Gilas Women PHOTO BY RIO DELUVIOThe Gilas Pilipinas women's basketball team boosted its chances for a silver medal finish in the 32nd Southeast Asian Games after an 82-70 win over Thailand at the Elephant Hall on Sunday, May 14. With the win, the Filipinos improved to 4-1, tied with Malaysia in second place. Gilas will look to further improve its silver medal bid when it plays its last game on Monday, May 15 against Vietnam. The Filipino dribblers have already lost their chance for a third straight gold as Indonesia is locked for the championship after sweeping the round robin phase, 6-0.

Rosalinda Faustino PHOTO BY RIO DELUVIOPHNOM PENH, Cambodia: Filipino weightlifter Rosalinda Faustino claimed a silver medal in the women's 55kg class in the 32nd Southeast Asian Games at the National Olympic Stadium's Taekwondo Hall on Sunday, May 14. Faustino raised a total of 184 kg -- her best in snatch was 80 and 104 in clean and jerk. She would have won the gold had she raised 107 in her third attempt in clean and jerk but was unsuccessful. As a result, Indonesia's Juliana Klarisa took the gold medal with a total of 186.

The suit, filed by Yintao Yu in a San Francisco court, comes as political pressure has been growing in the US to ban TikTok. Critics say the popular platform allows Beijing to covertly collect users' data and influence their opinions — something the company denies. The issue of access to personal data on American users has aroused growing concern among US authorities. The White House recently threatened to ban TikTok in the US unless ByteDance sold it to an American company. ByteDance and TikTok did not immediately respond on Saturday to an AFP request for comment.

Cathay Pacific is considering disciplinary action against pilots taxiing planes at "considerably slower speeds" for arrivals and departures that caused runway congestion. Sources suggested that could be attributed to pilots wanting to increase their flight hours in a bid to get more pay. "Our own HK Airport team has confirmed that they have tracked similar instances in their own systems," the airline said in the email. Cathay said it does not intend to review historical data at this stage but will investigate any data Airport Authority or the airline team provides from this point forward. Some suggested that pilots would like to get more overtime pay as their salaries have been cut by 30 percent compared to the pre-pandemic period, while also showcasing their discontent about the new contracts with Cathay, according to sources.

The Philippines has placed navigational buoys within its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) to assert sovereignty over the disputed Spratly islands in the South China Sea, a coast guard spokesperson said on Sunday. The step comes amid China's increasingly aggressive actions in the South China Sea as Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr pursues warmer ties with treaty ally the United States. In May 2022, the coast guard installed five navigational buoys on four islands in the Spratlys. China's claim of sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea was invalidated by an international arbitration ruling in 2016. Beijing has for years deployed hundreds of coast guard and fishing vessels in disputed areas.

Russian news outlet Kommersant said two Russian fighter jets and two military helicopters had been shot down on Saturday close to the Ukrainian border, in what would be a spectacular coup for Kyiv if confirmed. Comments accompanying the video, which Reuters could not immediately verify, said it showed a Mi-8 being shot down by a missile. Later on Saturday, Bryansk regional governor Alexander Bogomaz said a Ukrainian drone had hit a food production plant in Starodub, close to the Ukraine border, damaging the roof. There was no official response from Ukraine, which usually declines to comment on reports of attacks inside Russia. Earlier this month, explosions derailed freight trains on two consecutive days in the Bryansk region.

(UPDATE) FORMER president Rodrigo Duterte agreed with the recent remarks of his successor, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., that abuses were committed during his administration's war on illegal drugs but insisted that "those were never intended." But those were never intended, I am sure, by the law enforcement agency," he added. The bloody drug war of Duterte caught the attention not just of the foreign media and criticism from different organizations, but also the International Criminal Court (ICC). In January, the ICC authorized the resumption of its investigation into the drug war and the Davao Death Squad killings in the Philippines. Duterte, who initiated the drug war, pulled the Philippines out of the ICC in 2019, a year after The Hague-based tribunal began a preliminary investigation into the crackdown.

Meanwhile, the critical Senate agriculture committee that she heads has probably forgotten that it has an important job to carry out as the agriculture sector stares down at the abyss. This is the oversight function, the power to review overall agricultural performance — 99 percent failure — and check program goals and expenditures against accomplishments. Meanwhile, the Department of Agriculture (DA) has resorted to peddling hoaxes to cover up for its dismal failures. The oversight powers of the Senate Committee on Agriculture — it can easily put up a bicameral oversight — allows it to look into such matters as executive arrogance. It is about time to puncture that and that act of puncturing is the mandate of the Senate oversight committee on agriculture.

