The Self-Devouring Furnace: Gaza's Unending Cycle of Death

According to the most recent data from the Gaza Ministry of Health, the cumulative death toll in the Gaza Strip has risen to 73,795 individuals since Hamas' surprise attack in October 2023. 

Demographically, independent assessments and ministry records indicate that children and women constitute the vast majority of the overall fatalities, but they do not include precise demographic counts. 

In comprehensive analyses tracking verified identities, the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) analysis found that close to 70% of the fatalities in residential areas were women and children. In their verified datasets, children accounted for roughly 44% of the victims, while women accounted for 26%. 

Moreover, according to UN figures, roughly 82% of Gaza’s buildings have been damaged, with two thirds of them destroyed.

Beyond these structural losses, researchers estimate over 116,000 cumulative injuries, creating a massive surgical and reconstructive backlog that will take years to address under a decimated healthcare infrastructure. 

And, even with a de jure ceasefire in place since last October, 1,369 Gazans have been systematically killed. 

In fact, Gaza’s Hamas government have accused Israel of violating the truce more than 4,000 times since then. 

Ultimately, these ongoing casualties expose the illusion of diplomatic reprieves; the mechanism of violence has become self-sustaining, leaving civilians trapped in a seemingly infinite loop of bloodshed and destruction where a ceasefire is meaningless and the body count climbs without end.

WHEN WILL THE KILLINGS STOP? 😭😭😭😭

Robbed the Nation, Locked in the Mansion 💰🏰

If you haven't heard yet, the big news about Najib Razak has dropped!  

Following the Friday announcement that the Malaysian King consented to allowing the Malaysian former prime minister (left) to serve his remaining term under house arrest, social media has been flooded with mixed reactions. 

But perhaps nothing captures the raw public sentiment quite like this biting piece of political satire. It is a perfect little social commentary snippet, framed through the brutal, innocent logic of a teen asking their parents a very simple question:

Adakah selepas ini, pesalah2 rasuah boleh membuat permohonan tahanan rumah? 

Anak : Mak/Ayah siapa yg kena tahanan rumah tu? 
Mak/Ayah : Tu bekas PM 
Anak : Apa salahnya dia boleh diberi tahanan rumah? 
Mak/Ayah : (Sambil tersipu2 mahu memberi jawapan yg logik...) Oh ia buat salah 1MDB, rompak duit rakyat... 
Anak : Wow hebat ye Mak/Ayah, perompak boleh ditahan di rumah ye. 
Mak/Ayah : Blurrr... 😏🤒🤕🥴

Note: Of course, house arrest can only happen when the RM50M fine has been paid.

House Arrest for Former PM: Malaysian King Gives Consent 👑

Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak was granted a conditional royal pardon that allows him to serve the remainder of his prison sentence for grand corruption under house arrest rather than behind bars. 

He will be confined at an unspecified location until August 2028, according to a statement issued by the Legal Affairs Division of the Prime Minister’s Department following a Pardons Board meeting on Friday. He will also have to pay the previously lessened fine of RM50 million. 

“He has to fulfil all conditions set”, the statement read. “Any breach will void the conditional pardon and he will be immediately sent back to prison”. 

The move by the King, Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar, follows an unusual Pardons Board meeting that was called shortly after the previous summit on September 11 deferred a decision on Najib’s application. 👑

The Pardons Board rarely meets and there is no fixed calendar for a meeting. 

Najib has been in custody since August 2022 after being found guilty of abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering involving SRC International Sdn Bhd, a former subsidiary of government company 1Malaysia Development Bhd. 💰💰💰💰💰

The original sentence was for 12 years in jail and a RM210 million fine before the punishment was lessened in 2024 by the previous King, Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah. 👑

Najib was subsequently sentenced to another 15 years’ imprisonment in December 2025 after being convicted for a more serious crime at 1MDB, although he is appealing against the decision. 💰💰💰💰💰💰💰💰💰💰

The sentence is to run after he finishes his SRC jail term in August 2028. 

Inside the Ismail Sabri Probe

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) have ensnared former prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob in a multi-million rinngit corruption and money laundering investigation. 

