In a departure from the past two decades, the phenomenon of "salad bar" extremism — extremism that does not belong to a single coherent ideology — is now on the rise in Singapore.

At the same time, extremist narratives are reaching younger and younger audiences, in part thanks to to social media and online games.

With these two developments, rehabilitation efforts must also evolve, and the community is a key part of this, said Law Minister and Second Minister for Home Affairs Edwin Tong.

He was speaking at a Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) appreciation lunch on Sep. 19.

Younger and faster

With online platforms such as social media and games, extremist narratives can reach vulnerable young people very quickly.

As such, youths are getting radicalised younger, and at a faster rate, Tong said.

Thanks to social media algorithms, young people can end up trapped in an ideological echo chamber that reinforces certain sentiments.

There is also repeated exposure to gore and violent content that normalises violent behaviour and primes youths for radicalisation.

'Salad bar' extremism

In the past, radicalisation generally followed a clear ideological pathway: Islamic extremism, far-right extremism.

This allowed for a relatively clear understanding of how the individual had become radicalised, and as such how they could be rehabilitated.

However, individuals are increasingly being radicalised in a "salad bar" manner — meaning, rather than subscribing to a single coherent ideology, they draw selectively from multiple extremist ideologies.

An example is a 14-year-old who was detained by the Internal Security Department (ISD) in early 2026.

He had become radicalised by Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) content, while simultaneously supporting Hitler and far-right white supremacist ideas.

The boy eventually made preparations to conduct a stabbing in his school, but was detained before he could do so.

Dealing with warning signs

Tong said that while these ideas may be contradictory, shallow, inconsistent, or disorganised, they all point towards violence as a necessary outcome.

It is thus important to focus on broader behavioural changes, rather than whether someone follows a particular radical preacher, terrorist group, or extremist ideology.

"For example, growing hostility towards others, an increasing fascination with violence, withdrawal into online communities where extreme views are constantly being reinforced. These are often the warning signs that matter the most," he added.

Tong also said that rehabilitation is not a "single point" intervention, but requires a community effort comprising psychologists, religious counsellors, family support, school support, friends, educators, and more.

"Every Singaporean can be a true friend — the person who helps their friend, their colleague, or their classmate or family member who shows signs of radicalisation, and helps them quickly to get the right support that they need."

Not a betrayal

Tong emphasised that radicalisation often doesn't begin with violent intentions.

Rather, it may begin with questions about the environment or global events, a search for identity or relatability, or a deep desire to want to belong.

These people may take to the Internet with the simple goal of seeking answers to their questions, but inadvertently end up immersed in violent extremist content.

As such, "we need to supply answers, we need to be there... not just to give the answers but to create the environment where they can find answers from trusted sources".

The minister added that reporting a loved one who shows signs of radicalisation is not a betrayal, but a way to help their loved ones as effectively as possible.

"In many cases, you might well be the most powerful form of prevention early and upstream," he said.

A Grab delivery rider died after he reportedly fell into a swimming pool while making a delivery at a condominium along Tanah Merah Kechil Avenue.

The 64-year-old man was found unconscious and later died in the hospital.

No foul play

According to Shin Min Daily News, the incident took place at around 8:40pm on Sep. 17.

The rider was said to have felt unwell while making the delivery and accidentally fell into the condominium's swimming pool.

By the time he was found and pulled from the pool, he was already unconscious.

He was subsequently taken to the hospital, where he later died.

In response to Mothership's queries, the police confirmed receiving a call for assistance at 58 Tanah Merah Kechil Avenue.

Separately, the Singapore Civil Defence Force said it conveyed one person to Changi General Hospital.

Based on preliminary investigations, the police do not suspect foul play.

Police investigations are ongoing.

Leaves behind a wife

The man was identified to be Wang Zhi Cong (transliteration), Shin Min reported.

He had married his wife 10 years ago and the couple had no children.

A colleague of Wang's wife told the Chinese-language newspaper that he had previously worked as a salesperson.