De Lima camp hopeful of release from detentionSenator Leila De Lima beams with joy following her acquittal in the second drug charge against her at the Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court on May 12, 2023. In February 2021, De Lima was acquitted by the Muntinlupa RTC Branch 205 of charges of influence peddling and extortion of convicted drug lord and high-profile NBP inmate, Peter Co. The two legal victories had De Lima celebrating and Tacardon hopeful and optimistic that in their third case, the Muntinlupa RTC Branch 256 would rule favorably on their petition for bail which would be heard three weeks from now on June 5. Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla has rejected calls for state prosecutors to drop the last remaining drug case against De Lima, despite rulings in her favor in two other similar cases. “This acquittal of former Philippines senator Leila de Lima on what were always bogus charges is long overdue.

Emperor confers Japan’s highest honor on RomuloFormer Department of Foreign Affairs secretary Alberto Romulo receives the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun from Japan Emperor Naruhito during a ceremony at the state room of the Imperial Palace. MANILA, Philippines — The Emperor of Japan has conferred the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun on former foreign affairs secretary Alberto Romulo and six others during a ceremony at the Seiden-Matsu-no-Ma State Room of the Imperial Palace on May 9. Romulo received Japan’s highest decoration along with six Japanese honorees, including Takuya Okada, former president of major retailer Aeon Co., and Shigeru Iwasaki, a former chief of the Joint Staff. Romulo was cited for his role in and major contribution to the bilateral relation of the two countries, in particular the successful Japan-Philippine Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA). For the first time, Emperor Naruhito gave his address in English during the ceremony.

ROME, Italy — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met Pope Francis Saturday during a trip to Rome, as Berlin unveiled a huge new weapons package ahead of an expected Ukrainian counteroffensive. Germany on Saturday announced a new weapons package worth 2.7 billion euros ($2.95 billion) for Ukraine, reportedly the biggest from Berlin since Russia’s invasion. In a joint press conference, Zelensky thanked Meloni “for helping to save lives” while detailing what he called fresh aggressions by Russia. But EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell on Saturday urged other European nations to provide long-range weapons for Ukraine, while accelerating arms deliveries overall. READ: Ukraine leader Zelensky urges Putin to meet in war-torn eastYour subscription could not be saved.

The Inquirer and forensics experts are investigating “anomalous activity” that prompted the company to take some computer systems offline, disrupting publication of the Sunday print newspaper, the company said Saturday night. As issues with print publication are addressed, “we continue to provide Philly and the region with the latest news at Inquirer.com, and on our e-Edition,” Inquirer Publisher and CEO Elizabeth H. Hughes said. “As our investigation is ongoing, we are unable to provide that information at this time,” a company spokesman said. In December 2018, the New York Times wrote about an unusual cyberattack disrupting the Los Angeles Times’ printing operations and those at newspapers in San Diego and Florida over a single weekend. That attack also affected Saturday distribution of the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, which shared use of a large printing plant in Los Angeles for their West Coast editions, according to the New York Times.

A 47-year-old security guard turned himself in about nine hours after his botched attempt to rob a jewelry store in Kwun Tong as he was unable to smash through the glass display case with a hammer. According to security camera footage, the would-be robber repeatedly smashed in vain at the glass display with a hammer. The incident occurred at around 1.38 pm at the jewelry store on Mut Wah Street. Police soon identified the would-be robber as his ID documents were in the backpack left behind at the crime scene. Also read: Would-be robber flees empty-handed after botched smash-and-grab at Kwun Tong jewelry store

One of three men fishing in mainland waters drowned on Saturday morning. His body was soon retrieved by the other two and was rushed to a beach in Sai Kung. They immediately sought help from the lifeguard at the beach, who attempted to resuscitate the drowning man and filed a police report. The drowning man was sent to Tseung Kwan O Hospital but was eventually pronounced dead, while the other two mainland men were taken away by police for investigation. According to the lifeguard, the drowning man was in a diving suit at the time.

SAN FRANCISCO: Elon Musk has chosen top ad executive Linda Yaccarino to take the day-to-day reins of Twitter as he fights to reverse the tide at the struggling platform he bought for $44 billion last year. As a leading member of the US media establishment, Yaccarino's hiring blindsided that audience, with her senior role at the World Economic Forum especially singled out for vitriol. 'Hands full'According to NBCUniversal's website, Yaccarino led a team of 2,000 people there and "reengineered the advertising business for the 21st century." With Yaccarino's hiring, he is belatedly fulfilling the promise he made to honor the results of a Twitter poll he posted in December. Wall Street had grown frustrated that Twitter was luring Musk away from his other businesses, and share prices in Tesla rose on news he had found a CEO.