16/10/2025

THURSDAY | OCT 16, 2025

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ICC prosecutor barred from Duterte case

Megaspeed for allegedly diverting Nvidia chips used for artificial intelligence, according to a letter seen by Reuters. The letter cites an October report in The New York Times that detailed the alleged diversion of Nvidia chips by Megaspeed, a cloud computing company. According to the report, Megaspeed funnelled Nvidia chips to Malaysia and Indonesia that appeared to serve customers in China remotely. Megaspeed did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Singapore police said on Tuesday that “investigations are ongoing into Megaspeed for suspected breaches of our domestic laws”. A Nvidia spokesperson said it had engaged with the US government regarding Megaspeed, performed its own inquiry, and had not identified any reason to believe products had been diverted. The US has blocked high-end AI chips from export to China due to national security concerns. Volcano spews ash 10km into the sky JAKARTA: Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki erupted yesterday, shooting volcanic ash 10km into the sky, forcing authorities to raise the alert system to its highest level. Located in East Nusa Tenggara province, the volcano erupted at 1.35am local time (2.35am in Malaysia) for around nine minutes, the Geological Agency said. Late on Tuesday, the agency raised its alert level to the highest point after recording “significant rising of the volcano’s activities” since Monday, its head, Muhammad Wafid, said. “People living near the volcano should be aware of the potential volcanic mudflow if heavy rain occurs,” Wafid said, adding that people should clear a 6-7km area around the site. The volcano last erupted in August. It also erupted in July, causing flight disruptions to and from Bali. Dozens of people living in villages nearest to the volcano were evacuated after the eruptions, according to Avelina Manggota Hallan, an official at the local disaster mitigation agency. Most of the residents left their villages after Lewotobi Laki-laki’s major eruption, which killed 10 people and damaged thousands of houses in November last year, Hallan said. – Reuters

Khan had asked the panel of judges to reject the defence request, saying there was “no conflict of interest arising from his representation of the chair of the PHRC and a group of victims in relation to” communications with the ICC. The Appeals Chamber on Oct 2 granted the defence’s request, saying in a decision that has not yet been made public that Khan might appear to be biased due to his previous role and so was disqualified from the case. The ICC office of the prosecutor did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Duterte, in office from 2016 to 2022, was arrested and taken to The Hague in March on an arrest warrant that linked him to murders committed during his war on drugs in the Philippines, where thousands of alleged narcotics peddlers and users were killed. He has maintained his arrest was unlawful and tantamount to kidnapping.

The former Philippines president, who is 80 and whose lawyers say he is unfit to stand trial, is being handled by deputy prosecutor Mame Mandiaye Niang, who also faces sanctions by Washington due to the court’s investigation into alleged war crimes by Israel in Gaza. ICC judges issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Israeli defence chief Yoav Gallant, and Hamas leader Ibrahim al-Masri last November for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity during the Gaza conflict. In August, Khan was ordered by judges to recuse himself from an investigation into Venezuela, ruling that his sister-in-law’s role as a criminal lawyer representing the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was a potential conflict of interest. In the inquiry into alleged sexual misconduct, Khan’s attorneys have denied all allegations of wrongdoing. – Reuters case of the

THE International Criminal Court (ICC) appeals judges have disqualified chief prosecutor Karim Khan from the war crimes case against former Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte due to a possible conflict of interest, according to a copy of the decision seen by Reuters. The ruling is yet another major blow to Khan, who stepped aside in May amid a UN inquiry into his alleged sexual misconduct. He has now also been barred from taking part in the Duterte prosecution, the only major active case pending at the court, which is already reeling under US-imposed sanctions. In August, Duterte’s defence sought to disqualify Khan, arguing that his involvement in communications to the court from o Court cites possible conflict of interest HAGUE:

Second blow for Khan. – REUTERSPIC

victims of Duterte’s war on drugs was a conflict of interest. The defence said Khan should have no further role in the case because he represented the Philippines Human Rights Commission (PHRC) in naming Duterte as a top suspect and could therefore not conduct an impartial investigation, a copy of the ruling seen by Reuters said.

Nvidia chips probe widens SAN FRANCISCO: Republican Senator Tom Cotton has asked the Commerce Department to investigate Singapore-based

In July, Reuters reported that demand for repairs of banned Nvidia products boomed, which was also cited by Cotton in his letter. Reuters reported last year that China had obtained high-end Nvidia AI chips in spite of a ban. “As the Trump administration recently indicated, export controls are an important tool as he navigates America through perilous times against an increasingly aggressive and emboldened adversary,” Cotton wrote. “The pervasiveness of chip smuggling undermines the president and allows US adversaries access to advanced technology where the US maintains significant leverage.” Cotton said he would continue to work with Trump to curb illegal diversions of US chips. His letter was addressed to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. Cotton previously introduced legislation that would require location verification of chips after they are sold. Last week, Trump unveiled levies of 100% on China’s US-bound exports and new export controls on “any and all critical software” by Nov 1. – Reuters

TENDER LOVING CARE ... An Indonesian student recovering at a makeshift clinic after suffering from food poisoning at his school in Bandung, West Java, on Tuesday. Some families of affected students have urged for the flagship free meals programme to be suspended. Cases of food poisoning spiked last week in Bandung. – AFPPIC

New Singapore commission to block harmful online content SINGAPORE: The city-state will introduce a new online safety commission with powers to order social media platforms to block harmful posts, according to a new Bill that was tabled in parliament yesterday. not been immediately addressed. The new commission will be empowered under a new law to address local user reports of harms like online harassment, doxxing, online stalking, the abuse of intimate images and child pornography by the end of the first half of next year. The commission will also be able to order internet service providers to block access to specific online locations, such as group pages or even a social media platform’s website. More harms, including the non It will be debated at the next available session of parliament. The setting up of an online safety commission was first mooted during the Ministry of Digital Development and Information’s budget debate in March.

the nation’s new Online Criminal Harms Act, which came into force in February last year. In September, the Home Affairs Ministry threatened Meta with a fine of up to S$1 million (RM3.26 million) and fines of up to S$100,000 per day after the end of the month if it failed to introduce measures like facial recognition to curb impersonation scams on Facebook. The Home Affairs Ministry could not be reached to confirm if Meta complied with the order. – Reuters

The new law comes after researchers from the Infocomm Media Development Authority found in February that more than half of legitimate user complaints about harmful posts relating to issues like child abuse and cyber-bullying had

consensual disclosure of private information and “the incitement of enmity”, will be introduced over stages following the initial launch. The new commission will be set up under a new online safety bill that was introduced to lawmakers yesterday.

“More often than not, platforms fail to take action to remove genuinely harmful content reported to them by victims,”said Digital Development and Information Minister Josephine Teo. The government recently targeted Meta with the first order issued under

It will also have powers to direct social media platforms to restrict access to harmful material within Singapore, give victims a right to reply, and ban perpetrators from accessing their platform.