Malaysia ex-PM must pay $300K for defamation

HASNOOR HUSSAIN/REUTERS

KUALA LUMPUR—A Malaysian court on Friday ordered former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin to pay more than $300,000 to another politician in a defamation case, adding to the opposition leader’s legal troubles.

Muhyiddin, who was premier for 17 months between 2020 and 2021, is also charged with sedition for allegedly insulting a former king and is accused of corruption and money laundering in separate cases.

He denies wrongdoing. The Kuala Lumpur High Court ordered Muhyiddin to pay 1.35 million ringgit ($308,078) in damages for defamatory remarks against former finance minister Lim Guan Eng in a series of Facebook posts in March 2023, news agency Bernama reported.

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