Wang became a delivery rider after losing his job.

The colleague also described the couple as having had a close relationship.

He said the couple had spoken on the phone on the afternoon of Sep. 17, but Wang's wife was unable to reach him later that evening.

On the morning of Sep. 18, Wang's wife went to the mortuary with the colleague to collect his body.

They later proceeded to Mandai Crematorium at around 3pm to make arrangements for his cremation.

Shin Min reported that Wang's wife appeared deeply distressed and broke down in tears while at the mortuary, and later at the crematorium.

The colleague said the sudden nature of Wang's death had made it difficult for the widow to come to terms with the loss.

Grab committed to support the deceased's family

In response to Mothership's queries, a Grab spokesperson confirmed that one of its delivery-partner riders had passed away in an accident.

"Our heartfelt condolences go out to his family and loved ones — we grieve alongside them during this painful time," the spokesperson said, adding that Grab has been in contact with the family and would provide them with full assistance.

"As the relevant investigations are still ongoing, we are unable to disclose further details. We will work closely with the relevant authorities and cooperate fully with their investigation into the incident."

A man was sentenced to jail after choking his wife when she denied having an affair.

According to Lianhe Zaobao, the woman lost consciousness before their son stepped in and pulled his father away.

The 46-year-old man was subsequently handed eight charges that include voluntarily causing grievous hurt, criminal intimidation and criminal force.

He pleaded guilty to three of the charges and was sentenced to one year and 10 weeks in prison.

The couple has two sons, aged 17 and 14. A gag order was applied to protect the identities of the minors.

Threats

Lianhe Zaobao reported that on Jul. 28, 2025, at around 6:30pm, the man came home with his wife, a 39-year-old Vietnamese woman, after drinking when an argument broke out.

The man kept asking her if she was having an affair and continued to question her till about 11pm.

When she denied the accusations, the man took away her phone and wrapped both hands around her neck to choke her.

As the front door was locked and her phone confiscated, the victim could not escape or call the police.

At 2am, the man suddenly entered the sons' room where the mother was sleeping and began to choke her again.

He also threatened to"die together" with his wife, Lianhe Zaobao reported.

Fortunately, the elder son stepped in and pulled him away.  The wife then called the police, and they arrested the man on Jul. 29, 2025.

This was not the first time the man had threatened to kill his wife.

Threatened the whole family

On Oct. 15, 2020, the man entered his son's room in the early morning and woke the elder son, who was 11 at the time.

An argument broke out, and the man told his son that "we will sleep forever, the whole family will die together" before slamming the door.

This woke the wife, and once she learned what her husband said, she took the two boys into her room and locked the door.

Lianhe Zaobao stated that the man then kicked the door open and, holding a butter knife in his hand, threatened to kill all three of them.

The man's mother later called the police and informed them that she suspected her son was under the influence of drugs or medication and was causing a disturbance at home, leading her grandson to call her and ask her to contact the police.

Separate incident

On May. 13, 2024, the man was working at a bar as a bartender when he confronted a man who allegedly touched his colleague's breast.

He elbowed the man in the face twice, giving the victim a fractured nasal bone, Lianhe Zaobao stated.

Several boxes containing rabbits were allegedly abandoned along the side of a road in the Seletar Farmway area on Sep. 18.

These included a box of baby rabbits just a few days old, according to an Instagram post by animal welfare group Voices For Animals (VFA) founder Derrick Tan.

Abandoned rabbits

Speaking to Mothership, Tan said he learnt of the case at about 11:45pm on Friday, after someone reported seeing rabbits hopping around the area.

The person said he found several boxes left by the roadside, some of which contained rabbits.

One of the boxes contained baby rabbits who were merely a few days old, Tan said.

The man also allegedly saw a vehicle leaving the area.

According to Tan, the person in the vehicle had told him that he could take the rabbits if he wanted to, as they no longer wanted them.

He subsequently took a photograph of the vehicle and recorded its licence plate number.

