{
  "id": 768350,
  "title": "Indonesia fires surge as haze hits Malaysia",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/13/indonesia-fires-surge-as-haze-hits-malaysia",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-13T13:10:46.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Jakarta Post",
    "slug": "the-jakarta-post",
    "url": "https://www.thejakartapost.com/world/2026/08/13/indonesia-fires-surge-as-haze-hits-malaysia.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "Indonesia is experiencing a significant increase in land and forest fires, with the fires releasing thick haze that has crossed the border into neighboring Malaysia. As a result, Malaysian authorities have closed over 100 schools due to the poor air quality. In July alone, approximately 182,000 hectares of land and forest were burned, nearly double the amount burned during the first half of the year. The total area burned this year has reached 285,000 hectares, equivalent to three times the size of Jakarta. The fires have primarily occurred in West Kalimantan, South Papua, East Kalimantan, and Central Kalimantan. Malaysian authorities have linked the pollution to a cross-border haze phenomenon originating from Kalimantan, with Kuching, the capital of Sarawak, ranking as the most polluted major city in the world due to the haze.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}