AseanPlus News

Asean News Headlines at 10pm on Wednesday (Jan 21, 2026)

Here's a look at the news highlights from Asean countries in the Star-AseanPlus section for Wednesday (Jan 21, 2026)

Singapore

Workers' Party’s swift refusal of Opposition Leader role signals unity behind Pritam Singh, say analysts

SINGAPORE: The Workers' Party declining Prime Minister Lawrence Wong's invitation to nominate another MP as Leader of the Opposition shows it has closed ranks around its chief Pritam Singh, said analysts.

Singapore

Endangered Sunda slow loris rescued from Singapore's HDB block near Sin Ming

SINGAPORE: A resident at an HDB block near Sin Ming received an unexpected surprise on Saturday (Jan 17) when she found herself staring into the bulbous, shining eyes of a small primate on the sixth floor corridor.

Brunei

Sultan of Brunei leaves hospital following successful knee surgery

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: His Majesty Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, on Wednesday (Jan 21) left Jerudong Park Medical Centre (JPMC) after successfully undergoing a right total knee replacement surgery.

Sabah & Sarawak

MIC hasn't left BN, says Zambry

KOTA KINABALU: MIC is still part of Barisan Nasional, says Datuk Seri Zambry Abdul Kadir.

Singapore

Singapore proposes Asean-first mechanism to trace scam calls across borders

SINGAPORE: Singapore has mooted the region's first mechanism that allows countries in the 11-member Asean to trace the origin of a scam call or SMS.

Entertainment

Ex-TVB star Fiona Leung, 60, says she doesn't mind having wrinkles, grey hair

The former actress says to be able to enter a new stage of life, stay healthy and serve God is already fulfilling enough.

Thailand

Thai Constitutional Court clears Phumtham, Tawee in Senate probe

BANGKOK: The Constitutional Court ruled that there was no evidence that Phumtham and Tawee ordered the DSI to interfere in the EC's probe into alleged Senate vote-rigging.

Economy

Fahmi: Malaysia's economy remains strong, continues to be the focus of foreign investors

PUTRAJAYA: The country's economy is currently on the right track with Malaysia continuing to be the focus of foreign investors and large companies, said MADANI Government spokesperson Datuk Fahmi Fadzil.

India

Kerala High Court denies bail to former TDB president Padmakumar, two others in Sabarimala gold loot case

NEW DELHI: The Kerala High Court on Wednesday (Jan 21) denied bail to three accused, including former president of the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) A Padmakumar, in the Sabarimala temple gold loot case.

AseanPlus News

‘No room for refusal’: Hong Kong professionals brace for tough calls under child abuse law

Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse Ordinance takes effect on Tuesday, covering over 100,000 people across 25 professions

Singapore

Rare sambar deer likely hit by vehicle dies of injuries near Singapore's Dairy Farm area

SINGAPORE: An injured sambar deer that was discovered by hikers at a nature park near the Dairy Farm area has died of injuries believed to be caused by a motor accident.

AseanPlus News

'We must stay focused.' Hanoi FC's top playmaker Nguyen Quang Hai is all geared up for crunch time in the Asean Club Championships

Last year's runner-up side aims to secure a knockout spot in the Asean Club Championship Shopee Cup as early as possible with two matches remaining in the group stage.

Nation

X tightens controls on Grok, disables generation of explicit content, says Fahmi

PUTRAJAYA: Social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) has confirmed that its artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot Grok can no longer be misused to generate or edit harmful content involving pornography, sexual material or incest, following tighter regulatory controls on its image editing and video generation features, says Datuk Fahmi Fadzil.

Nation

Court issues seizure order against Caprice over unpaid costs

KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court has ordered the seizure of assets belonging to social media influencer Caprice after he failed to pay RM8,000 in costs awarded in a defamation suit.

China

China wedding goes viral as twin brothers marry twin sisters and both sides have twin uncles

Photographs of nuptials showing four sets of twins go viral, racking up 10 million views online; viewers describe scene as 'truly bizarre'

Corporate News

Sunway to proceed with RM11bil takeover of IJM

KUALA LUMPUR: Sunway Bhd said the conditional voluntary take-over offer to acquire all the 3.51 billion ordinary shares in IJM Corporation Bhd at an offer price of RM3.15 per share is proceeding.

World

Prince Harry holds back tears as he tells court Daily Mail made Meghan's life a misery

LONDON, Jan 21 (Reuters) - Prince Harry ‌held back tears in the witness box as he told London's High Court on Wednesday that the Daily Mail had made his wife Meghan's ‌life "an absolute misery" as he gave evidence against the paper's publisher in a privacy lawsuit.

Nation

Cops identify two suspects in FAM document forgery scandal

PETALING JAYA: The police have identified two individuals believed to be involved in the forgery of documents submitted to FIFA during the registration process of seven heritage players linked to the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM).

AseanPlus News

‘It’s like asking us to die’: Hong Kong subdivided flat tenants seek aid as eviction looms

Housing Bureau says it is in contact with 109 households in Cheung Sha Wan's Yee Wa Building, with many tenants needing transitional homes