Here are the key headlines from yesterday you may have missed, in brief.

Ramadan marred by bombs

Malaysians woke up yesterday morning to reports of suicide bombings across three cities in Saudi Arabia, including the security office of the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina, which is said to be built by Prophet Muhammad himself.

Reports of more bombings trickle in later in the day, with one police officer seriously injured in a suicide bombing in Indonesia, and one police officer killed and three others injured in a car bomb attack in Thailand.

Closer to home, Malaysians were shaken by the police’s confirmation that an earlier grenade attack in Puchong was believed to be perpetrated by the militant group IS.

Among others, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng assured that the threat is under control in Penang, while PAS urged Muslims to steer away from IS. The Angkatan Belia Islam Malaysia (Abim) also urged parents to monitor their children’s online activities for IS links.

Inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar’s proposal to move entertainment outlets in a central location to boost security was met with mixed reactions. Meanwhile, he cautioned the media against giving space to IS, after two dailies published interviews with the Puchong attack’s alleged mastermind.

Separately, social activist Marina Mahathir said certain politicians and religious scholars should just ‘shut up’ instead of appealing people not to join IS, since they helped the extremist movement take root in the first place.

Debate continues over Guan Eng’s prosecution

The two corruption charges against Lim last week has sparked a fresh round a talks within DAP to seek a potential successor to replace him as the party’s secretary-general.

Meanwhile, the senior lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah defended attorney-general Mohamed Apandi Ali’s decision to prosecute Lim personally. This is only ‘polite and proper’ in view of the fact that Lim is a VIP in his capacity as a serving chief minister.

Separately, four-term former Penang local councillor Teh Leong Meng stepped forward to clarify a key aspect in the charges against Lim, and refuted Penang exco member Chow Kon Yeow’s claims of political persecution against the chief minister.

A widow’s agony

The widow of Seniman Negara recipient Syed Ahmad Syed Jamal, Hamidah Mohd Noor, was not amused to hear that the Kuala Lumpur City Hall has demolished her late husband’s sculpture ‘Puncak Purnama’, describing it as “absolutely heartrending”.

However, Federal Territories Minister Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor defended the City Hall, saying it had every right to do so, since a court had ruled that it owns the sculpture.

In a commentary on the sculpture row, the Kuala Terengganu MP Raja Kamarul Bahrin Shah Raja Ahmad, a trained architect, lamented that Malaysia is becoming devoid of its soul and sensitivity.

On a more positive note though, Penang said it would gazetted the George Town World Heritage Special Area Plans on Aug 1, which will serve as a guideline for development activities in the Unesco-recognised area.

Other Kinibites

With the alleged murderer in custody and the suspected murder weapon at hand, the police declare the case of PKR activist Bill Kayong’s murder solved, and is preparing to bring them to court. However, several suspects are still at large.

1MDB has paid RM1.579 million in coupon interests on a Bandar Malaysia sukuk bond, and reiterated its commitment to fulfil its debt obligations, notwithstanding an ongoing dispute with the Dhabi-based International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC).

Investment firm Goldman Sachs however, which helped arrange another 1MDB deal, is reportedly being investigated by US authorities to determine whether they have exercised sufficient due diligence especially when dealing with Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, his relatives, or other senior Malaysian government officials.

Looking ahead

It is Hari Raya Aidilfitri. Najib and his cabinet will be holding an open house at his official residence in Seri Perdana, Putrajaya.

Things are looking less cheery for the chairperson of the anti-crime NGO MyWatch R Sri Sanjeevan however, as he is expected to be remanded yet again, this time in Seremban.