Rabbits were found in poor condition

Tan said he and his team arrived at the scene at around 12:20am on Sep. 19.

He described the condition of the rabbits as poor, saying many were covered in urine and stains and had matted fur, bite wounds, and overgrown nails.

A total of 23 rabbits were found, comprising 16 adults and seven kits, according to Tan.

He added that several of the female rabbits may be pregnant.

Not wanting to cause them additional stress, Tan and his team have only treated the rabbits for fleas and mites so far.

Abandoned rabbits may face dangers

"Small animals such as bunnies are always the victims that suffer from abandonment," Tan said.

He said some people may assume that releasing rabbits into areas with large amounts of vegetation would allow them to survive on their own.

However, abandoned rabbits can be exposed to a range of dangers, including attacks by other animals and wildlife, abuse by people, and being hit by vehicles, he said.

The rabbits will be put up for adoption once they are medically stable and ready, Tan added.

VFA also plans to obtain dashcam footage from heavy vehicles that were parked in the area before submitting a report to the Animal and Veterinary Service, he said.

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A 16-year-old boy was arrested after an accident involving a 74-year-old pedestrian who subsequently passed away.

In response to Mothership's queries, the Singapore Police Force said that it received a call for assistance at Block 741 Yishun Avenue 5 on Sep. 15 at around 11:45am.

A 74-year-old male pedestrian was conveyed conscious to the hospital, where he later died.

A 16-year-old male cyclist was arrested for the offence of rash act causing death.

Police investigations are ongoing.

Looking for eyewitness

On Sep. 15, Tan Bo Xue took to Facebook to appeal for eyewitnesses over an accident involving his 74-year-old father.

Tan shared that his father had been hit by a cyclist on Sep. 15  along the pedestrian/cycling path in the vicinity of Yishun Avenue 5.

The elderly man sustained serious head injuries, including internal bleeding in the brain and a skull fracture.

On Sep. 18, Tan shared that his father passed away on Sep. 17.

A 20-year friendship between two women in Hong Kong apparently fell apart after one of them married the other's former boyfriend.

The relationship dispute, involving two women aged 70 and 60 and an 83-year-old man, was featured on an episode of Hong Kong’s TVB programme “Scoop”.

The feud between the former best friends had become serious enough to require a restraining order.

20-year friendship broke down because of a man

The 70-year-old woman, identified as Ah Li, said she and the 60-year-old woman, Ah Zhen, had been close friends for around 20 years.

Ah Li said that she would talk Ah Zhen on the phone for hours in the past.

Ah Li later met an 83-year-old man, identified as Quan, and the pair started dating.

Ah Li said that Quan was just an average man and that they only wanted to have each other for company.

However, several months later, Ah Zhen came to confront Ah Li.

"She came to tell me that she's seeing my boyfriend and they even slept together..She also boasted that she has a house, HKD 20,000 (around S$3,200), two rings and asked if I have anything?" Ah Li told the host in the episode.

Ah Li also asked Quan about it and he admitted he did sleep with Ah Zhen.

After knowing Quan cheated on her with Ah Zhen, Ah Li decided to break up with him.

"Trashy man ends up with trashy woman," she said in the programme.

Three years of conflict

Their dispute did not end there.

Ah Zhen had repeatedly harassed Ah Li for around three years, affecting her business, Ah Li said.

Ah Li claimed that Ah Zhen broke a glass display cabinet and her phones when the latter came to her stall to make a scene in the past.

To stop the harassment, she applied a restraining order against Ah Zhen.

The other perspective

On the other hand, Ah Zhen accused Ah Li for contacting Quan after their marriage.

The programme got Ah Zhen's views and accompanied Ah Li to her stall in hopes of resolving their dispute.

Ah Zhen said that few months into her marriage with Quan, he started to treat her badly and she believed it's because of Ah Li.

She also denied taking Quan away from Ah Li, claiming that the pair had already broken up three months before he pursued her.

