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French teen fined in Singapore 'straw licking' case

A French teenager was fined in Singapore on Thursday after pleading guilty to a public nuisance charge for a straw-licking stunt that landed him in hot water in the city state. Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien, 19, was handed a Sg$600 ($465) fine after admitting to posting to social media a video of himself putting a straw he had licked back into the dispenser on an orange juice vending machine. The clip went viral on Instagram shortly after the incident on March 12, triggering a backlash that led to his arrest in Singapore, which is known for its strict enforcement of public order and hygiene rules. Handing down the sentence, Judge Kelly Ho said given Maximilien's "age and nature of the offence", alternatives like probation or a community-based sentence would not be imposed. Prosecutors agreed to the defence's proposal for a fine, saying the offence was at the "lower end" of its seriousness and while hygiene was compromised, no member of the public u...

Boat approaches tanker near Yemen, retreats after armed team deployed, says UK maritime agency

A product tanker sailing within 200 nautical miles west of the Yemeni Island of Socotra was approached by a small craft carrying five people, but turned away after the vessel's armed security team was deployed, the UK maritime agency said on Saturday. "The Master of a product tanker has reported that the vessel was approached by a small craft with 5 persons onboard, closest point of approach 100m. "The vessel’s Armed Security Team were deployed, and the small craft altered course away from the reporting vessel," the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) Centre said on X. UKMTO WARNING 060-26 Click here to view the full advisory note⤵️https://t.co/WrarTo5yId#MaritimeSecurity #MarSec pic.twitter.com/mpYuKuuPfX — UKMTO Operations Centre (@UK_MTO) May 23, 2026 No further details were immediately available. The development came after the UKMTO said Friday that it received a report of another incident involving a tanker located 98 nautical miles north of Socotra. A cargo vessel was reportedly attacked by small boats west of Iran’s coastal city of Sirik, the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency said on May 3. The centre said the incident was reported approximately 11 nautical miles west of Sirik city, which overlooks the Strait of Hormuz. Read: CDF Munir discusses regional developments, de-escalation efforts in meeting with Iran's FM Araghchi It said all crew were reported safe and no environmental impact was recorded. No details were given about the vessel’s cargo or the identity of those behind the attack. Al Jazeera reported that the danger levels remain high across major West Asian waterways, as per UKMTO's assessment, noting that the maritime traffic there remains "significantly reduced". The assessment also revealed that the threat in the Strait of Hormuz and the Arabian Sea is still critical. Anadolu Agency with additional input from Web Desk

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