It is costing Caribbean nations a combined US$190 billion to deal with the effects of crime and violence, an official at the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has revealed. Jason Wilks, senior sector specialist at the IDB, says this accounts for 3.7 per cent of gross domestic product for countries in the Caribbean. Despite this, Wilks said Caribbean countries are spending “maybe US$15 billion to US$20 billion” on compliance.

WESTERN BUREAU: While environmental activists are seemingly not thrilled about Sandals International’s proposal to build overwater suites in proximity to its Sandals Montego Bay property, some residents of the nearby Flanker community have no issue with it.

Western Bureau: Lucea Mayor Sheridan Samuels, who is spearheading the call for a national response to the spate of recent floodings in Hanover, believes the dredging of the town’s harbour to address the build-up of silt is key to solving the problem. According to Samuels, who grew up in Lucea as a child, the regular flooding that is now taking place did not occur in former years; and while acknowledging the role of climate change in the weather pattern, and the fact that the town is below sea level, he believes dredging is at least a part of the answer to the problem.

Auditor General (AuG) Pamela Monroe Ellis says the Jamaican Government has laid a solid foundation for the country’s climate response, but is warning of the absence of climate legislation to create legally enforceable standards and oversight mechanisms. Her assessment was made in a 27-page report on Jamaica’s climate response, tabled in the House of Representatives last week.

Fiscal Commissioner Courtney Williams has sounded a warning that the geopolitical tensions in the Middle East are posing a material risk to the Jamaican economy, and that a prolonged conflict could lead to worsened terms of trade and amplified price pass-through effects, along with higher production costs, as well as dampened economic activity and confidence.

The US president urged China to join Washington’s efforts to unblock the Strait of Hormuz

Vasily Nebenzya says the death toll from the US-Israeli aggression is in the hundreds

The freighter will free up the dock for the next cargo spaceship

As many as 436 drones were downed over Russian regions on March 15

Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Catherine King said that Australia would provide aircraft to the UAE for defense

External affairs minister S Jaishankar hailed direct talks with Iran as the most effective way to resume shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran has allowed Indian-flagged vessels to pass, demonstrating the success of diplomacy over potential military action. This approach offers a potential model for other nations grappling with disrupted energy supplies.

The crowd gleefully joined in with Vylan's loving call for the slaughter of the Israeli Defence Forces over and over.

Kylie Jenner appeared to protect 'submissive' Timothee Chalamet at the Oscars during Conan O'Brien's joke about his ballet comments, according to a body language expert.

Timothee Chalamet saw his years-long Oscars dream go up in smoke on Sunday - as he was brutally snubbed for Michael B. Jordan in the Best Actor category.

The latest and greatest in Hollywood flocked to the Dolby Theatre to attend the 98th Academy Awards on Sunday.

Paul Thomas Anderson accepted the top prize of the night alongside Teyana Taylor and the rest of the cast and crew as the film earned the most wins of the night with six.

An Australian data scientist designed an experimental mRNA therapy that shrank tumors in his pet after conventional treatment failed Read Full Article at RT.com

Viktor Orban has accused Brussels of dragging the EU deeper into the Ukraine conflict, vowing to keep Hungarians safe. Read Full Article at RT.com

RECAP: Follow the latest developments on the US-Israel war with Iran as the IDF predicts the conflict will last another six weeks.

Singapore's consumer watchdog has urged fuel companies in Singapore to «exercise greater transparency and restraint» in pump price adjustments after they raised prices for five consecutive days last week. The comments were made by Consumer Association of Singapore (Case) president Melvin Yong at the association's 55th anniversary and partners' appreciation dinner on Sunday (March 15). In his speech, Yong noted that consumers today face new and evolving concerns, such as those faced by motorists given the sharp rise in petrol prices. «Within just a few days, several petrol operators raised pump prices multiple times. However, when international oil prices fell as reported in local news last week, local oil companies continued raising the price of 95-octane gasoline,» Yong said.He added that consumers are aware that global events and geopolitical tensions can affect oil markets: «When oil prices go up, pump prices move up quickly. But when global prices fall, consumers expect those savings to be reflected just as quickly.»

SINGAPORE — PropertyLimBrothers (PLB) is tightening governance after a leadership controversy that triggered widespread online speculation about the company's senior executives.The real estate agency will introduce a formal code of conduct, which could include rules on workplace relationships, professional behaviour and dress codes.The aim is to strengthen accountability and create a safer working environment, said PLB co-founder Adrian Lim in an exclusive interview with The Straits Times on March 9.The agency has also launched a whistle-blowing channel for property agents and other employees to raise their concerns anonymously. Serious breaches could result in disciplinary action, including termination, Mr Lim said.PLB was thrust into the spotlight in late January following allegations about an extramarital affair between the firm's second co-founder and former chief executive Melvin Lim and Ms Grayce Tan, who was then vice-president of strategy.

A person was seen on video tossing a fistful of soil in the direction of two workers at a construction site at an HDB estate, allegedly because of noise.The act was filmed by the culprit, and the video was subsequently uploaded to the Sgfollowsall Instagram page on Sunday (March 15).In the clip, the errant individual grabs some loose soil from a potted plant on their balcony and flings the soil over the railing.A construction worker downstairs immediately stands up and looks in the direction of the camera. The worker, who is believed to have been hit by the soil, touches the top of his helmet.«Make so much noise right now,» reads the in-video text.According to Sgfollowsall, the clip had been submitted by an anonymous user, who claimed that a boy had thrown the soil. It is not clear when and where the incident occurred.The Instagram Reel has garnered 285,000 views in a day and sparked outrage online.«Hospitals, USS, Zoo, every building in this country is built by foreign workers. In fact, the place you call home is built by them and this is how you treat them,» chastised a netizen.

The US president is «not declaring it over,» he says

The US president says Iran will be ready «to do what they have to do» at some point

Air raid warnings are in effect for the Kharkov, Dnepropetrovsk, Sumy, and Chernigov regions

Johann Wadephul stresses that only talks with Iran can ensure security in the region

The film's director Paul Thomas Anderson won Best Director

Following a series of recalls involving infant milk formulas in January this year over the presence of cereulide toxin, two additional formula milk products are being recalled over the same issue. The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) on Sunday (March 15) ordered the recall of Nestle's NAN HA2 and Nature One Dairy's Premium Toddler Milk Formula Stage 3. Cereulide is a toxin produced by some strains of the Bacillus cereus bacterium, which can cause symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps and diarrhoea. Both SFA and the Communicable Diseases Agency said in a joint statement that the detection follows the expansion of testing of infant formula milk products to include those intended for children above one year old. SFA added that the recall for Nestle's NAN HA2 follows its ongoing market surveillance after it earlier completed testing of all infant formula products sold at major retail outlets in Singapore. The affected Nestle and Nature One Dairy products originated from Switzerland and Australia respectively.