherous weather which is forecast for the entire weekend.

The conditions at the long and sprawling, if also majestic and fast, circuit have been a focus of much concern since a fatal accident earlier in June when Dutch teenager Dilano van’t Hoff was killed in a wet race.

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