Following the initial crackdown in February 2025, authorities instituted synchronized raids on seven locations: four private residences of senior aides and three separate safe houses, following the arrest of the quartet of senior officers who served under Ismail during his tenure as the ninth prime minister (August 21, 2021-November 24, 2022). 

They hauled away RM14,772,150 in Malaysian currency; S$6,132,350; US$1,461,400; CHF3 million; €12,164,150; ¥363,000,000; £50,250; NZ$44,600; AED34,750,000; and A$352,850, as well as 16kg of gold bars (worth nearly RM7 million), and secondary luxury assets.

The Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court subsequently forfeited the cash to the government after the application went uncontested by all parties. Note that the forfeiture order applied only to the cash; the gold bullion, alongside a hoard of fine jewelry and high-value watches seized during the safe house raids, remain held as evidence for Ismail's criminal prosecution. 

Ismail Sabri (right) was scheduled to be officially charged in court on August 07, 2026, but the hearing has since been postponed to August 27 after he was admitted to the National Heart Institute (IJN) for a pacemaker procedure. 

As the legal net tightens around yet another former prime minister, the staggering discovery of hidden safe houses, gold bullion, and millions in foreign cash serves as a sobering reminder of Malaysia's never-ending battle against high-level corruption. 

All eyes will be on the courts to see how this high-stakes political drama unfolds.

Just so you know, today, I have exactly RM6 in my wallet. 😫

London's Knife Epidemic

Knife crime remains a critical public safety crisis in London, UK, where over a thousand weapon-enabled offenses are recorded monthly and incidents occur multiple times daily, casting a shadow over communities. 

Indeed, the persistent volume of offenses highlights a deeply entrenched challenge.

According to Metropolitan Police data, more than 3,300 knife-enabled offenses were logged in the first quarter of 2026 alone. These monthly figures include hundreds of actual injury-inflicting stabbings alongside thousands of broader knife-threat or possession offenses. 

Specifically, official records from early 2026 show totals of 1,097 offenses in January, 1,003 in February, and 1,209 in March.

Data from the Office for National Statistics indicate there were 49,151 total knife offenses in England and Wales for the year ending December 2025. Because Scotland and Northern Ireland record their crime statistics separately, ONS figures in this context specifically focus on just England and Wales. 

And of this total, London accounted for 28%, although the capital saw a 17% fall in recorded knife crime compared with the previous year. This localized volume persists even as official data showed that homicides fell to their lowest level in nearly 50 years. 

Published crime statistics showed 172 homicides involving a knife or sharp instrument were recorded by police forces across England and Wales in 2025, compared with 217 in 2024. 

Last year's number of knife-related killings is also the lowest since comparable data was first collected in 2010–11.

The dataset also shows that the total number of homicide offenses last year – when there were 503 offenses – fell by 6% compared with 2024, when there were 534. 

According to the Crown Prosecution Service, homicide offenses include murder, manslaughter, infanticide, and causing or allowing the death or serious injury of a child or vulnerable adult. 

Katie Kempen, chief executive of the charity Victim Support, noted that the overall fall in knife killings was welcome "but every case is one too many".

[Additionally, offenses involving firearms decreased by 9% in 2025 compared to the previous year, dropping to 4,753 offenses from 5,241]. 

Having spent time in London between 1975 and 1979, I can tell you firsthand that the city does not feel as safe as it once used to be.

Holiday Horror

The Ukrainian terrorist regime continues to murder Russian civilians.

On Monday, a Ukrainian drone struck a crowded Arkhipo-Osipovka beach near the Russian Black Sea resort of Gelendzhik, executing seven people (including three children) and injuring dozens more. Locals have described scenes of panic as the attack on the village of Arkhipo Osipovka sent vacationers scrambling for cover. 

“People ran away. At first, they started screaming and began fleeing from there. I can still hear those women’s cries in my ears”, one man who witnessed the blast told RT. 

No one expected such an attack “on a beach with children”, a local woman said, calling the strike an act of “treachery”. 