She then claimed Quan was attracted to her because she was younger and had a good figure.

“My husband likes me because, firstly, I'm young, and secondly, I have a good figure. Can't you see?” the 60-year-old said.

The two elderly women did not resolve their differences through this meet-up.

Husband wanted a divorce

The programme subsequently got Quan to share his views.

The 83-year-old maintained that the conflict was between the two women and said there's nothing he could do.

He denied being unfaithful to Ah Zhen and said he had not approached Ah Li after marrying Ah Zhen.

He described Ah Zhen as  "sot sot teh" (crazy), adding that she has anger management issues and would lash out at others when she's triggered.

Quan also described her as extremely jealous.

Quan said that Ah Zhen cajoled him into getting married with her.

However, after knowing Ah Zhen better, he wanted a divorce but Ah Zhen refused.

At the end of the programme, Ah Li told the Scoop host that she was relieved Quan spoke the truth to clear her name.

However, she felt Quan should keep Ah Zhen in check, warning that she would not hesitate to report Ah Zhen to the police if the harassment continued.

At least 20 passers-by were spotted working together to help move a tree that had fallen onto a road in MacPherson on Sep. 18.

The incident came to light after an Instagram user, @crayoncheryl, posted a video showing several people pushing the tree towards the side of the road, while others cleared smaller branches.

At one point, the group could be heard counting, "One, two, three!" before pushing the tree together.

No one was injured

Speaking to Mothership, the Instagram user said the incident took place at around 6pm on Friday, opposite MacPherson Sheng Hong Child Care Centre.

She said she was walking towards a bus stop when she saw the fallen tree.

Fortunately, no one was injured and no vehicles were damaged, she said.

She later went closer to the scene and saw bus drivers informing other buses behind them that the road was completely blocked.

There were also some cars that began making U-turns to leave the area.

The user said she initially thought the fallen tree would result in a major traffic jam.

"It didn’t occur to me we can actually move it first without authorities, until the first person went in and many others followed."

According to her, about 20 to 30 people eventually worked together to clear the tree.

The group comprised a mix of people, including migrant workers, bus drivers, and bikers.

One person suggested breaking the main branch

The group initially tried to break the smaller branches, but this was taking some time, the user said.

Someone then suggested breaking the main branch and pushing the tree instead.

The group eventually managed to move the tree enough to clear one lane of the road.

"Everyone clapped and some of the vehicles honked in celebration too," the user said.

The entire process took less than 15 minutes from the time she arrived at the scene, she added.

After boarding her bus, the user said she called the National Parks Board (NParks) to check if the fallen tree had been reported.

In response, NParks told her that they were aware of the incident and that contractors were on their way, she said.

A Singaporean man responsible for managing the affairs of a madrasah misappropriated S$68,629 from the religious school at Braddell Road.

59-year-old Razak Mohamed Lazim was a former senior director at the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS) from 2011 to January 2016.

On Sep. 18, Razak was sentenced to seven weeks' jail on one charge of computer misuse and one charge of misappropriation.

CNA reported that he also received a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNATA) for two charges of allegedly cheating Temasek Foundation International of S$784,900, and one charge of accessing the school's email server.

A DNATA means that the accused can still be prosecuted for these charges at a later date.

Razak will appeal against the sentence, his lawyers said.

Long history with MUIS and madrasah

According to court documents seen by Mothership, at the material time, MUIS was responsible for overseeing the appointments of members to Madrasah Irsyad Zuhri Al-Islamiah's board of governors (BOG).

Razak first joined the Madrasah Management Committee (MMC), subordinate to the BOG, in 2002.

He served as the committee's chairman from 2006 to 2008, joined the BOG sometime in 2008, and was also the executive director of the madrasah from 2009 to 2011.

While being employed by MUIS, Razak also continued his concurrent appointments on the MMC and BOG.

He eventually resigned from MUIS and the madrasah on Jan. 19, 2016, but formally remained on the MMC and BOG til Dec. 31, 2017.

