Singapore's president and prime minister sent condolence letters to Qatar Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on Monday (July 13) following the passing of his father, the former emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani.The 73-year-old died on Sunday morning, according to a post on X by the Emir's office, which also announced a four-day mourning period till Wednesday.A Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson said Coordinating Minister for National Security and Minister for Home Affairs K Shanmugam and former Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean, who is now Senior Adviser in the Prime Minister's Office, will represent Singapore to convey condolences to the Qatar royal family at Lusail Palace on Tuesday.President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and PM Lawrence Wong wrote to Qatar Emir Sheikh Tamin to convey their condolences.In his letter sent on behalf of Singaporeans, President Tharman said that the late Sheikh Hamad was an exceptional statesman, whose visionary leadership transformed Qatar and elevated its standing on the global stage.

The police's Criminal Investigation Department (CID) will get a new director at the helm on July 20, with Senior Assistant Commissioner of Police (SAC) Julius Lim Wei-Yang taking over the role.He takes over from Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Zhang Weihan, who will remain as the force's Deputy Commissioner for Investigation and Intelligence.The 40-year-old incoming director joined the Singapore Police Force (SPF) in 2004 and has held several key appointments over the past 22 years, including as Commander of Bedok Police Division and Senior Assistant Director of the Joint Operations Group at the Ministry of Home Affairs.Prior to his upcoming appointment, SAC Lim was the principal private secretary to President Tharman Shanmugaratnam.In these roles, the incoming director is said to have contributed to strengthening Singapore's security and public safety capabilities, including through policy development, inter-agency coordination, and advancing whole-of-government efforts on Singapore's longer-term strategic priorities.

Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong will visit Brunei from July 14 (Tuesday) to 17 as the Singapore Government's representative to the 80th birthday celebrations of Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah.As part of the official celebrations, SM Lee will attend the royal guard of honour parade and the investiture ceremony on Wednesday, as well as the royal banquet on Thursday. While in Brunei, SM Lee will have audiences with Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and other members of the royal family. He will also meet with various Bruneian ministers and Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) personnel training in Brunei.The SAF has been using Temburong for training since 1977.SM Lee will be accompanied by his wife Ho Ching, and Minister of State for Home Affairs and Social and Family Development Goh Pei Ming.Singapore's leaders send congratulatory lettersPresident Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, SM Lee, and Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong have written congratulatory letters to Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah. 

Coordinating Minister for Public Services and Minister for Defence Chan Chun Sing will make a two-day working visit to Jakarta, Indonesia, from July 14 (Tuesday) to July 15.Chan, who had previously served as Singapore's military attache in Indonesia when he was in the Singapore Armed Forces, will jointly launch the Indonesia-Singapore Defence Alumni initiative with his Indonesian counterpart Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin. The Ministry of Defence (Mindef) said in a news release on Monday that the alumni is intended to bring together officers from the Singapore Armed Forces and Indonesian National Defence Forces who have worked together or completed a study stint in Singapore and Indonesia respectively.It added that the alumni will allow officers from both countries to maintain their personal relationships forged through shared experiences, and, in turn, support the bilateral defence relationship between both countries.Singapore's Chief of Defence Vice Admiral Aaron Beng and his Indonesian counterpart General Agus Subiyanto will also participate in the launch as co-presidents.

A 46-year-old man was arrested for dangerous driving causing hurt after a collision involving a car and a motorcycle in Jalan Besar on Sunday (July 12).Responding to queries from AsiaOne, the police and Singapore Civil Defence Force said they were alerted to an accident at the junction of Kitchener Road and Jalan Besar at about 9.40pm. A video of the incident shared on Facebook page SGRV Admin shows a car travelling through the junction while the traffic light in the opposite direction was red.A motorcycle was seen travelling straight through the junction before colliding with the car. The motorcyclist was later seen lying on the road, appearing to be in distress.A 28-year-old male motorcyclist was taken conscious to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, said the police. A 46-year-old male car driver was arrested for dangerous driving causing hurt. Police investigations are ongoing. 

A Gojek passenger has filed a police report against her driver for allegedly making inappropriate and sexually explicit remarks towards her during the ride.The 26-year-old passenger, who goes by the username huatyousay, uploaded a second video on Sunday (July 13), a few days after first sharing footage of the incident. The original video, which includes footage of the driver's inappropriate remarks, including a request for a threesome, has since garnered over 320,000 views across TikTok and Instagram.In her latest update, the passenger shared that she lodged a formal police report on July 11 and is awaiting an officer's follow-up.She added that the Land Transport Authority (LTA) also reached out to her and was looking into the matter.More women come forward with allegationsIn her second video, the passenger said that several other women reached out with similar experiences after seeing her post.«Same kind of conversation, in that moment I couldn't even react or think straight that I should video it down,» one user commented, adding that she had been a passenger in the same driver's car.

