{
  "id": 8043574,
  "title": "Indonesian president calls for stricter sanctions against forest fire perpetrators",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/17/indonesian-president-calls-for-stricter-sanctions-against-forest-fire-8043574",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-17T14:31:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today-freemalays",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/highlight/2026/09/17/indonesian-president-calls-for-stricter-sanctions-against-forest-fire-perpetrators"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto has demanded tougher sanctions and regulations against individuals and corporations responsible for causing forest fires. The country is grappling with its most severe wildfires in 11 years, fueled by a super El Nino weather pattern that has dried out its forests and fields. Borneo and Sumatra have been particularly hard hit, with the haze from these fires leading to a rise in respiratory ailments and causing unhealthy air conditions in neighboring Singapore and Malaysia. During a cabinet meeting, Prabowo vowed zero tolerance for those found guilty of igniting wildfires, suggesting the House of Representatives could tighten laws to label the practice as \"ecological terrorism.\" He also ordered regional governments to end exemptions enabling smallholders to burn small parcels of land. Police have initiated 219 criminal probes into the fires, with 162 suspects identified so far, and are probing 95 companies for possible violations.",
  "summary": "Prabowo Subianto pushes for tougher laws and criminal investigations against companies violating fire safeguards.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 4,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "New Straits Times",
        "title": "Indonesian president calls for stricter sanctions against forest fire perpetrators",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/17/indonesian-president-calls-for-stricter-sanctions-against-forest-fire-8011975",
        "published": "2026-09-17T10:17:40.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Channel News Asia",
        "title": "Indonesian president calls for stricter sanctions against forest fire perpetrators",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/17/indonesian-president-calls-for-stricter-sanctions-against-forest-fire",
        "published": "2026-09-17T10:33:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "Indonesian president calls for stricter sanctions against forest fire perpetrators",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/17/indonesian-president-calls-for-stricter-sanctions-against-forest-fire-8047051",
        "published": "2026-09-17T14:31:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "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."
}