Forest and land fires have burned across parts of the Indonesian islands of Sumatra, Borneo and Papua for weeks, sending smoke across large areas of the country and into neighboring Malaysia and Singapore. Indonesia's long 2026 dry season, coupled with this year's El Nino, has worsened what has become an almost annual crisis, exposing millions of people to hazardous smoke containing harmful microscopic particles.
More than 170,000 cases of acute respiratory infection were recorded in haze-affected areas of Indonesia between August and mid-September, according to the country's Health Ministry, including more than 40,000 cases involving young children.