News Today

Couple get back baby held over unpaid bills
JAKARTA - THE impoverished parents of a baby held by an Indonesian clinic for three weeks because they could not pay the bill for her birth have been reunited with their daughter, a welfare official said yesterday. The clinic was forced... [Read more]

Decision time on airport
WHAT IT IS THE Thai authorities will meet today to discuss a definitive report on repairs required at Suvarnabhumi International Airport. On Feb 14, a final decision will be taken on how much of the airport must be closed for repairs... [Read more]

Temasek invests in Guangzhou developer: Report
BEIJING - TEMASEK Holdings, Merrill Lynch and Deutsche Bank have invested US$400 million (S$615 million) in Hengda Real Estate Group, a developer in Guangzhou, Shanghai Securities News reported, citing unidentified sources.The combined investment makes up about 8 per cent of the... [Read more]

World Quickly
PERES THE FAVOURITE TO BE PRESIDENTJERUSALEM: The battle to succeed Israel's disgraced president Moshe Katsav got under way yesterday, with veteran politician Shimon Peres favoured to gain the prestigious post that slipped from his grasp seven years ago.Prime Minister Ehud Olmert... [Read more]

Big businesses go green
PARIS - SOME of the very corporations once vilified by environmentalists are choosing to go green. In one initiative, Wal-Mart Stores chief executive Lee Scott unveiled a plan challenging employees, suppliers and customers to remove non-renewable energy from their lives. 'It... [Read more]

Frank Hsieh to join Taiwan presidential race
TAIPEI - FORMER premier Frank Hsieh yesterday announced that he will seek the ruling party's nomination for next year's presidential election.His announcement came just days after opposition leader Ma Ying-jeou declared his bid for the island's top office on Tuesday.Mr Hsieh,... [Read more]

Heat win on Wade's 24-point final effort
MIAMI - WITH less than eight minutes remaining, the Miami Heat were in a 12-point hole. And their superstar guard had already established a National Basketball Association record for the most turnovers in a game. 'I knew it had to get... [Read more]

Taipei to drop 'China' from names of firms
TAIPEI - TAIWAN'S ruling party has passed a resolution calling for the elimination of the word 'China' from the names of state-run companies that were founded in the days when the island's government claimed sovereignty over its giant neighbour.It is a... [Read more]

Microsoft, AT&T in court over software patent
WASHINGTON - IS SOFTWARE a tangible part of a computer, or just an intangible string of digital data? It's an arcane question that the Supreme Court is being asked to answer by two business giants, with US software jobs potentially at... [Read more]

New system to help sniff out threats
LOOKING for that 'needle in the haystack' yet vital clue in foiling terrorist, cyberspace or even bird flu threats will get easier with some made-in-Singapore help.This locally developed computerised tool for intelligence analysts is called the Risk Assessment and Horizon Scanning... [Read more]

Muslim nations urged to help end violence in Middle East
JAKARTA - MUSLIM countries must work together to end spiralling bloodshed in the Middle East, the leaders of Indonesia and Pakistan said yesterday as they sought to counterbalance American influence in the region.Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf and Indonesian counterpart, Susilo Bambang... [Read more]