News Today

Love on hand
PHOTO: AFPChocolates or a ring? Shoppers at Tokyo's Takashimaya department store looking for a Valentine's Day present can now have both in one gift. The chocolate rings cost between 3,780 yen (S$48) and 4,200 yen each, and are part of a... [Read more]

Laver calls Federer the best he's seen
MELBOURNE - IF HE could pick any player from any era to test himself against, Roger Federer (left) would like a shot at Rod Laver or Bjorn Borg. Laver is the last man to win the Grand Slam - all four... [Read more]

One nation, two ways to mark Chinese New Year
BEIJING - CHINESE New Year usually begins with a little bloodletting for the Miao family in rural Inner Mongolia, one of the remotest parts of north-east China. On the eve of the holiday, a pig and several live chickens from their... [Read more]

Thirteen killed by dengue this month
KUALA LUMPUR - THIRTEEN people have died of dengue fever in Malaysia this month. Most of the deaths were in the state of Selangor, where the authorities are scrambling to contain an outbreak, a news report said yesterday. Eleven people in... [Read more]

WP forms 'action plan' to attract more Malays
THE Workers' Party (WP) is rolling out its post-election plans to attract more Malay members and reach out to the community, starting with the young.Four Malays now sit on the 12-member council of the party's youth wing, compared to none when... [Read more]

Woman with dementia missing
A 72-YEAR-OLD Malaysian woman with severe dementia has gone missing. She is believed to have walked out of a Jurong East flat while her family was having a meal on Monday. Madam Chok See Mooi's family had barely finished lunch at... [Read more]

It's a pleasure to beat the pressure
PHOTO: AP Pub-goers having a thrashing good time during a fiesty pillow fight at a Shanghai bar. More than 50 people took part in the weekend event, organised by the bar as a way for stressed-out Shanghai residents to let off... [Read more]

Terry out again, as Chelsea jinx strikes
OPORTO - IT HAS been the story of Chelsea this season: Every budding hope tempered with more bad news. Their 1-1 draw at Porto in the first leg of the Champions League last 16 on Wednesday was a perfect example. Andriy... [Read more]

Abe under pressure to soften stance towards Pyongyang
IN TOKYO - WITH the United States changing its hardline policy towards North Korea, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is under growing pressure to take a different and possibly softer tack towards Pyongyang. The Japanese leader was quick to say on... [Read more]

No headway in Iran's nuke stand-off
DEFYING innumerable United Nations Security Council resolutions, Iran let on earlier this week that it has set up more than 300 centrifuges in two uranium enrichment units at its underground Natanz complex. The country's nuclear programme is therefore set to go... [Read more]

Platini's new Uefa boss by four votes
DUESSELDORF (GERMANY) - MICHEL Platini was yesterday named Uefa's new president, ending Lennart Johansson's 17-year reign in European football's top job by just four votes. Johansson, 77, looked totally stunned as he realised that delegates had rejected him in favour of... [Read more]