DAMASCUS, SYRIA (AP) – Militants attacked a bus carrying soldiers on a desert highway in central Syria, killing five troops and wounding 20, state media reported yesterday.
The state news agency SANA said the attack happened on Sunday night in a government-controlled area. The report quoted an unnamed official saying the militants launched rockets at the bus travelling in the Palmyra desert, then followed it with gunfire from an anti-aircraft gun.
The official blamed Islamic State (IS)militants for the attack. IS militants have been active in southern and central Syria, despite losing territorial control in the country since 2019.
SANA said attacks on buses travelling down the highway linking central Syria to the east are common, alleging that United States (US) troops deployed there are facilitating the attacks.
Assad’s government has repeatedly leveled such accusations against US and coalition troops based at al-Tanf. US troops have maintained a limited presence in Syria to train and work with Kurdish-led Syrian forces and opposition fighters in counter-terrorism efforts.
KUALA LUMPUR (BERNAMA) – The government plans to increase siren stations that are also equipped with public announcements at flood-prone areas to warn residents and also to instruct them to evacuate.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, in a statement, said this was part of the proposed improvements discussed in the post-northeast monsoon flood disaster management task force special meeting which he chaired yesterday.
He said the proposed improvements include having a centralised flood siren warning system coordinated by the Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID); closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras at river level monitoring stations to enable residents to be prepared to evacuate should the river water reach the danger level; and also numerical
weather prediction.
Ismail Sabri said to step-up protection for drainage and beach infrastructure, the Ministry of Environment and Water (Kasa) proposed an increase in the average recurrence interval (ARI) from 100 years to 200 years.
Apart from that, the meeting also looked into the proposals to improve communications, education and public awareness (CEPA) through flood simulations and information disseminated by the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia (KKMM).
“The strategic communications cluster led by KKMM has been active in disseminating information since the beginning of the northeast monsoon and efforts had also been intensified since the second wave of floods was forecasted to ensure that residents and the country as a whole, would be better prepared and things would be better controlled,”
he said.
Ismail Sabri said strategic communications involved announcements on warnings and information on the current situation, government aid, arising issues, efforts to detect fake news and issuance of rebuttal of fake news.
He said for that purpose, the platforms being used are the mass media, social media, Information Department channels, as well as through go-to-the-ground, advocacy, publication and engagement efforts.
He added that the implementation of all the initiatives would be constantly monitored by the task force to ensure the national disaster preparedness and management mechanisms would always be improved and at the optimum level.
THE WASHINGTON POST – This Bundt cake recipe comes from Vallery Lomas’ debut cookbook, Life Is What You Bake It, and “has a tight crumb, like a pound cake, but it’s moist and full of flavour from the pineapple and nuts,” she wrote.
Contributing to that flavour is the brown sugar – light or dark, allowing you to control the amount of molasses – that gets creamed with room temperature butter at the start of this recipe. What follows is a straightforward set of instructions that even the most novice baker
can follow.
Once baked and unmolded, the cake has an unassuming exterior, but upon slicing into it you see that it’s studded with toasted pecans, golden raisins and crushed pineapple, lending bits of crunch and chew to the tender cake.
Pecan Bundt cake. PHOTO: THE WASHINGTON POST
PECAN BUNDT CAKE
Ingredients
– Non-stick baking spray with flour – 240 grammes roughly chopped pecan pieces – 375 grammes all-purpose flour – One teaspoon baking powder – Half teaspoon fine salt – 339 grammes unsalted butter, at room temperature – 300 grammes packed light or dark brown sugar – Four large eggs – One teaspoon vanilla extract – 180 grammes canned crushed pineapple in juice – 75 grammes golden raisins
Directions
Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 325 F. Spray a 12-cup Bundt pan with baking spray.
In a dry medium skillet over medium heat, toast the pecans, tossing frequently, until fragrant, about three to five minutes. Transfer the nuts to a cutting board to cool, then finely chop.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or using a large bowl and a handheld mixer, beat the butter and brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about four minutes, stopping to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula to ensure the mixture is evenly creamed. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated before adding the next, about two minutes total. Stop and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed, and after the last egg is added, add the vanilla.
Reduce the speed to low, add the flour mixture and mix until just combined. (The batter will be quite thick). Stop the mixer and stir in the pecans, pineapple and raisins by hand until evenly distributed, making sure no streaks of flour remain. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and bake one hour to one hour 15 minutes, until a cake tester inserted deep into the cake comes out clean.
Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then invert the pan to release the cake and let cool completely before slicing.
Blood donation services will no longer be available at the Health Promotion Centre with immediate effect, announced the Ministry of Health (MoH) yesterday.