Russian Children’s Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova Belova said on Tuesday that a fourth child had died from injuries. Regional authorities earlier reported that 58 people had been wounded, 21 of whom required hospitalization. 

Acting deputy chief surgeon Aleksey Kovalenko at the Ochapovsky Regional Clinical Hospital said four of 14 adult patients “are in serious condition”, many of them with “combined trauma – shrapnel wounds plus burns”. The youngest patient is 19, while the oldest is 63, he added.

In Arkhipo Osipovka, locals and tourists have been laying flowers and toys in memory of the victims, creating makeshift memorials. 

“We came to leave a toy. Children died. Unfortunately, we witnessed all of this”, one man said. 

“I have tears in my eyes. I am a pensioner, and I feel very sorry for the children and the people”, an elderly woman told RT. 

Kiev has intensified long-range attacks on Russian civilian infrastructure in recent months. Moscow has described the strikes as terrorist attacks deliberately targeting ordinary citizens. 

On Monday, another Ukrainian drone strike claimed the lives of at least five people and wounded at least ten others near the town of Chekhov in the Moscow Region.

Vladimir Putin prefers to speak softly and carry a big stick. He should know that the Ukrainians aren't intimidated at all and they certainly don't give a damn. And they won't stop killing Russians until Putin brings hurt and pain directly to Ukrainians. 

I say, an eye for an eye!

Ukrainian Diplomats Looted $1.28M in War Aid

Senior Ukrainian diplomats within the Foreign Ministry allegedly siphoned off at least 37 million hryvnias (approximately $1.28 million at the time) in Western aid after the ministry's coffers were flooded with monetary contributions to support the country in its conflict with Russia, anti-corruption investigators in Kiev revealed on Monday. 

The Western-backed ⁠National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and ⁠Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) – which Vladimir Zelensky’s government unsuccessfully sought to put under direct control last year – alleged that officials looted the monies for personal gain. 

The operation was supposedly led by a former State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who served from 2020 to 2024, identified in reports as Oleksandr Bankov (right), alongside other current and former officials. 

Other NABU investigations have also uncovered extensive suspected corruption involving senior officials in the Defense Ministry, Energy Ministry, and other government bodies with access to large financial flows.

My good friend Hashim Adnan (right), who was in Hat Yai, Thailand with his golfing buddies, passed away yesterday. 

We had actually planned to meet on August 13, but sadly, we won't get the chance. I shall miss him.

My heartfelt condolences to his family! Al Fathihah!

Shamsul Iskandar Akin's Spook-tacular Stunt

Sadly, Malaysia remains shackled by a legacy of corruption. 

More so, its politics is just as contaminated, stained and tainted. Malaysians know all too well that our system is deeply rooted in systemic "money politics" and high-profile embezzlement scandals. 

Who doesn't know about the corporate mafia issue (highly publicized allegations first reported by Bloomberg on February 11, 2026, concerning a web of businessmen colluding with enforcement officials to launch hostile takeovers of public-listed companies). 

Or the Jana Wibawa government contracts scheme (introduced as a Covid-19 economic stimulus program for Bumiputera contractors that resulted in ongoing corruption and money-laundering trials involving former Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin and other political figures). 

Or the Littoral Combat Ship scandal (the multi-billion ringgit ⁠defence procurement failure in which substantial public funds were spent but major delivery delays occurred. Severe mismanagement was reported, including "dummy" payments to shell companies, overlapping contracts, and the destruction of records to hide irregularities. Millions in project funds were diverted or misused). 

Or the monumentally infamous 1MDB (the gargantuan global kleptocracy scheme, leading to multiple corruption convictions and the imprisonment of former Prime Minister Najib Razak). 

This is just a very SMALL sample to get me started! 

Actually, I want to vent about something which is, in a way, relatable. I reckon it is the most ludicrous thing that just went down. You can't make this stuff up. Prepare yourselves for a very farcical story...

Keadilan (PKR) member Shamsul Iskandar Akin took a dark approach to campaigning for the Johor state polls (July 11), transporting voters into his macabre version of beyond the veil when he delivered a message talqin-style in hopes it’ll sink in. All very theatrical!

