KLANG, Jan 21 — Section 2 of the West Coast Expressway (WCE) will be opened to traffic starting midnight tonight, which will complement Port Klang as the largest logistics hub in Southeast Asia. Works Minister Datuk Seri Alexander Nanta Linggi said the 7.2km alignment connects the South Klang Valley Expressway (SKVE) elevated interchange and the Shah Alam Expressway (SAE) elevated interchange, thus facilitating access or routes to Port Klang. “The opening of this alignment is also expected to help reduce the operating costs of the logistics sector, facilitate the delivery of goods and thus increase Malaysia’s competitiveness on the international stage. “This will directly attract investments to industrial areas and ports, besides creating job opportunities and being an economic catalyst,” he told a press conference after officiating the opening of Section 2 of the WCE here today. Nanta also announced a month-long toll-free travel on the alignment, starting midnight tonight....

RAFAH, Jan 20 — A corridor of lorries carrying vital aid stretched out Sunday on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing with the war-battered Gaza Strip, manned by drivers who haven’t been home in months. They were waiting for a truce in the Israel-Hamas war, and when it finally took effect they began rolling through the armoured gates, delivering food, medical supplies and fuel to the Israeli crossings of Nitzana and Kerem Shalom, where they were meant to cross into hunger-stricken Gaza. Down the aisle of trucks, those returning from their mission wave peace signs and honk their horns in a deafening symphony, ecstatic to have finally achieved what they had come to the edge of Egypt for. “For months, we’ve been eating, sleeping, and showering in our trucks, just waiting for the moment we’re told we can go in,” said Essam Desouky, a burly trucker from the...

KOTA KINABALU, Jan 20 — The initiatives introduced by the state government are not “election goodies” for the upcoming state election, said Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) Deputy Secretary-General Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali. The Minister of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living clarified that the initiatives stem from the state’s growing revenue. “These initiatives didn’t just appear during the election period; they are new initiatives for this year, made possible due to our increased revenue. Previously, we implemented the Rumah Mesra Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ) program. This year, we introduced educational assistance because we see our revenue has stabilised. “These programs will become annual initiatives if the people continue to place their trust in Datuk Seri Panglima Hajiji Noor and the GRS government to lead the state government after the coming state election. These are not election goodies. After the election, we will proceed with these programs, and if revenue increases...

OSWIECIM (Poland), Jan 19 — Barbed wire lines the road to work for Pawel Sawicki, deputy spokesman of the Auschwitz museum at the site of the former Nazi death camp that was liberated 80 years ago this month. More than one million people died at the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp built by Nazi Germany when it occupied Poland in World War II – most of them Jews, but also non-Jewish Poles, Roma and Soviet soldiers. Around 850 people work at the museum to preserve their memory, a job with more emotional baggage than your usual nine-to-five. “They say that when you start working here, either you leave very quickly because the history is too much or you stay for a long time,” said Sawicki, who is in charge of social media at the museum and has worked there for 17 years. “It helps if you find some meaning to the mission,” the...

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 19 — “Popiah” or spring rolls are a famous snack in South-east Asia, with origins in Chinese cuisine. Most recently, the snack — in both is unfried or “wet” version, and the crispy deep fried version called choon piah — were included in the list of Malaysia’s heritage foods. In Malaysia, popiah can easily be found almost anywhere – from any local night markets or roadside kuih vendors to shopping malls and supermarkets. Usually, it would be stuffed with cooked shredded jicama and carrots, sometimes with minced meat. A spicy sauce would either be slathered inside, on top, or provided on the side. There are also versions with fillings similar to karipap or samosas. But over the years, Malaysians have come up with various types and fillings as a way to keep abreast with trends and consumers. Here are some of them: 1. Satay popiah Probably the...

JOHOR BARU, Jan 18 — The federal government has allocated more than RM30 million to upgrade 47 dilapidated health clinics in Johor this year. State health and environment committee chairman Ling Tian Soon said the move involves infrastructure upgrading works and replacing old medical equipment. “We have identified 47 decrepit and dilapidated health clinics in the state that will be given priority for upgrading works for the convenience of users. “Previously, a total of 98 clinics throughout Johor were upgraded from 2023 until last December,” he told reporters when met at Lotus Bukit Indah hypermarket here today. He said the tender process will begin in March and is expected to be completed before October according to the set schedule. Earlier, Ling accompanied Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi during the official launch of the Locker4U 2025 Project and UMP Service initiative held at the hypermarket. Ling, who is also...

GENEVA, Jan 17 — At least US$10 billion (RM45 billion) will likely be needed to rebuild Gaza’s devastated health system over the next five to seven years, according to an initial World Health Organization assessment Thursday. “The needs are massive,” the UN health agency’s representative in the Palestinian territories, Rik Peeperkorn, told reporters. With a ceasefire finally looming, humanitarians are calling for a dramatic scaling up of humanitarian aid into war-ravaged Gaza, amid efforts to determine the size of the towering needs. Peeperkorn said his team’s initial estimate of the cost to rebuild just the health sector was “even more than US$3 billion for the first 1.5 years and then actually US$10 billion for the five to seven years”. “In Gaza, we all know the destruction is so massive. I have never seen that anywhere else in my life,” he said. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus meanwhile said “less than...

SIBU, Jan 17 — A post-midnight fire today damaged two abandoned tugboats berthed along the riverbank near the Fisheries Development Authority of Malaysia (LKIM) Tanjong Manis complex. One of the tugboats suffered 80 per cent damage, while there was 5 per cent damage to the other. The Sarawak Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba) said a report was received on the incident at 12.02am. A total of seven firefighters from the Tanjung Manis fire station were sent to the scene. “On arrival, the operation commander reported a five involving two abandoned tugboats along the riverbank near LKIM Tanjong Manis. “During the incident, the river water was low and there was no access, with muddy and swampy ground making it difficult for the personnel to reach the location of the fire,” Bomba explained in a statement. The department said firefighting was conducted externally using defensive techniques until the fire was controlled and...

WASHINGTON, Jan 16 — First came the slow hand movements, then the tremor, and now the looming fear of what lies ahead. David Jilbert’s devastating Parkinson’s diagnosis three years ago changed his life irrevocably. It’s a condition the 65-year-old farmer believes he wouldn’t have if it weren’t for paraquat, a herbicide he once relied on to control weeds in his vineyard in the mid-western US state of Ohio. “Now it’s not just about me, I’m part of this community — let’s get something going,” Jilbert said during a recent hearing in the US Congress where he was joined by others claiming the same link. Banned in more than 70 countries — including Britain, where it is manufactured; Switzerland, home to the Syngenta company that owns the brand; and China, where the state-run conglomerate that owns Syngenta is based — paraquat remains available in the United States. The US Environmental Protection...

KOTA KINABALU, Jan 16 — The Kota Kinabalu City Hall (DBKK) has reinstated the original rate of licence fees under the Kota Kinabalu City (Hotel & Lodging Houses) By-laws 1966, effective January 1 this year, with the approval of the state government. A DBKK spokesperson said the calculation of the hotel and lodging licence fees is based on the formula stated in the said By-law, by taking into account the hotel classification category and occupancy rate. He said the actual fee charged for each occupied hotel room is RM4.65 per room/day for Class 1, RM2.65 per room/day for Class 2, and RM1.30 per room/day for Class 3. No fee will be charged on unoccupied rooms. “DBKK must enforce any laws or regulations as stipulated in the laws applicable in the Kota Kinabalu City area. This includes collecting licence fees. “The proceeds from the license fee collection will be used to...