In an ongoing fight against scams, the government has implemented various safeguards to protect and educate potential victims. The latest safeguard? An enhanced ScamShield app which is now equipped with a new «Check for Scams» function. What this means is that the app will be using artificial intelligence to identify and alert users about potential scam threats across platforms such as WhatsApp, Telegram, SMS, phone calls and other channels.  The app's enhancement comes at a time when scams are quickly evolving, signalling a need to step up measures, said Minister of State (MOS) for the Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Social and Family Development Sun Xueling at a multi-agency briefing on the government's anti-scam efforts on Tuesday (Aug 20). «As scammers evolve their tactics, we have to update our responses. The enhanced ScamShield app has been designed to stay ahead of these threats, providing Singaporeans with a better way to safeguard themselves against scams,» said Sun, who is also the Chairperson of the Inter-Ministry Committee on Scams.

While his domestic helper was taking a shower, a 38-year-old man secretly filmed her with his phone through the window. When his wife confronted him, the man claimed innocence and even called the police. He was sentenced to three months and two weeks' jail on Tuesday (Aug 20) after pleading guilty to one count of voyeurism, reported Shin Min Daily News. The man cannot be named to protect the victim's identity. According to the Chinese evening daily, the accused and the victim were the only ones at home during the incident, which occurred at about 1.15pm on March 19. The 25-year-old maid was showering in the bathroom when she spotted the phone at louvred window in the mirror reflection. She immediately squatted down, and resumed showering only after the device was gone. Not knowing what to do, the victim called her sister, who urged her to tell the man's wife about the incident. The man's wife returned home at about 4pm but the victim did not dare to tell her as the accused was present. Later that night, she worked up the courage to inform the man's wife.

University student Phoebe Wee has come to terms with the inevitability of death through volunteering at Assisi Hospice over the past four years. The 20-year-old has seen a fair share of deaths — many of the patients at the hospice's day care centre have a prognosis of one year or less.  «It really never gets easier,» Wee said in an interview with AsiaOne. «It still hits me hard when I hear that a patient has left.» Among those patients was Patrick Perera, who died in July 2023. Wee remembered him as a «cheerful guy» who charmed everyone in the hospice with his singing. The hospice volunteer also bonded with his wife Manelle, 83, through their mutual love of handicraft. «Both of them were in the hospice together,» Wee said about the couple who were married for over 50 years. «You could see the love and respect they had for each other. It was a joy to be around them.» As his health declined, Wee visited him several times in the hospital, and also checked in on his wife regularly to «make sure she was okay». «I think it meant a lot to her,» said the volunteer.

Opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has expressed different opinions on the assessment governance and human rights advocate, Undule Mwakasungula, gave on its recently concluded convention. Mwakasungula described the convention as a missed opportunity for failing to incorporate women and the youth in its National Executive Conference. He further said the convention left many Malawians disappointed […] The post Namalomba hits Undule on DPP convention outcomes, cautions journalists against biased reporting appeared first on Malawi Nyasa Times - News from Malawi about Malawi.

Nigerian Babatunde Adepoju was a man to watch on Wednesday night at Bingu National Stadium as FCB Nyasa Big Bullets eliminated Moyale Barracks Football Club by 3 goals to 1 in an exciting semi final match. The Bullets were quick to realise that the left hand side for Moyale Barracks where their captain Victor Mwale […] The post Babatunde on fire as he takes Bullets into FDH Bank Cup finals appeared first on Malawi Nyasa Times - News from Malawi about Malawi.

Lilongwe, August 21, Mana: The Church of Central Africa Presbyterian (CCAP) is set to celebrate its centenary anniversary from August 23rd to 25th in Lilongwe, with the climax of the celebrations expected to take place at Civo Stadium on the final day of the event. Secretary General of the CCAP General Assembly Reverend DrMwawi Chilongozgi, […] The post CCAP to Celebrate 100 Years of Service and Faith appeared first on Malawi Nyasa Times - News from Malawi about Malawi.