Appointed executive director

Sometime in 2014, the MMC decided that the madrasah's international projects that promoted Islamic education and the building of such schools in the region should be moved to Irsyad Trust Limited (ITL).

This was a separate company established in 2006, intended to be a vehicle for MMC's initiatives.

In April 2016, shortly after his resignation, Razak was appointed to ITL as an executive director; he was one of two required signatories of the company’s bank account with the ability to execute transactions.

Misappropriated funds

According to court documents, the madrasah developed textbooks as part of its teaching curriculum.

The school entered into a distribution agreement with a printing company, Key-Orient Lamitec (KOL), which allowed it to market and distribute the textbooks.

The madrasah, as the "copyright owner", would receive royalty payments from the sale of textbooks.

Sometime in 2019, a publisher signed a content license agreement to use the master copy of the textbooks. Accordingly, it made three payments to KOL between Jan. 15, 2019 and Feb. 4, 2020.

The third payment made to KOL comprised S$205,888. As per the agreement, KOL was supposed to pay S$116,671 to ITL and S$68,629 to the madrasah.

But on Feb. 5, 2020, Razak emailed KOL and requested that both sums be transferred to ITL, claiming that ITL would "disburse the [the madrasah's] royalty directly".

Instead of doing so, he misappropriated the S$68,629 meant for the madrasah.

Failed to disburse donations

10 days later, ITL's board of directors met.

Razak told the board that ITL had made annual contributions of S$20,000 to the school. The board hence decided to make a S$70,000 donation to the madrasah.

As ITL's executive director, Razak was tasked to disburse the "donation".

However, Razak did not transfer any money to the school for around two years.

It was only in Feb. 22, 2022, when he finally prepared a cheque for S$70,000, issued by ITL to the madrasah.

In doing so, he used the S$68,629 sum he had earlier misappropriated from the madrasah's textbook royalties, the court heard.

However, the school responded that it was unable to accept the "donation" due to an "ongoing review of financial transactions" between the two institutions.

On Jun. 8, 2022, Razak was called by the Commercial Affairs Department to assist in investigations.

Several weeks later, Razak transferred an additional S$70,000 from ITL's bank account to KOL's.

He called it an "adjustment to agent fee for exploring Arabic".

"Super user" access rights

Razak was also granted "super user" access rights to the madrasah's email server, which gave him the ability to configure and access email accounts.

Despite having already resigned from his position in 2019, Razak used his access rights to create a new account that would forward emails sent to his old account to his personal email address.

Court documents stated that Razak admitted that he did so without obtaining any authorisation from the madrasah’s principal, vice-principals or heads of department.

Penalties

The prosecution sought a sentence of two to three months' imprisonment, according to court documents.

Prosecutors noted that while there is no evidence of loss or damage caused by Razak's unauthorised access to the madrasah server, it was highly significant as he faced three similar charges and a considerable degree of deliberation and premeditation was involved.

They added that he dishonestly misappropriated S$68,629 which belonged to the madrasah, a sum which was very high.

For accessing an email server without permission, a first-time offender can face up to two years' jail, a fine of up to S$5,000, or both.

For misappropriating funds, an offender could be jailed for up to two years, fined, or both.

Taiwanese employees at U.S. chipmaker Micron have rejected a reward package announced by the company on Sep. 11, 2026, saying they want a long-term profit-sharing mechanism instead.

Under the reward package, employees in Taiwan would receive bonuses equivalent to 35 to 68 months for the fiscal year of 2026.

The minimum cash compensation will be about NT$1.7 million (about S$68,000).

The Micron Taiwan workers' union has since called for an alternative arrangement, under which 15 per cent of the company's operating profits will be allocated to employees.

Workers seeking a long-term and fair system

According to a report by local news outlet Focus Taiwan, the head of the Micron Taiwan workers' union, Lin Che Jui, said the reward package had been proposed by Micron without prior consultation or agreement with the union.