The ministry stated that those wishing to donate blood in Brunei-Muara District can visit the Blood Donation Centre, Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Saleha (RIPAS) Hospital from Monday to Thursday and on Saturdays from 8am to 11.30am and 1.30pm to 4pm.
In Belait District, the public can donate blood at Suri Seri Begawan Hospital Blood Bank from Monday to Thursday and Saturday from 8am to 11.30am and 1.45pm to 3.30pm.
Meanwhile, in Temburong District, the public can donate blood at the Pengiran Isteri Hajjah Mariam Hospital Blood Bank from Monday to Thursday and Saturday from 9am to 11.30am and from 1.30pm to 3.30pm.
The MoH urged members of public to join blood donation campaigns at the Annajat Complex on Thursday from 10am to 2pm; and at the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium and the Royal Brunei Police Force Headquarters in Jalan Gadong on Saturday from 9am to noon.
ISLAMABAD (AP) — Allrounder Mohammad Hafeez has retired from international cricket after representing Pakistan in 392 matches over 18 years.
Hafeez, 41, quit test cricket in 2018 and played his last ODI in the 2019 World Cup at Lord’s. He was recalled in 2020 for Twenty20 matches and finished the year as the world’s leading run-scorer in the calendar year in the shortest format.
“Today I say goodbye to international cricket with pride and satisfaction,” Hafeez said at a media conference in Lahore yesterday, wearing the Pakistan team’s green blazer and tie. “In fact, I have earned and accomplished more than I had initially envisaged and for that, I am thankful to all my fellow cricketers, captains, support staff and the Pakistan Cricket Board who helped me out during my career.”
The right-handed batsman scored 12,780 runs in international matches that included 55 test matches, 218 ODIs and 119 T20s. Hafeez, who was reported for his suspect bowling action several times, also took 253 wickets with his off-spin bowling in all the three formats.
SINGAPORE (CNA) – Private home prices in Singapore jumped 10.6 per cent in 2021, quickening from a 2.2 per cent increase the year before, according to flash estimates from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) yesterday.
This was the highest annual growth since 2010, when private home prices rose 17.6 per cent, said OrangeTee and Tie’s Senior Vice President of research and analytics Christine Sun.
Overall, the private residential property index gained 8.3 points from the third quarter to reach 173.6 points in the fourth quarter of 2021.
“This represents an increase of five per cent, compared to the 1.1 per cent increase in the previous quarter,” said URA.
This was also the highest quarterly increase since the second quarter of 2010, when prices went up 5.3 per cent, said Sun.
Private non-landed homes in the Rest of Central Region (RCR) drove the increase, with prices rising at a faster rate of 7.3 per cent in the fourth quarter, compared to the 2.6 per cent in the preceding quarter.
Prices of non-landed private homes in the Core Central Region rose by 2.5 per cent, reversing a decline of 0.5 per cent in the previous quarter. In the Outside Central Region prices increased by 5.4 per cent in the fourth quarter, compared to the 0.1 per cent decrease in the third quarter.
Singapore introduced a package of measures on December 16 last year, aimed at cooling the property market. They include higher Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD) rates and a tighter Total Debt Servicing Ratio (TDSR).
Its impact “may not be felt” in the full-year figures for 2021, said Huttons Asia’s Senior Director of Research Lee Sze Teck.
The first school term for 2022 began yesterday for primary and secondary schools as well as sixth form centres.
Minister of Health Dato Seri Setia Dr Haji Mohd Isham bin Haji Jaafar said during a press conference that the Ministry of Health (MoH) reported no positive results from the antigen rapid test (ART).
The Ministry of Education (MoE) said Years 10-13 students, who completed COVID-19 vaccination, returned to face-to-face lessons five days a week, including those with special needs in priority level one and two categories.
The number of active COVID-19 cases in the country dropped to 89 yesterday. Seven new cases – four locals and three imported – and 18 recoveries were also recorded.
With the latest cases, the national tally of confirmed cases is 15,506. This was said by Minister of Health Dato Seri Setia Dr Haji Mohd Isham bin Haji Jaafar during a press conference yesterday.
The Royal Customs and Excise Department (RCED), through its law Enforcement Division seized a haul of contraband and detained a number of individuals allegedly involved in the cases in four separate locations on December 24 and 25, 2021.
Enforcement personnel found 49 cartons of cigarettes inside an abandoned vehicle during an operation in Kampong Katimahar on December 24, 2021.
Customs enforcement personnel raided a foreign worker house and detained two men – a 31-year-old Indonesian and a 36-year old Malaysian – for allegedly storing and selling contraband on December 25, 2021. The contraband comprised 11 cartons, one pack and 13 sticks of cigarettes as well as 29 bottles of alcohol.