A grouping of civil rights activists, Concerned Citizens of Malawi, says it is opposed to the decision by the Government of Malawi to renew a contract for passport supplier, E-Tech Systems, arguing it does not have the capacity to deliver quality service to Malawians. The Concerned Citizens are instead recommending that the government should recall […] The post Activists objects renewal of E-Tech contract, demand return of Techno-Brain in passport issuance services appeared first on Malawi Nyasa Times - News from Malawi about Malawi.

Initié par l'UNOCA et organisé avec l'appui du CNUDHD-AC, l' UNESCO et le gouvernement camerounais, l'atelier régional sur le thème :« Hommes et femmes dans les médias : égalité et responsabilité pour une presse qui promeut la paix et la démocratie en Afrique centrale » avait réuni des journalistes venus de dix pays, du 12 au 14 août dernier à Douala. Ayant pris une part active à ce rendez-vous de la capitale économique du pays des Lions indomptables, Grâce Israëlla Mambu Kangundu Ngyke, (...) - COMMUNICATION / SUJET_ECRIT_MAISON

[African Arguments] Debating Ideas reflects the values and editorial ethos of the African Arguments book series, publishing engaged, often radical, scholarship, original and activist writing from within the African continent and beyond. It offers debates and engagements, contexts and controversies, and reviews and responses flowing from the African Arguments books. It is edited and managed by the International African Institute, hosted at SOAS University of London, the owners of the book series of the same name.

The FBI raided the homes of Scott Ritter and Dimitri Simes to purportedly fight Russian “influence operations,” the NYT has reported Read Full Article at RT.com

Mogadishu (HOL) – Somali Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Ahmed Moallim Fiqi, has accused Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed of attempting to spark conflict in the Horn of Africa to divert attention from his government's internal challenges.

Mogadishu (HOL) — Ethiopia's ongoing military presence in Somalia may soon breach international law if Somalia follows through on its decision to exclude Ethiopian forces from future peacekeeping missions, according to legal experts.

MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Wearing a bulky protective suit and helmet, Mohamed Ahmed inches towards the truck where explosives wired to a mobile phone have been planted in Somalia's capital, Mogadishu.

A business incubation centre will be established in Seychelles next year through a virtual signing of a memorandum of understanding between the COMESA Federation of Women in Business (COMFWB) Seychelles Chapter and the Kenya Industrial Research and Development Institute (KIRDI). The agreement, signed on Wednesday, proposes a partnership to deliver business incubation and apprenticeship programme for young men and women across Seychelles. COMFWB Seychelles will front the youths and women-led enterprises for mentorship. KIRDI on the other hand will bring on board its expertise in product development, product standard certification, and quality and further leverage current partnerships to better the capacity of SMSEs in Seychelles. The chairperson of the COMFWB Seychelles Chapter, Claudette Albert, said, «This is a milestone for us, in terms of capacity building we will be able to develop our support and incubation programme by next year. We are already providing some training programmes for incubation such as the project to develop products from fish skin.» Albert shared that the «MOU will help us with expertise from Kenya where they can support us with training. Furthermore, while we wait for our centre to be built, we can also send entrepreneurs interested to Kenya where they can follow different training on a paying basis.» Seychelles COMFWB is also being assisted by the Citizenship Engagement Platform Seychelles (CEPS). The chief executive of CEPS, Alvin Laurence, said they agreed to build the Incubation Centre on the same land next to the CEPS House on the man-made island of Ile du Port. «There is already a plan to build the CEPS House and it includes an environmental and economic component. This lab will be built as the first incubation centre and will answer these components. Entrepreneurs will be able to gain access to equipment and space without needing major installation costs initially,» said Laurence. «The CEPS House itself is already in an advanced phase and we expect to begin before the end of this year. The property is located just after the Trotters Stop School at Ile du Port.» Albert confirmed that the building will be modular to speed up the building time. She added that they are also receiving assistance from several other donors for other components related to the project. «The European Union is helping with the equipment needed at SCR2 million ($142,000). COMESA (Common Market of Eastern and Southern Africa) is also helping support the project through the technical assistance programme,» she added.  She confirmed that they expect to establish a separate incubator to deal specifically with Blue Economy projects under the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). Seychelles will be the first in the Business Incubator for African Woman Entrepreneurs (BIAWE) group in the region to implement such a project. Signing the agreement on behalf of KIRDI, the director general of KIRDI, Dr Calvin Onyango said, «We as KIRDI are ready and willing to transfer skills and technologies to others to boost their SME profile and productivity.»