Lin said the company appeared to be seeking to influence public opinion through the announcement.

However, the union was not interested in a one-off payout, he said.

Rather, they wanted a long-term and fair system for distributing the company's profits.

Lin called on Micron to establish a transparent and verifiable profit-sharing mechanism under which 15 per cent of the company's operating profits would be distributed to employees.

Mirror Media also reported that the union raised its profit-sharing demand on Sep. 4, but the company said it could only make a decision after consulting its board in October. Hence, this one-time reward announcement came as a surprise to the union.

Two rounds of negotiations are reportedly scheduled for Sep. 18 and 21.

According to Lin, if the company continues to try and influence the negotiations, the union would declare that talks had broken down and hold a vote among its members on whether to strike.

Package announced after strike threat

The reward package announcement comes after unions representing about two-thirds of the local Micron workforce in Taiwan signalled support among members for a strike.

Citing international media reports, Focus Taiwan said Taiwan is Micron's largest memory chip production base and accounts for about 60 per cent of the company's total production capacity.

Industry sources told Focus Taiwan that a strike at Micron Taiwan could further constrain chip supplies and worsen an existing supply-demand imbalance amid strong demand driven by artificial intelligence.

In response, Micron said it would continue listening to its employees and participate in the mediation process in good faith.

Operators, technicians, and shift engineers are among those eligible for the payouts under the reward package.

Entry-level engineers are expected to receive rewards averaging NT$3.4 million (around S$136,200), including an average of NT$2.9 million (around S$116,170) in cash compensation.

Yoga studio Yoga Inc has closed its remaining Singapore outlets.

According to a Substack blog called The Yoga Edit, instructors apparently received a text message on Sep. 18.

Instructors were informed that Yoga Inc's remaining two outlets at SAFRA Punggol and Our Tampines Hub ceased operations effective immediately.

A Facebook post by SAFRA Punggol also announced the outlet's closure on Sep. 18.

Checks by Mothership on Sep. 19 found that Yoga Inc's Instagram page appeared to be removed, and its official website seemed to be stripped bare, with minimal information.

Links regarding schedule and locations led to pages that could not be found.

Cancelled

One instructor with Yoga Inc, Sunnie Ang, shared on Instagram on Sep. 18 that all her classes at Yoga Inc Tampines were cancelled.

"Just like that, with a message sent to us (5min ago) the studio ceased its operations with immediate effect. Wow," she wrote.

As for students, it seems that they were not informed of the studio's closure.

One of Ang's students commented on her post that the students were not aware classes had been cancelled.

She shared that she and others only discovered the studio was closed on Sep. 19 after turning up at One Tampines Hub for Ang's 9:45am classes.

A reader also told Mothership that students were not informed of the studio's closure, and she still had 18 classes left with the studio.

According to Bizfile, Yoga Inc Pte Ltd has been struck off, and the entity has ceased.

Businesses closing

Yoga Inc's closure follows the closure of True Fitness and True Yoga.

On Sep. 10, staff were informed that True Fitness and True Yoga were placed into provisional liquidation, with all outlets closing immediately.

A notice put up at one of their outlets read:

"Dear valued members, we write to inform you that True Fitness Pte. Ltd and True Yoga Pte Ltd have been placed under provisional liquidation effective Sep. 10, 2026.

In view of the provisional liquidation, all clubs have ceased operations with immediate effect."

One Reddit user who had a membership valid until April 2027 had supposedly just visited an outlet and claimed it was "business as usual" and that there were even "some new staff recently".

Among the members affected was a Mothership reader who has been a member for over 20 years. She received a notification regarding the liquidation on her app on the night of Sep. 10.

She has over S$1,000 in a two-year package with the gym, where she originally pre-paid over S$2,000 and has since used half of it.

Customers have since reported losses of more than S$609,000 in unutilised memberships, packages, and services to the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE).

CASE has received 241 complaints from consumers affected by the closure to date.