An earthquake of magnitude 5.8 struck off the coast of Kep. Tanimbar in Indonesia late on Tuesday, the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) said. The quake was at a depth of 109 km (67.73 miles) and was about 440 km southeast of the city of Ambon, EMSC said. The earthquake monitoring …
Read More »Moderate earthquake rocks Bali, killing at least 3
Three people were killed Saturday when an earthquake struck the Indonesian tourist island Bali, the disaster agency said. The 4.8 magnitude quake struck at a relatively shallow depth of 10 kilometers (six miles) northeast of the town of Banjar Wanasari. Shallow quakes tend to do more damage than deep tremors. …
Read More »Indonesia passes major tax overhaul bill, VAT to rise next year
Indonesia’s parliament approved a law on Thursday for one of the country’s most ambitious tax overhauls, including raising VAT next year, a new carbon levy and cancelling a planned corporate tax cut. The law is aimed at optimising revenue collection and improving tax compliance after state coffers took a big …
Read More »Indonesia landslide leaves seven dead
Seven people were killed in a landslide triggered by torrential storms on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, authorities said, as they warned continuing rainfall could cause further ground movement on Friday. A day after the landslide hit two adjacent houses in Padang Pariaman district on Wednesday, seven bodies were pulled …
Read More »Death toll from Indonesia jail blaze at 44 amid focus on overcrowding
The death toll from a blaze that tore through an Indonesian jail has risen to 44, as authorities pledged to look at whether more inmates could receive rehabilitation for drug-related offences to ease chronic overcrowding in the prison system. Wednesday’s fire at the penitentiary in Tangerang, on the outskirts of …
Read More »Indonesia and Australia agree to boost security ties
Indonesia and Australia agreed to deepen security ties during a ministerial meeting on Thursday, with discussions underway towards enabling joint military training in Australia and participation in its defence academies. Agreements were signed over counter-terrorism, defence and cybersecurity, Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said, plus another agreement on support for …
Read More »Komodo dragon, two-in-five shark species lurch toward extinction
Trapped on island habitats made smaller by rising seas, Indonesia’s Komodo dragons were listed as “endangered” on Saturday, in an update of the wildlife Red List that also warned overfishing threatens nearly two-in-five sharks with extinction. About 28 percent of the 138,000 species assessed by the International Union for the …
Read More »Indonesia condemns attack on Ahmadiyah minority house of worship
Indonesia condemned on Friday an attack on a house of worship belonging to the Ahmadiyah, a Muslim minority sect, on its part of the Borneo island, calling it an “illegal act”. In a video posted on social media dozens of people can be seen attacking the building, in a village …
Read More »Panamanian-flagged tanker seized in Indonesian waters
The Indonesian Navy says it has seized a Panamanian-flagged tanker in the waters off Riau islands after the foreign vessel was found to be carrying more than 4,000 tons of oil without valid permits. Indonesian Navy commander admiral Arsyad Abdullah said in a statement late Wednesday that the Panamanian-flagged tanker, …
Read More »Indonesia police arrest 53 suspected of plotting Independence Day attack
Indonesian police have arrested 53 militants suspected of planning an attack on independence day this week, including alleged members of networks blamed for past attacks like the 2002 Bali bombings, the police said on Friday. Some of those arrested were from the group Jemaah Islamiah (JI), a jihadist network with …
Read More »Indonesia malls reopen exclusively for vaccinated shoppers
Indonesia’s capital reopened its retail malls this week to an exclusive crowd – shoppers vaccinated against coronavirus. With restrictions still in place in much of Indonesia, Jakarta’s malls are allowed to operate at 25% capacity to try to keep the economy moving, but customers must prove via a smartphone application …
Read More »Indonesia’s Most volatile Volcano Mount Merapi Erupts On Densely Populated Java Island
Mount Merapi unleashed clouds of hot ash at least seven times since Sunday morning, as well as a series of fast-moving pyroclastic flows, a mixture of rock, debris, lava and gasses. Indonesia’s most volatile volcano erupted Sunday on the densely populated island of Java, spewing smoke and ash high into …
Read More »Indonesia announces ‘new era of bilateral relations’ with US as pair kick off largest-ever joint military training
Indonesia’s foreign minister, Retno Marsudi, has announced a “new era of bilateral relations” with the US, as the two countries host a joint training exercise involving more than 3,000 soldiers. Announcing an improved partnership between the two nations on Thursday, Marsudi praised America for increasing its support in the Indo-Pacific …
Read More »5.9 magnitude quake strikes off Indonesia’s Papua
A 5.9 magnitude quake struck off the coast of Indonesia’s easternmost Papua region today, the United States Geological Survey said, but there was no tsunami warning or immediate reports of damage. The quake hit at a relatively shallow depth of 12 kilometers (7.5 miles), about 180 kilometers northeast of Tual …
Read More »Indonesia’s Sinabung volcano erupts
Indonesia’s Mount Sinabung erupted on Wednesday, spewing a massive column of smoke and ash into the sky. The eruption of the volcano in North Sumatra province lasted about 12 minutes, a local geological agency said. “The volcanic material reached 4,500 meters into the air and lasted for quite a long …
Read More »Bali hit by ‘oxygen crisis’ as Indonesia’s COVID struggles rise
Bali, along with the main island of Java and 15 other regions, is under tight COVID-19 restrictions as cases and deaths surge in the archipelago nation. The Indonesian island of Bali is running out of oxygen for its COVID-19 patients as infections surge, the chief of its health agency has …
Read More »Indonesia urges no travel for Muslim festival, as regions seek more vaccines
Indonesia’s religious minister called on Friday for people to pray at home during next week’s Islamic holiday to avoid the risk of spreading the coronavirus, as some regions complained of a lack of supplies of COVID-19 vaccines. Fuelled by the spread of the more virulent Delta variant, Indonesia has repeatedly …
Read More »Indonesian security forces kill two militants with suspected links to ISIS
Indonesian security forces on Sunday killed two suspected militants with ties to ISIS who were believed to be connected to the killing of Christian farmers on Sulawesi island, the country’s military said. The two men, identified as Rukli and Ahmad Gazali, were fatally shot during a pre-dawn raid by a …
Read More »Indonesia short on oxygen, seeks help as virus cases soar
Just two months ago, Indonesia was coming to a gasping India’s aid with thousands of tanks of oxygen. Today, the Southeast Asia country is running out of oxygen as it endures a devastating wave of coronavirus cases and the government is seeking emergency supplies from other countries, including Singapore and …
Read More »Earthquake magnitude 5.6 strikes off Indonesia coast: EMSC
An earthquake of magnitude 5.6 struck near Minahasa, Sulawesi, off the coast of Indonesia on Friday, the European Mediterranean Seismological Center (EMSC) said. The quake was at a depth of 102 kilometers (63.4 miles), EMSC said.
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