[AI London] Four years into President Evariste Ndayishimiye's administration, human rights defenders, activists, journalists and members of the political opposition continue to face intimidation, harassment, arbitrary arrests and detention, and unfair prosecution, Amnesty International said today, as it released a new briefing on the persistent repression of civic space in Burundi.

[VOA] Yaounde -- Cameroon is trying to register voters before the nearing deadline. But the political opposition and civil society say most qualified voters are reluctant to register because they think President Paul Biya plans to rig elections. Barely 50% of qualified civilians have registered for the election expected in October 2025.

[HRW] Nairobi -- Uphold Rights to Free Expression, Opinion; Don't Abuse Martial Law

Russian forces have foiled a Ukrainian cross-border attack into Bryansk Region, the governor has said Read Full Article at RT.com

China has reaffirmed its “no first use” nuclear doctrine and accused the US of scaremongering Read Full Article at RT.com

The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group has arrived in the Middle East Read Full Article at RT.com

The rape and murder of a doctor in Kolkata has sparked nationwide uproar, reigniting concerns about how India treats its daughters Read Full Article at RT.com

Former US President Donald Trump has beaten Democrat nominee Kamala Harris in an online poll which Elon Musk ran on X Read Full Article at RT.com

Reputed leader of the St Catherine-based Clansman Gang Tesha Miller is objecting to the electronic serving of material by the Crown on the basis that he cannot electronically access them while being incarcerated to prepare his defence. A letter...

An attempt by defence lawyers to have five men - implicated in an almost $12-billion cocaine bust in Havendale, St Andrew - brought back before the court next month for a bail application, was shut down by parish judge Maxine Ellis yesterday....

AFTER EMANCIPATION in 1838 the peasantry class emerged out of the former enslaved people. Some people were established in free villages, from which cheap labour was supplied for the plantations that still thrived from the legacy of slavery. It was...

Dancehall icon Vybz Kartel has increased his followers by 70,000 so far this month on key streaming platform Spotify, bringing his total followers on that platform to over 1.45 million, signalling the continued relevance of the artiste who first...

Cybercriminals have targeted security systems in Jamaica four million times in the first half of this year, a significant decline from the 43 million times recorded in 2023. However this reduction should not be a source of respite for businesses...

The central theme of the conference will be support for private housing construction projects

According to the report, «589 Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces, eleven by Israeli settlers, and seven where it remains unknown whether the perpetrators were Israeli forces or settlers»