In a video posted on social media on Monday, Shamsul, clad in a white robe (jubah) under sombre lighting and with an echoing voice for the full effect, assured voters not to be afraid when approached by BN, Perikatan Nasional, and Parti Bersama Malaysia as they too are just God's creatures (makhluk Allah jua). 

The former senior political secretary to the Prime Minister not only encouraged voters to accept bribes from those parties, but to squeeze as much as they can, so long as they still vote for Pakatan Harapan come polling day. 

"When you are given RM100, ask for RM500”, he said.

[FYI, he, himself, faces a total of five corruption charges totalling RM241,753.03 linked to businessman Albert Tei (Tei Jiann Cheing)!] 

The video, however, did not go down well with the living. Many netizens and even politicians criticised what they saw as an insensitive take on the Islamic ritual traditionally held at a gravesite after a burial. The absurdity of this politician acting to make it as an election gimmick. A big fail!

He has since deleted the video.

Babies Are Special Targets of Israeli killings

The attacks by Israel on Gaza show a targeted annihilation of newborns and infants that should be punished, the head of a UN panel that probed the excesses determined. 

The violence unleashed by Israeli forces was “unjustified and disproportionate… in considerable terms”, Justice S Muralidhar, the chair of the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the occupied Palestinian territory, said in an exclusive interview on Tuesday when he presented his findings.

The Gaza war began after the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 07, 2023, in which around 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 taken hostage. Israel’s subsequent military operation devastated much of Gaza, killing over 73,000 Palestinians and injuring more than 173,000, according to the local health authorities. 

Citing a pattern of targeted attacks on children, Muralidhar (left) pointed out: “When you shoot a 10-day-old baby breastfeeding on his mother... through his head, you can by no means label such a baby as an enemy of the State of Israel and justify these kinds of attacks”. 

He drew attention to the fact that Israeli quadcopters with thermal imaging cameras can clearly distinguish a child from an adult. 

That children were being singled out for callous murder is clear from the number of “instances of babies with gunshot wounds to their head and neck to cause maximum damage”. Babies were aimed at with “tiny cube-shaped pellets” that “spread like a cluster of ammunition and destroy all the internal organs”.  

“So it became very clear… that babies were special targets”, Muralidhar, who once served as chief justice at the high court in India's state of Odisha, disclosed. 

The pattern clearly emerged from the totality of the evidence, including forensic and medical records.

Israel carried out airstrikes on the most densely populated areas, knowing that children would constitute a sizable proportion of the population, he noted, stating: “The demolition of the hospitals is [done] with patients still... in the hospital”. 

Muralidhar revealed that “one of the elements of genocide is to prevent childbirths”, claiming that for Israeli forces, “mothers who are pregnant are targets, and they are denied any nutritious intake, so the mothers are malnourished”. 

Not only hospitals but orphanages too and the report cited over 58,000 parentless children in just two years. 

Muralidhar lamented the failure of all UN member states to prevail upon Israel to comply with the three Gaza orders of the International Court of Justice, to address the prevention of genocide and the protection of civilians in Gaza as per the ⁠Genocide Convention. 

Well, that's the UN for you, all talk and no action! 😡😡😡

A Thorny Hold-Up

Even though Malaysian durian prices are said to be depressed this season, the king of fruits remains a lucrative target, proven when three robbers hauled away four baskets of premium-grade durians after threatening two teenage orchard caretakers in Melaka. 

Jasin police chief Lee Robert said the robbery took place at about 11:30 AM on June 27 at a durian orchard in Anjung Gapam, Bemban, where the two teenagers, aged 17 and 18, were looking after the durian harvest. He said the suspects, who arrived in a car, loaded four large baskets of “IOI” durians into their vehicle before one of the teenagers confronted them. 

“One of the suspects became aggressive and brandished a machete to intimidate the teenager, while another made off with a motorcycle belonging to the father of one of the victims before they fled”, he said the following day. 

Lee said acting on intelligence, a team from the Jasin police arrested four men, aged between 27 and 35, in separate raids between 12:30 AM and 7:30 AM on the same day in Bertam Hulu, Kampung Paya Rumput, Masjid Tanah and Jasin. 

