First the earthquake, hitting 7.5 on the richter scale, and then the tsunami with waves up to 6 metres high struck the Indonesian coast. The city of Palu on the island of Sulawesi was devastated; homes, businesses and hospitals were flattened. Hundreds have been confirmed dead with hundreds more reported missing or injured.
Thousands of terrified tourists are being taken off the island of Lombok by boat after an earthquake destroyed roads, bridges and damaged huge numbers of buildings. At least 98 people were killed and over 200 injured, with thousands more now homeless.
The capital of Indonesia, Jakarta was hit by a twin suicide attack that killed three police officers and injured 11 other people yesterday. In recent years Indonesia has seen a resurgence of such attacks by Islamic State sympathizers. These bombings mark the deadliest attack in a year in the country with the biggest Muslim population…
Jonathan Miller
The director of the world’s first and only Islamic boarding school for transgender women has confirmed that her madrassa has been forced to close following violent death threats.
Jonathan Miller
The transgender madrasa, tucked away down an alleyway behind a large mosque, was founded in 2008, after an earthquake in which many waria died. It offers an oasis of hope and dignity and operates koranic instruction in defiance of more conservative imported strands of Islam which have gained prominence in recent years.
As odious as the business of smuggling people across the Andaman Sea is, the traffickers and the “boat people” fleeing Burma and Bangladesh share a common cause.
The mystery of the ‘green boat’ was solved this morning when 400-odd occupants of a rickety fishing trawler turned up on the Indonesian coast in the early hours of this morning.
The execution of eight convicted drug traffickers by Malaysia is a demonstration of the underlying weakness of the country’s President.
The pending executions of nine Indonesian and foreign nationals on drug offences have strained the country’s relations with the international community and, in particular, Australia.
A new report links the development of the IS support network in Indonesia to the teachings and online “study sessions” organised by the banned British extremist group Al Muhajiroun.
After a British women received the death penalty for drug trafficking in Indonesia, a spokeswoman for Reprieve tells Channel 4 News she believes the defendant was coerced.
“The influence of the defence sector stretches far beyond those acknowledged military specialists and can be felt up and down the aisle of Mr Cameron’s jet.”
Gary Gibbon
Gary Gibbon on the latest leg of the PM’s trade tour to Indonesia and his plans to visit Burma.
WASHINGTON DC, USA – Hillary Clinton has landed in Jakarta and she says it’s no accident that it is one of the countries she is visiting on her very first trip abroad as US Sec of State. She specifically mentioned the fact that Pres Obama lived in Indonesia as a child. Which will increase speculation about…