The Israeli military killed a senior Palestinian militant in Lebanon on Wednesday, leading to accusations from the Fatah movement that Israel was trying to ignite a regional war. The strike that killed Khalil Maqdah, described by Fatah as «one of the leaders» of its armed wing in Lebanon, came hours after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken ended a tour of the Middle East aimed at reaching a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. On Wednesday, US President Joe Biden called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and «made clear that we must bring the ceasefire and hostage release deal to closure,» the president wrote on X, formerly Twitter. Fatah, which is based in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and rivals the Gaza Strip's Islamist rulers Hamas, said Maqdah was killed near the southern Lebanese city of Sidon. Israel accused him of «directing attacks and smuggling weapons» to the West Bank and collaborating with Iranian forces. His killing marked the first time Israel has targeted a senior Fatah member in more than 10 months of cross-border clashes with Lebanese militants, mostly from Hezbollah, during the Gaza war. Tawfiq Tirawy, a member of Fatah's central committee, told AFP that the «assassination... is further proof that Israel wants to ignite a full-scale war in the region». Blinken, who left Qatar late Tuesday apparently empty-handed, appealed to Hamas to urgently accept a US-drafted truce proposal, while also publicly disagreeing with Israel over its future presence in the besieged Gaza Strip. «Time is of the essence,» Blinken said before flying out of Doha after stops in Egypt and Israel. A ceasefire «needs to get done, and it needs to get done in the days ahead,» he said. - Father mourns - On the ground, Gaza was again rocked by air strikes, according to AFP reporters, first responders, witnesses and the Israeli military, which also issued fresh evacuation orders. The civil defence agency in the Hamas-run territory said at least three people were killed and 10 children wounded in an Israeli strike on a school-turned-shelter in Gaza City. Israel's military said the «precise strike» targeted Hamas militants based in the school compound. A father told AFP his child was killed in the strike while playing in the schoolyard. «What did this child do to deserve this?» he said, declining to give his name. Israeli bombardment elsewhere in Gaza killed at least 24 people on Wednesday, the civil defence agency said. Israel and Hamas have blamed each other for delays in agreeing a deal to end fighting, triggered by Hamas's October 7 attack, as well as freeing Israeli hostages and allowing vital humanitarian aid into Gaza. The United States has presented ideas to bridge gaps and, through mediators Qatar and Egypt, pressed Hamas to return to talks this week in Cairo. But a day after Blinken said US ally Israel was on board, Netanyahu was quoted by Israeli media as disagreeing on a key sticking point. Netanyahu insisted Israel maintain control of the Philadelphi Corridor, the border between Gaza and Egypt that Israeli forces seized from Hamas, which Israel says relies on tunnels to bring in weapons. Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant toured Philadelphi on Wednesday, his office said. Since the war began, it was made «very clear that the United States does not accept any long-term occupation of Gaza by Israel», Blinken said when asked about Netanyahu's remarks. But he added that Israel had already agreed on the «schedule and location» of troop withdrawals from Gaza in the talks. Details have not been made public. Hamas said it was «keen to reach a ceasefire» but protested «new conditions» from Israel in the latest US proposal. - 'Bring them all back' - The October 7 attack on southern Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,199 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures. Israel's retaliatory military campaign has killed 40,223 Palestinians in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry, which does not give details of civilian and militant deaths. The UN rights office says most dead are women and children. Palestinian militants also seized 251 hostages, of whom 105 remain in Gaza including 34 the military says are dead. The military's latest evacuation orders, including for parts of central and southern Gaza previously designated «safe» by Israel, affect some 150,000 displaced Palestinians who had sought shelter there, the United Nations' humanitarian agency OCHA said. A UN official said death «seems to be the only certainty» for Gaza's 2.4 million people, with no way to escape Israel's bombardment. «Absolutely nowhere is safe,» Louise Wateridge, a spokeswoman for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), told AFP from Gaza. In Lebanon, Hamas ally Hezbollah claimed attacks on Israeli military positions across the border including in the annexed Golan Heights, after several Israeli strikes that the health ministry said had killed five people. Fears of a wider regional conflagration soared after the late July killings, blamed on Israel, of Iran-aligned militant leaders in Tehran and in Beirut. Netanyahu, at an airbase in northern Israel, said «we are ready for any scenario.» Mourners meanwhile gathered in southern Israel to bury one of six dead hostages recovered from Gaza by Israeli forces this week. Yagev Buchshtab's mother Esther, echoing calls for Netanyahu to secure a hostage release deal, said: «In what world must families beg, scream and cry for the return of their loved ones, alive or murdered? Bring them all back.» © Agence France-Presse