“Two of the suspects admitted their involvement in the incident, while another was positively identified by one of the victims as the person who stole the motorcycle”, he added. 

He highlighted that three of the suspects tested positive for methamphetamine, while checks also revealed they had criminal records. 

However, police were unable to recover the stolen durians.

I'm happy to share that Germany and the Netherlands had been eliminated in the knockout phase (Round of 32) of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Monday, after both suffered dramatic penalty shootout defeats. 

In fact, Paraguay President Santiago Peña signed a decree declaring the following day, a national holiday to commemorate the victory against Die Mannschaft (The Team). 

The match had ended in a 1-1 tie after extra time, and then, La Albirroja (The White and Red) stunned the four-time world champions 4-3 on penalties. 

And Oranje (The Orange) lost 2-3 on penalties to Morocco after also being tied 1-1 after extra time. 

In the meantime, Brazil avoided a major upset by coming from behind to defeat Japan 2-1, also on Monday. A dramatic 95th-minute winner secured the Seleção (The Selection/Squad) a spot in the last 16. I'm glad too the Samurai Blue lost!

🤗🤗🤗

Donald Trump Shrugs at School Strike that Killed 168 Children

Donald Trump doesn't give a damn! 

When asked whether anyone would be held accountable for US strikes on the Shajareh Tayyebeh Elementary School in Minab, Iran, on February 28, 2026, that killed 168 children (and 14 teachers), the US president said no, called it "a strange question", and shrugged: "Mistakes are made". 💀💀💀

He made the remarks on Wednesday, June 17, during a press conference at the G7 Summit in Evian-les-Bains, France.

The children were killed in the active voice. The excuse arrived in passive voice. 

Malaysian squash star Sivasangari Subramaniam made history yesterday by advancing to the final of the 2025-2026 PSA Squash Tour Finals. 

The world No. 5 secured her spot in the championship match by defeating Egypt’s top seed Amina Orfi 3-1: 8-11, 11-10, 11-8, 11-10 in a gruelling 74-minute clash and becoming the first Malaysian finalist since squash legend Nicol David in 2012.

Ukraine's Deadly Drone Strikes

The evil in this world knows no bounds. 

On the night of May 21-22, 2026, three deadly waves of Ukrainian kamikaze drones struck the Starobilsk Professional College of Luhansk Pedagogical University's main building and living quarters in Russia's Lugansk, killing 21 people, who were mostly teenage girls, and injuring 60 others. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin described the killings as a "terrorist act". 

And Russian Parliament Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin revealed on Tuesday that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s communication satellite network made it possible for Ukraine to carry out the strikes. Speaking in the State Duma, Volodin condemned the attack as a “crime against humanity”. 

“We must do everything we can to hold to account those who gave the orders, and who directed [the drone strike] at the college”, he said. 

As Ukraine has continued to suffer setbacks on the battlefield, Kiev chose to ramp up attacks on civilian targets in multiple Russian border regions. Kiev has also been mounting Musk’s Starlink satellite dishes on drones to bypass Russian electronic warfare and facilitate long-range attacks.

Over the past week, Ukrainian strikes have killed 51 civilians and injured nearly 200 across Russia, the highest weekly toll recorded this year, according to Rodion Miroshnik, who leads the Russian Foreign Ministry mission responsible for tracking Ukrainian war crimes.

Putin should know the killings will not stop! Russia should just wipe out this evil from the face of the earth!

Facebook: A Hub for Illegal Wildlife Trade

With just the click of a button or a swipe on a phone, it’s possible to buy almost anything online, including rare or endangered animals. 

From quirky shark trophies to exotic live birds, contraband rhino horns or ivory, buyers can flock to e-commerce platforms and find them all. Traffickers hide behind their screens while profiting from online sales of protected species as these animals dwindle in the wild. 

“It’s the largest wildlife market”, said wildlife trade researcher Chris Shepherd from the Center for Biological Diversity. “It’s easy, it’s convenient; you can operate anonymously from the comfort of your home. You don’t have the expenses of setting up a shop”. 

