Singapore sentences Japanese man to 20 strokes of the cane; S'pore 'in principle' backs Palestine, says Israel's right to exist is key: Singapore live news

Encounters with extreme turbulence while in the air can be terrifying.

In June, a flight to London was forced to return to Singapore to check for possible damage.

More recently, an Air Europa flight hit severe turbulence on its way from Madrid to Montevideo, Uruguay.

Here's everything to know about how turbulence can impact your flight.

A Delta Air lines flight was forced to make an emergency landing in New York after passengers were served a "spoilt" in-flight meal service.

Emergency medical responders treated 12 passengers who ate the contaminated food

277 passengers aboard aircraft were offered hotel rooms and rebooked on other flights after the incident.

Delta Air Lines is investigating the matter.

At least 120 people died Tuesday in a stampede after a large religious gathering in India, one of the deadliest such accidents in recent years.

Police reported that 250,000 people had gathered at the Hindu event that had a capacity of 80,000.

Witnesses say moments before the deadly stampede, devotees surged towards the religious leader to touch his feet and collect soil from where he walked.

Read more about the tragic story here.

A team of Australian and Indonesian scientists discovered what they believed to be the world's oldest figurative cave art, which depicts a wild pig and human-like figures, on Indonesia's South Sulawesi island.

The discovery significantly predates the previous oldest known cave art by over 5,000 years.

They said the cave art dates back at least 51,200 years.

Find out more about the fascinating discovery here.

In a heartwarming tribute to music icon Taylor Swift, the city of Gelsenkirchen in Germany announced a thrilling surprise – a temporary name change to 'Swiftkirchen'.

City mayor Karin Welge gave her stamp of approval for a temporary renaming of the city in honour of Swift's Eras Tour stop from 17-19 July.

Read more here.

Severe turbulence is making the headlines again after several incidents left passengers injured.

If you're worried about your flight hitting turbulence, you can find out where the world's bumpiest rides in the sky here.

Germany is delivering the second of four submarines to Singapore.

The submarines measure 70 metres in length and are some of the largest built in Germany since World War II.

German Defence Minister Pistorius highlighted Singapore as a key security partner.

The final submarine, named Inimitable, was christened in April at a ceremony attended by Pistorius and Singapore's Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean.

Read more about it here.

Singapore has earned the right to host the 2024 FIDE World Chess Championship between defending champion China's Ding Liren against India's Dommaraju Gukesh, more commonly known as Gukesh D, from 20 Nov to 15 Dec.

The Singapore Chess Federation's (SCF) bid, with the help of the Singapore government, was chosen by FIDE over the two other bids by the Indian cities of Chennai and New Delhi.

Gukesh said he has fond memories in Singapore, where he won one of his first international tournaments. He also had a nice family vacation in Lion City, he added.

Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said Singapore is "prepared in principle" to recognise Palestine as a state but only if it accepts Israel's right to exist and renounces terrorism.

Balakrishnan emphasised the need for a peaceful two-state solution, where both Israel and Palestine can coexist within secure borders.

Singapore recently voted in favour of a UN resolution supporting Palestine's membership, aligning with international law and encouraging direct negotiations.

Read more here.

A Singapore court has sentenced a Japanese national to 17 and a half years in jail and 20 strokes of the cane for the "brutal and cruel" rape of a university student in 2019.

Hairdresser Ikko Kita, 38, is the first Japanese national to be caned in Singapore, according to the Japanese embassy.

The incident occurred in December 2019 when Kita met the then 20-year-old victim at Clarke Quay. The woman, who was intoxicated, was taken to Kita’s flat where he raped her, filmed the assault, and sent the footage to a friend. She reported the rape to the police later that day, leading to Kita's arrest and remand.

The case has drawn significant attention both in Singapore and Japan, sparking discussions on social media about the use of caning in modern Singapore.

Caning is a mandatory punishment in Singapore for certain offences such as vandalism, robbery and drug trafficking. The island nation says caning acts as deterrent to violent crime.

Read more here.