| KEDAH | Oldest state of Malaysia, in the NW on the Malay Peninsula; capital, Alor Setar (5) |
| PERAK | Fourth-largest state of Malaysia by area, on the west coast of the Malay Peninsula; capital, Ipoh (5) |
| HAIFA | Chief port and third-largest city of Israel, in the NW on the slopes of Mount Carmel (5) |
| RABAT | Capital of Morocco in the northwest on the Atlantic coast (5) |
| PENANG | Island of Malaysia in the Strait of Malacca (6) |
| SABAH | State of Malaysia in northern Borneo (5) |
| TEAK | Prized wood common on the Malay Peninsula |
| SARAWAK | State of Malaysia, in northern Borneo |
| SINGAPORE | With a red-and-white flag bearing a crescent and five stars, an island city-state on the Malay Peninsula's southern tip (9) |
| ALICE | Virginia McKenna starred as a resilient WWII nurse in Japanese-occupied Malaysia in the gritty movie version of A Town Like ... |
| BRAE | Exhibiting *alor |
| SMITH | Author Zadie who has penned novels including The Autograph Man, NW, On Beauty and White Teeth (5) |
| IDAHO | State in the NW united States (5) |
| CHINA | The ... ... Sea is surrounded by Borneo, Vietnam, the Philippines, SE China and the Malay Peninsula |
| SOUTH | The ... ... Sea is surrounded by Borneo, Vietnam, the Philippines, SE China and the Malay Peninsula |
| WAXEN | Pallid cutter, in the NW up (5) |
| SOFIA | Balkan Peninsula capital |
| SANAA | Arabian Peninsula capital |
| SEOUL | Korean peninsula capital |
| TEHRAN | Capital of Iran, in the NW in the foothills of the Elburz Mountains (6) |