Divers searching for six people missing after a superyacht sank off Sicily, including UK tech tycoon Mike Lynch, on Wednesday pulled four bodies from the wreck and reportedly found a fifth. The grim development, after three days of searches since the «Bayesian» went down early on Monday morning, brings the death toll to six -- with one person still missing. There was no official identification of the bodies but Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah are among those missing since the yacht was scuppered in a storm off the Italian island. The 56-metre (185 feet) British-flagged sailing boat had been anchored some 700 metres off Porticello, east of Palermo, when it was struck by a waterspout -- akin to a mini-tornado. It sank within minutes. Fifteen people were rescued, including Lynch's wife and a woman with a one-year-old baby. But the body of a man, believed to be the yacht's chef, was found several hours later. Lynch and his daughter, his lawyer Christopher Morvillo and his wife Neda, and Jonathan Bloomer, the chair of Morgan Stanley International, and his wife Judy, were all reported missing. AFP journalists in Porticello saw emergency workers moving four body bags from boats returning from the sea into a tent on the quay, or into waiting ambulances. Several different media outlets later said a fifth body had been found but not yet brought to shore. In an update late Wednesday, the coastguard confirmed four bodies had been recovered in an «extremely delicate operation». The depth of the yacht -- which is largely intact and resting on the seabed some 50 metres down -- had been a challenge, it said. It also noted «the narrowness of the spaces they were exploring and the presence of numerous objects». «The operation is continuing for the search and recovery of the last two missing,» it added, a process that would resume on Thursday morning. - Five minutes - Lynch -- an entrepreneur sometimes referred to as Britain's Bill Gates -- had invited the guests onto the yacht to celebrate his acquittal in a massive US fraud case. The 59-year-old was acquitted on all charges in a San Francisco court in June after he was accused of an $11 billion fraud linked to the sale of his software firm Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard. Among the survivors was Charlotte Golunski, board director of a company founded by Lynch, who has described how she briefly lost hold of her one-year-old daughter before grabbing her again. Both were plucked to safety. Fabio Genco, a member of the Palermo Emergency Medical Services who was among the team that treated the child, described the «apocalyptic» situation he found on arriving at the scene. «The word that the mother and all the injured kept repeating was 'darkness', the darkness that they experienced during the shipwreck,» he told the BBC's Newsnight programme. «They spoke of about five minutes, maybe from three to five minutes, from the moment the boat was lifted, raised by the waves of the sea, until it sank.» He said the survivors rescued had been in shock: «There were truly apocalyptic scenes where everyone was searching and hoping to find the people who at that moment, were not present or just missing.» All the survivors treated in hospital have been discharged, he confirmed. - Anarchic sea conditions - The speed with which the yacht sank, and the fact that other boats around it were unaffected, was extraordinary. Despite eyewitness testimonies that the 75-metre mast had snapped, reports on Wednesday suggested that it was intact. Some key questions remain, including whether the keel, which provides a counterbalance to the towering mast, was down when the storm hit. Italian authorities have opened an investigation into what happened and are interviewing all the survivors, including captain James Cutfield, a 51-year-old New Zealander, according to Italian media. The UK's marine accident investigation branch also sent four inspectors. Matthew Schanck, from the Maritime Search and Rescue Council, told AFP what happened was a «pretty unprecedented». UK meteorologist Peter Inness described a waterspout as a «narrow column of rotating air below a thunderstorm that occurs over water». Like tornadoes, they suck up air in a rotating motion. Many are fairly inconsequential, but some can pack winds of more than 100 kilometres (62 miles) per hour, said Inness. Jean-Marie Dumon, a former naval officer now with the GICAN, the French maritime industry association, added that conditions with winds of 100kph or more can «create completely anarchic sea conditions which can cause capsizing». © Agence France-Presse

Peter Beard, 43, admitted pushing aggressively at a line of officers protecting a hotel housing asylum seekers during disorder in Rotherham.