Latest Indonesia News &amp; Current Events in English

Navy intercepts eight Indonesians, eight Bangladeshis arriving from Malaysia

The Indonesian Navy deployed personnel from multiple units and arrested 16 people who arrived illegally from Malaysia, but the two people, a speedboat skipper and a crew member, are still at large.

7 hours ago

Politics

Komnas HAM calls for police to probe food poisoning of more than 2,000 students

In separate cases across at least three major islands, more than 2,000 students and teachers fell ill after eating lunch issued by the government as part of a scheme to eradicate malnutrition launched by Prabowo last year.

9 hours ago

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Mount Sinabung spews ash and thick smoke early on Wednesday as seen from Karo, North Sumatra province.

Villagers ignore warning, still working in Sinabung’s danger zones

Residents said they are used to Mount Sinabung's eruptions and that Monday's eruption was not as big as the previous ones, hence their reluctance to evacuate.

9 hours ago

Armed officers stand guard on Tuesday near a pile of evidence during a news conference on a drug smuggling case at the Riau Islands Police headquarters in Batam, Riau Islands. A joint team from the National Narcotics Agency (BNN), the National Police Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim Polri), the Directorate General of Customs and Excise and the Riau Islands Police foiled an attempt to smuggle 800 kilograms of ketamine in Riau Islands waters by an international syndicate and named a Taiwanese national, identified by the initials WLC, a suspect accused of acting as the syndicate's controller.

Riau Islands guarantees investment despite large-scale drug smuggling

Riau Islands’ geographical conditions bordering neighboring countries have their own security challenges in the face of transnational crimes.

9 hours ago

Soldiers of the Indonesian Military's (TNI) 613th Infantry Battalion/Raja Alam chant during a homecoming ceremony at Semayang Port in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan, on July 22, 2026, after returning from a 12-month border security deployment along the Indonesia–Papua New Guinea frontier. A total of 450 personnel took part in the mission.

Why do Dayak recruits get a special military pathway?

Dayak communities' familiarity with forested terrain and local social dynamics could add operational value to the TNI, particularly in disaster preparedness and strengthening the military's presence in remote areas.

9 hours ago

Gelar Alam ethnic people carry bundles of rice stalks on Oct. 5, 2025, during a Seren Taun harvest festival procession in Sukabumi, West Java. The annual ceremony expresses gratitude for the year's harvest and seeks blessings for harmony with nature and ancestors.

Society premium

Civil groups seek better recognition for indigenous peoples in new bill

Civil society groups have presented their own draft bill on indigenous peoples to the House of Representatives, seeking legislation that would provide legal standing for the underserved and dispossessed.

17 hours ago

A Transjakarta bus leaves the Flavor Bliss shelter in Serpong, South Tangerang, Banten after the launching of Transjabodetabek bus service's new route between Alam Sutera township and Blok M, South Jakarta on April 24, 2025. The Jakarta administration worked with the Banten administration to open the Alam Sutera-Blok M route for Transjabodetabek in a bid to tackle the city's perennial traffic problem.

Jakarta premium

Jakarta transit grows, but Greater Jakarta stays disconnected

Jakarta’s public transportation system is seeing rising ridership across major modes this year, signaling growing demand for reliable mass transit, but experts say its potential remains largely untapped without better connections to the thousands of housing developments across Greater Jakarta.

18 hours ago

politics

Workers prepare nutritious meals under the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program at the Samarinda Police Nutrition Fulfillment Service Unit (SPPG) in Samarinda Ulu, East Kalimantan, on Nov. 4.

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More than 1,700 students and teachers sickened this week due to free meals

Lawmakers attend a House of Representatives plenary session on July 1, 2025, at the Senayan Legislative Complex in Central Jakarta.

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Calls mount for House transparency on asset forfeiture bill

In this screen grab, Hercules or Rosario de Marshal (central) of United Indonesian People’s Movement (GRIB) Jaya, speaks on Aug. 30 about several issues that emerged following chaotic demonstrations on Aug. 27 in Jakarta, after attending the regional working meeting of the GRIB Jaya West Java chapter, which also marked the first anniversary of the GRIB Jaya branch in Palabuhanratu, Sukabumi regency, West Java.

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Hercules’ return spotlights Prabowo’s informal power network

Riot police stand guard during a protest on Aug. 27 against government policies and demanding harsher penalties for corruption outside the Senayan Legislative Complex in Central Jakarta.

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Komnas HAM launches probe on Jakarta protest handling

Harry Tjan Silalahi, chair of the Board of Trustees of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) (left) and Jusuf Wanandi, vice chair of the Board of Trustees, deliver remarks on Tuesday, Sept.1, 2026, during a ceremony marking the 55th anniversary of CSIS Indonesia at the CSIS office in Central Jakarta.

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CSIS at 55: Defending space for policy debate

President Prabowo Subianto (right) closes the 35th Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) congress on Aug. 31as newly elected supreme leader Miftahul Akhyar (center) and newly elected chairman Abdul Hakim Mahfudz, also known as Gus Kikin, look on at Bahrul Ulum Islamic boarding school in Jombang, East Java.

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Gus Kikin vows calmer, more cohesive NU

Abdul Hakim Mahfudz, better known as Gus Kikin, (at podium) addresses the audience as the new chairman of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) on Aug. 31, 2026, the final day of the 35th NU National Congress (Muktamar) at Pondok Pesantren Bahrul Ulum Tambakberas, an Islamic boarding school in Jombang, East Java.

