Each year, as dry seasons deepen across the Indonesian archipelago, the ancient practice of burning land to clear it for cultivation sends smoke across borders and into the lungs of millions who had no hand in lighting the fires. In the late summer of 2026, that cycle reached its most severe expression in over a decade — El Niño parching the peatlands of Kalimantan and Sumatra until they burned not just on the surface but from within, casting a toxic haze across Malaysian Borneo, Singapore, and beyond. The crisis is a reminder that the atmosphere observes no national boundaries, and that the c
Indonesian wildfires choke Malaysian Borneo in worst haze crisis since 2015
Thousands hospitalized for respiratory infections; infants and asthma patients facing severe breathing difficulties; 200,000+ students displaced from schools; millions exposed to toxic smoke across the region.