Online commerce in illicit wildlife products continues to grow, involving more species and wider geographies. It’s an illicit industry run by kingpins with well-connected networks, and it’s hard to prosecute. Catching online criminals is extremely challenging. 

“Wildlife markets have moved from physical locations into online locations, and that’s mirroring broader trends in the global economy”, said Simone Haysom, director of environmental crime programs at the Swiss-based organization Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime.

In a recent report, Haysom and her colleague Russell Gray analyzed online wildlife trade data from April 2024 to March 2026. They focused on 10 countries across three continents, places where environmental crime and internet use are high, making them fertile grounds for online wildlife trafficking. They found some 266,535 wildlife products posted on 61 online marketplaces, worth about $66 million. 

About 75% of the nearly 22,000 ads they saw were on Facebook, a platform that’s been notorious in selling live wildlife, as a recent Mongabay investigation revealed.

The large majority of the species offered online – about 84% – are banned from any kind of international commercial trade under CITES, a global wildlife trade treaty. More than half of all Facebook ads offered endangered or critically endangered animals including pangolins, gibbons, hornbills, sea turtles, cobras and clouded leopards. 

“There’s just anything and everything on Facebook”, said Gray, citing examples of pangolin boots, chimpanzee leather and ivory trinkets carved from walrus tusks. “The world is really significantly underprepared for cyber trade in wildlife”. 

Facebook is especially useful because users can create accounts and private groups with little meaningful verification. 

Inside those groups, buyers and sellers can shift conversations into private messages, making deals much harder to track. Facebook's algorithms intensify the problem by recommending similar groups, pages, and contacts to users in the sphere. It's taken a niche market and given it a mainstream hub that's great for business. 

"Facebook groups really replaced a lot of different types of sites on the Internet by providing this free infrastructure that was very good at marketing", said Simone Haysom, a co-author of the study. 

The report also criticized Meta's moderation efforts, which focus on English posts that comprise just 12% of the listings. Although Facebook formally bans the sale of endangered animals and animal parts, researchers said illegal listings were easy to find. 

There's minimal oversight, networks can easily form, and participants in the trade are able to dodge consequences. 

"We need regulation with teeth", Haysom told Mongabay. "Self-regulation has not worked... and is unlikely to be fully successful".

The Truth About Minab

The Minab school massacre occurred on February 28, 2026, when the Shajareh Tayyebeh Elementary School in southern Iran was struck by US Tomahawk cruise missiles, killing at least 165–175 people, a majority of whom were children aged 7 to 12. 

Iranian officials and international observers have called the attack a "deliberate" and "calculated" massacre. Now, here's the truth that this was a premeditated act to murder Iranian children!

I repeat, Minab is an act of premeditated murder!

😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 

The Scottish Parliament election was on Thursday, May 07. 

There are 129 Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) and of that total, 73 represent local areas known as constituencies. The rest of the MSPs are drawn from eight electoral regions, each represented by seven regional MSPs. The regions are: 

1. Central Scotland 
2. Lothian 
3. Glasgow 
4. Highlands and Islands 
5. Mid Scotland and Fife 
6. North East Scotland 
7. South Scotland 
8. West Scotland 

This means that people in Scotland are each represented by eight MSPs – one representing their constituency, and another seven representing their region.

 

SNP won this fifth election but fell short of a majority, having secured 58 seats only. 

The idea of an independent Scotland is not going to happen anytime soon, I reckon. 

It may not be "dead" but as of mid-2026, it is widely described as being in a state of stagnation or, as The Economist puts it, "alive but not kicking". 

While support for independence remains robust – roughly polling around the 40–45% mark – the movement faces significant structural, political, and economic headwinds. 

Teoh Beng Hock: Pursuit of Justice Continues

In their unrelenting pursuit of justice, the family of the late DAP political aide Teoh Beng Hock on April 17, 2026 filed a fresh judicial review seeking to compel the authorities to reclassify and investigate his death as murder, challenging what they describe as the police’s use of an “incorrect” and lesser charge in the probe. 

