KINI ROUNDUP Here are the key headlines that you may have missed yesterday, in brief.

Olympians welcomed

More than 1,000 people gathered at the KL International Airport (KLIA) yesterday to welcome the Malaysian athletes who participated in the 2016 Rio Olympics.

At the same event, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak announced an additional RM200,000 for those who bagged silver and bronze medals in the recently concluded Summer Olympiad.

Meanwhile, national badminton champion Lee Chong Wei has denied the existence of an open letter supposedly written by his long-time rival from China, Lin Dan, joking that they were not a pair of lovers to be passing letters to each other.

September DOJ deadline

Those named in the US Department of Justice’s (DOJ) 1MDB-related forfeiture suit, including Najib’s stepson Riza Aziz and controversial billionaire businessman Jho Low, will have to file their legal challenge against the department's claims to their assets by early September.

Meanwhile back home, lawyer Mohd Hafarizam Harun has been appointed to act for Najib with regard to the representative action suit filed by former minister Zaid Ibrahim to reclaim the monies allegedly stolen from 1MDB.

And Salor assemblyperson Husam Musa has penned an open letter to Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah, seeking His Majesty’s blessing for the 1MDB-linked class action suit that he and Matthias Chang have initiated in the United States.

Johor nationalism row

The promotion of Johor nationalism is unhealthy for Malaysia and can lead to the collapse of the federation, former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said.

However, champion debater Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman refuted Mahathir’s claim, arguing that state identities are not only the safety net for the rakyat but are also beneficial to the country in the long run, for they can help foster unity in our diversity.

More Kinibites

Taiwanese hip-hop group Jiu Yi Yi, which performed with local rapper Namewee in his controversial music video thnat is said to offend religious sensitivities, will cooperate fully with the Malaysian police in their investigation.

A 22,400-page technical document detailing the technical specifications of Scorpène-class submarines has reportedly been leaked, which could potentially expose the secrets of Malaysia’s own submarine fleet.

Unlike the previous iteration of the anti-electoral reform rally series, the recently announced Bersih 5 seems to have run out of steam way before it even started to develop momentum. Malaysiakini took a look at why this may be: is Bersih 2.0 strategising or facing difficulties?

Looking ahead

The Malaysian Bar's legal challenge against attorney-general Mohamed Apandi Ali over his decision not to prosecute Najib will be heard in the High Court in Kuala Lumpur today.