A woman pulled off the ultimate birthday surprise when her husband thought he was simply checking out a parked motorcycle — until she revealed it was his present.In a series of four videos shared by TikTok user @wantheone on that platform on Saturday (July 11), the woman decided to surprise her husband with a shiny blue ride.The first video begins with the couple riding a multi-storey carpark lift to level 4A. After exiting, the woman pretends to notice the bike, which appears to be a Yamaha YZF-R3, and asks her husband if it's the same model he had mentioned previously. She then approaches the stationary bike while asking her husband, «This one what bike ah?»She then adds, «This is actually your birthday present, you know?» before quickly playing it off with: «Do you like it? Should I buy one like this for you?»Trying to keep the surprise under wraps, she tells him she's filming the interaction so she can remember what kind of motorcycle he likes.Her husband appears unconvinced and while still processing what she's saying, he responds with a bewildered, «Huh?» 

A 29-year-old Singaporean man was charged in court on Monday (July 13) over his alleged involvement in a case of criminal trespass and voyeurism at a commercial building in Whampoa. The man, who cannot be named due to a court-imposed gag order protecting the victim's identity, faces one charge each for criminal trespass and voyeurism. The alleged offences were committed at 1.57pm on October 6, 2025.Charge sheets seen by AsiaOne indicate that the man allegedly trespassed a female toilet on the second floor of an industrial building along Bendemeer Road and intentionally observed a woman by climbing over a toilet cubicle partition. The incident happened near the premises of Singapore-based news and media company AsiaOne.The 29-year-old man, who was unrepresented but accompanied by his parents, remained expressionless when the charges were read out.He told the court that he intends to plead guilty to the charges.How the case unfoldedUpon being notified of the incident, AsiaOne's safety and security team alerted the police and retrieved CCTV footage from the building's surveillance cameras.

SINGAPORE — The centrepiece of the upcoming Woodlands Gateway project will be a major mixed-use transport hub, bedecked with acres of shopping and office spaces, and green areas for leisure, with direct links to rail lines.Underground, there are plans to build a network of roads that will take heavy vehicles and trucks directly to industrial offices and keep the ground level free of heavy traffic.The Gateway's grounds will also feature community facilities like parks and sky links for pedestrians and cyclists, linking them to the larger neighbourhood.JTC Corporation, in tender documents seen by The Straits Times, outlined plans for the mega-project.It said: «As the first rail entry point from Malaysia, Woodlands Gateway is envisioned as an iconic northern gateway, designed to offer travellers a strong impression when entering the city-state.»By seamlessly integrating transport, commercial and industrial functions into a single district, the development will serve as a prominent showcase of Singapore's leadership in mixed-use planning, innovation and design."

Foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) met with their Myanmar counterpart in Bangkok on Sunday (July 12), with the ministers reaffirming the central importance of the Five-Point Consensus (5PC) peace plan, and the need for «demonstrable progress» to be made, said Singapore's Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan.Tin Maung Swe, who was appointed foreign minister by junta chief Min Aung Hlaing after the country held what many described as a fraudulent election, provided the foreign ministers with an update on developments in Myanmar, in his capacity as a «senior representative» of the Myanmar government.The meeting was reportedly the first in-person engagement between Asean foreign ministers and Myanmar's top diplomat since a 2021 military coup.

The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) will be conducting a military training exercise in the Kallang area from July 13 to 14. In an announcement posted on its social media on Sunday (July 12) afternoon, the Singapore Army said that the exercise will take place from 6pm on Monday to 5.30am on Tuesday.It added that the exercise will take place in the vicinity of Kallang, Kallang Wave Mall and Old Kallang Airport. «Members of the public may observe increased military activities and hear loud sounds due to helicopter operations, as well as the use of blanks and pyrotechnics during the exercise,» the advisory stated.For the public's safety, the exercise area will be cordoned off, but vehicular traffic will not be affected, according to the SAF.The public is advised not to be alarmed and to keep clear of the cordoned off areas.

A passenger was blindsided after her Grab driver allegedly locked the doors at the end of the ride and sprang an extra charge of $2 for wet tissue on her.Local model and actress Fiona Fussi took issue with how the driver did not earlier communicate that the item is not free-of-charge in a TikTok video she posted on Friday (July 10).Calling it «one of the worst Grab experiences ever», Fussi said the «stressful» encounter began when she asked the driver if he had any tissues in his car.«He was really snappy and he said no,» she said.«I was like, 'Oh okay, never mind.'»About five minutes later, the driver supposedly said he had wet tissue.Fussi, who thought that the gesture was «nice», accepted it.To her surprise, the driver requested payment for the piece of tissue upon reaching her destination and allegedly refused to let her exit the car until she paid.«It's not about the $2, it's not expensive. But it's the principle that he never told me that he was charging me money, I thought he was just being nice,» she said.AsiaOne has reached out to Fussi and Grab for comment.

The driver of a Toyota Alphard multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) was recently caught aiming a laser pointer at another car.Dashcam footage of the incident submitted to Facebook Group SG Road Vigilante shows vehicles moving slowly along a stretch of an expressway on July 8.As the MPV closes in on the car, its driver is seen using his laser pointer several times.At one point, the glare was so strong that the whole video turned green. The glare from the laser pointer's beam caused the video to «turn green». PHOTO: Screengrab/YouTube/SG Road Vigilante It is unclear what triggered the MPV driver to do so. Based on traffic information signage on the opposite side of the expressway, the incident appears to have occurred along the Pan Island Expressway.