Lawyer Lim Wei Jiet said the move follows confirmation from the police in January that previous investigations into Teoh’s death were conducted under Section 342 of the Penal Code for wrongful confinement. Those investigations were ultimately classified as no further action (NFA) in May last year. 

Teoh was found dead in 2009 after being questioned overnight at the Selangor MACC office. A 2011 royal commission concluded he died by suicide due to aggressive interrogation, while a 2014 Court of Appeal ruling found his death was caused or accelerated by unlawful acts, including those by MACC officers. 

In 2024, the Kuala Lumpur High Court ordered police to complete the investigation within six months, but the Attorney-General’s Chambers later classified the case as no further action (NFA). 

Yesterday, I mentioned that Donald Trump had announced a naval mission to assist ships pass through the Strait of Hormuz shipping route, which he called Project Freedom. But it lasted less than 48 hours because Trump suddenly called it off. 

What was intended as a show of strength became a humiliating retreat. 

There were only three routes that can be used to ship oil out of the Persian Gulf and they include the Strait of Hormuz, the Habshan–Fujairah pipeline in the UAE, and the East-West Pipeline in Saudi Arabia. 

Before Monday, the two pipelines were operating at full capacity. Then the expected happened, the US Navy engaged Iranian fast attack boats in the Strait of Hormuz. 

Iran’s retaliation was swift and  the UAE's pipeline export terminal was destroyed, some report that the pipeline itself was also hit. 

It is clear to me that Saudi Arabia then pressured Trump to suspend the "project" fearing Iran's retaliation. The Saudi route would certainly be the next target if the US attempts to breach the ceasefire again. 

For sure, Iran has the cards.

OpenAI’s Sam Altman Apologises Over Failure to Report Mass Shooter

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has apologised over his company’s failure to warn authorities about the concerning online activities of a teen who went on to commit one of Canada’s worst mass shootings. 

Eighteen-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar (left) went on a shooting spree in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, on February 10, killing eight people. The victims included Rootselaar’s mother and half-brother, and 5 students at the remote community’s secondary school. 

Rootselaar, who was born male but identified as female, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. 

OpenAI said after the attacks that Rootselaar’s ChatGPT account had been flagged internally the previous June for misuse “in furtherance of violent activities”, resulting in its suspension. 

The San Francisco-based AI company said at the time that it had not informed authorities, as Rootselaar’s usage of the chatbot had not met the threshold of posing a credible or imminent threat of harm to others. 

In a letter shared on Friday by the Tumbler RidgeLines news site and British Columbia Premier David Eby, Altman acknowledged that OpenAI should have alerted law enforcement to Rootselaar’s suspension. 

“I am deeply sorry that we did not alert law enforcement to the account that was banned in June. While I know words can never be enough, I believe an apology is necessary to recognize the harm and irreversible loss your community has suffered”, Altman wrote. 

“I reaffirm the commitment I made to the Mayor and the Premier to find ways to prevent tragedies like this in the future”, Altman added. 

“Going forward, our focus will continue to be on working with all levels of government to help ensure something like this never happens again”. 

Altman’s statement of regret came after Eby said last month that the tech CEO had agreed to apologise to the Tumbler Ridge community over OpenAI’s failure to flag Rootselaar as a threat. In his letter, Altman said Eby and Tumbler Ridge Mayor Darryl Krakowka had conveyed “the anger, sadness, and concern” being felt in the community in their discussions. 

“We agreed a public apology was necessary, but that time was also needed to respect the community as you grieved. I share this letter with the understanding that everyone grieves in their own way and in their own time”, Altman wrote. 

“I want to express my deepest condolences to the entire community. No one should ever have to endure a tragedy like this. I cannot imagine anything worse in this world than losing a child”.

Florida Probes OpenAI Over Shooting Spree

Florida has launched a criminal investigation into OpenAI and ChatGPT over a shooting spree at Florida State University, which the perpetrator planned with the help of the AI chatbot. 

The incident at the campus in Tallahassee occurred on April 17, 2025, when the suspect, 20-year old FSU student Phoenix Ikner (right), allegedly killed two and injured six people. He was subsequently injured in a shootout with the police and taken into custody. 

