While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, Sept 22, 2025
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Displaced Palestinian children move southward during an evacuation order in the central Gaza Strip, on Sept 21, 2025.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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‘New spark of hope’: Gazans hail as Israelis condemn recognition of Palestinian state
The recognition of a Palestinian state by Britain, Canada and Australia on Sept 21 drew sharply contrasting reactions, with Palestinians in Gaza hailing it as a sign of hope while Israelis voiced anger and concern.
In Gaza, many saw the recognition as an affirmation of their existence after nearly two years of war between Hamas and Israel.
“We shouldn’t just be numbers in the news,” said Ms Salwa Mansour, 35, displaced from Rafah to Al-Mawasi, which the Israeli military has declared a humanitarian zone.
“This recognition shows that the world is finally starting to hear our voice and that in itself is a moral victory.
Trump’s H-1B visa crackdown upends Indian IT industry’s playbook
PHOTO: REUTERS
India’s US$283 billion (S$363 billion) information technology sector will have to overhaul its decades-old strategy of rotating skilled talent into US projects following US President Donald Trump’s move to impose a US$100,000 fee for new H-1B visas from Sept 21, according to tech veterans, analysts, lawyers and economists.
The sector, which earns about 57 per cent of its total revenue from the US market, has long gained from US work visa programmes and the outsourcing of software and business services – a contentious issue for many Americans who have lost jobs to cheaper workers in India.
India was by far the largest beneficiary of H-1B visas in 2024, accounting for 71 per cent of approved beneficiaries, while China was a distant second at 11.7 per cent, according to US government data.
Charlie Kirk’s death ignites free speech fire storm among Trump supporters
PHOTO: REUTERS
The White House crackdown on political rhetoric in the aftermath of activist Charlie Kirk’s assassination has exposed a rift among conservatives, with some applauding curbs on what they see as hate speech and others warning the administration has gone too far.
In the days since Mr Kirk was shot at a college campus in Utah while engaging in civil discourse, US President Donald Trump and top officials throughout his government have issued public threats and put left-leaning groups on notice for language they find unacceptable following the 31-year-old's death.
Attorney-General Pam Bondi promised to prosecute purveyors of hate speech, and Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr threatened repercussions against broadcasters after a TV host made remarks he did not like.
Lachlan Murdoch, Michael Dell and Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison involved in TikTok deal: Trump
PHOTOS: AFP, DELL
President Donald Trump said on Sept 21 that media mogul Lachlan Murdoch and business leaders Larry Ellison and Michael Dell would be involved as US investors in a proposed deal to keep TikTok operating in the United States.
Mr Trump has said that the United States and China have made progress on a deal requiring TikTok’s American assets to be transferred to US owners from China’s ByteDance.
The proposed investors would give Trump allies in corporate America influence over a widely popular social media app, which counts 170 million US users and helps shape public discourse on politics and culture.
Arsenal rescue point, but fail to make title statement in 1-1 draw with Man City
PHOTO: AFP
Arsenal’s second big test of their title credentials this season ended inconclusively with a late Gabriel Martinelli goal sparing them a damaging defeat at home to Manchester City, yet they also failed to make a telling statement in a 1-1 draw on Sept 21.
After losing 1-0 at Premier League champions Liverpool in August — their first defeat in 23 league games against the so-called big six — victory over City felt like a requirement.
Trailing to Erling Haaland's well-taken early goal, Arsenal lacked a real goal threat with big-money summer signing Viktor Gyokeres again struggling without quality service.