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NU clerics elect Gus Kikin as chair in first indirect polls

jakarta

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Jakarta transit grows, but Greater Jakarta stays disconnected

jakarta

Jakarta fines waste firms over illegal dumping

Jakarta has seen a surge of makeshift dumpsites as the gradual closure of Bantar Gebang, the capital’s largest landfill in neighboring Bekasi, has put further pressure on the city’s waste management system.

4 days ago

A sanitation worker walks through a parking lot at an apartment complex on Jl. Jend. Basuki Rachmat in East Jakarta, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026.

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Jakarta commuters unhappy with proposed parking fee hike

Feeling the heat: The main play structure at Embung Jagakarsa open green space in Jagakarsa, South Jakarta stands tall under direct sunlight with no shade above and around it, as seen on Aug. 10, 2026.

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Too hot for Jakarta kids to play outside

Visitors look at the National Monument (Monas) against a backdrop of air pollution, from the balcony of the National Library on Jl. Medan Merdeka Selatan on Sunday in Central Jakarta.

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Borderless pollution chokes Greater Jakarta as policy gaps persist

Students stage a protest in the city center on Aug. 18, a day after the 81st Independence Day in Jakarta, demanding the government eradicate corruption, collusion and nepotism, end wasteful programs, and lower the prices of basic necessities and fuel.

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Jakarta police plan to limit protest sites draws backlash

Skyscrapers in Jakarta are shrouded in haze on July 20 in East Jakarta. Jakarta's Air Quality Index (AQI) averaged between 120 and 168 in mid-July 2026, placing the city's air quality in the unhealthy category.

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Rainless days exacerbate air pollution in Jakarta

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Why do Dayak recruits get a special military pathway?

Armed officers stand guard near a pile of evidence during a news conference on a drug smuggling case at the Riau Islands Police headquarters in Batam, Riau Islands, on Sept. 1, 2026. A joint team from the National Narcotics Agency (BNN), the National Police Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim Polri), the Directorate General of Customs and Excise and the Riau Islands Police intercepted 800 kilograms of ketamine in Riau Islands waters, and named a Taiwanese national, identified by the initials BNC, as a suspect accused of acting as the syndicate's controller.

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Authorities intercept 800 kg of ketamine in Anambas waters

Wildfire flames and smoke rise above a forest on Aug. 10 in the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park near Mount Bromo in Probolinggo, East Java.

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Mount Semeru fires spreading as E. Java experiences extreme drought

Officials from various agencies look on as two men install a poster on Saturday warning residents and tourists not to approach Mount Sinabung in Karo regency, North Sumatra. The Mount Sinabung Monitoring Post has increased the volcano's status to Level II Waspada (advisory) following increased volcanic activities.

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Sinabung eruption halts flights at Kualanamu airport, thousands evacuated

Police officers douse a peatland fire on Aug. 25, 2026, in Tambang district, Kampar regency, Riau.

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Police monitor wildfire areas to prevent illegal land conversion

Central Java Governor Ahmad Luthfi (third left) places a Red-and-White flag marking the start of construction of the 134.2 Megawatt peak (MWp) floating solar farm at Gajah Mungkur Dam in Wonogiri, Central Java, on Aug. 25, 2026.

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Work starts on 134.3 MWp floating solar farm in C. Java

Officials from various agencies look on as two men install a poster on Aug. 29 warning residents and tourists not to approach Mount Sinabung in Karo regency, North Sumatra. The Mount Sinabung Monitoring Post has increased the volcano's status to Level II Waspada (advisory) following increased volcanic activities.

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Mt. Sinabung erupts after five years, status raised to ‘alert’

society

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Civil groups seek better recognition for indigenous peoples in new bill

Fire fighters with the Forest and Land Fire Control Brigade spray water to extinguish a fire on Aug. 12 in an area close to an oil palm plantation affected by wildfire in Pulang Pisau regency in Central Kalimantan.

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Unchecked businesses blamed for raging wildfires

Farmers joined under the Kawulo Alit Mandiri Farmers Group hold a banner that reads “Land for The People“ during a rally to protest against the criminalization of local farmers in Semarang, Central Java, on Aug. 3, 2026. The protesters demanded the Central Java Police stop the investigation into two local farmers, who were reported by a company for allegedly illegally taking control of a 16-hectare plot in Dayunan in Kendal regency.

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House moves on agrarian reform legislation

This undated handout photograph taken by the Orangutan Information Centre and released on June 10, 2026 shows the Tapanuli orangutans over a tree in the Batang Toru forest in Indonesia's North Sumatra. Climate change-fueled landslides wiped out nearly one in 10 remaining members of the world's rarest great ape species on Sumatra island, scientists said on June 10.

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As forests fragment, arboreal bridges offer orangutans a lifeline

About 200 graduates of master's and doctoral programs gather for their commencement ceremony on Thursday at the Lecture Hall of the Indonesian International Islamic University (UIII) in Depok, West Java.

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UIII marks first commencement ceremony for doctoral graduates

A firefighter sprays water to extinguish wildfire on Aug. 26 in Palangka Raya, Central Kalimantan. Around 7,600 hectares of land have been burned across the province between January and late July, according to data from the Forestry Ministry.

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