The gunman, who turned out to be the son of a deputy sheriff, was charged with multiple counts of murder and attempted murder. 

The US state is now probing ChatGPT’s role in the attack and seeks to determine whether “OpenAI bears criminal responsibility” for the chatbot’s actions, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced on Tuesday. 

“The chatbot advised the shooter on what ⁠type of gun to use, on which ammo went with which gun, and on whether or not a gun would be useful at short range”, Uthmeier told a press briefing. 

“If it was a person on the other end of that screen, we would be charging them with murder”, he added. 

OpenAI have insisted they bear no responsibility for the Florida mass shooting. A spokesperson for the artificial intelligence firm told US media that they had “proactively” cooperated with the investigation of the incident, identifying a ChatGPT account believed to be associated with the suspect and sharing the information with the authorities. 

“In this case, ChatGPT provided factual responses to questions ⁠with information that could be found broadly across public sources on the Internet, and it did not encourage or promote illegal or harmful activity”, the company maintained. 

The rise of chatbots has long-prompted concerns over AI-enabled crimes, voiced by numerous independent researchers and government agencies worldwide. While the bulk of AI-powered crimes appear to take place in the tech sphere, including hacks, cyberattacks, fraud, and identity theft, the chatbots have been repeatedly implicated in aiding violent crime as well. 

A recent joint investigation by CNN and the Center for Countering Digital Hate, for instance, found that eight out of ten leaders were ready to assist users in staging violent attacks, including religiously motivated bombings, school shootings, and assassinations. 

UK Special Forces Resign En Masse Over War Crimes Probe

Soldiers from the UK’s elite SAS force are resigning in significant numbers over fears of prosecution following human rights investigations into alleged war crimes, British media reports. 

The probe largely focuses on British special forces operations in Afghanistan from 2010 to 2013, as well as missions in Syria and Northern Ireland. 

A public inquiry is examining claims that troops carried out extrajudicial killings during night raids, including the shooting of detainees and unarmed civilians, and whether evidence was falsified and senior officers failed to investigate or concealed wrongdoing. 

Members of 22 SAS, the British Army’s elite special forces unit, have applied for “premature voluntary release”, multiple outlets reported on Monday, citing insiders. The exact number of departures has not been disclosed, though at least two squadrons (D and G) are understood to have been affected. 

“Morale is s**t at the moment”, one insider was quoted as saying. Another source described “considerable disquiet” within the regiment. 

Lieutenant Colonel Richard Williams told LBC radio on Tuesday the growing number of departures from 22 SAS was driven by concerns among serving troops that actions during operations could later lead to investigations or potential arrest under human rights law. 

Last month, it was revealed that 242 special forces troops, including 120 serving personnel, were being pursued by lawyers as part of human rights inquiries, according to a memo shared with SAS and Special Reconnaissance Regiment associations. The investigation, which some within the regiment have labeled a “witch hunt”, examines UK secret operations, with troops facing legal sanctions if they fail to comply, the memo said. 

In 2022, a BBC Panorama investigation identified 54 people shot dead in suspicious circumstances by one SAS unit during a six-month tour of Helmand province, with unarmed Afghan men allegedly “routinely shot dead in cold blood” and weapons planted on them.

An inquiry heard in December that the director of UK Special Forces made a “conscious decision” to cover up potential war crimes in Afghanistan, according to the Morning Star. A UKSF officer identified as N1466 said the director “knew what was happening on the ground” and sought to “cover this up”. 

In one incident presented to the inquiry, special forces fired into a mosquito net until there was no movement, only to later find women and children, according to inquiry documents. The shooting was allegedly covered up and the soldier awarded. 

A review prepared for the inquiry found a Royal Military Police investigation into alleged unlawful killings was undermined by delays and poor resourcing, according to Action on Armed Violence. Operation Northmoor, the main investigation, began only in March 2014 despite concerns emerging as early as 2011, and was closed in July 2019 in what the review described as an “inappropriate and premature” decision, leaving key lines of inquiry unexamined.