Jakarta – The extremist group behind the Bali bombings was planning a fresh attack during Indonesia's independence day celebrations this week, police said Friday, citing militants arrested in a crackdown that netted dozens of suspects.

Tim Lindsey – Soeharto was the giant of modern Indonesia. For many Indonesians, his resignation in 1998 after 32 years in power is still a watershed moment. Much that has happened since has been a reaction against his rule, or an attempt to recreate it.

Ryan Dagur – A Society of the Divine Word (SVD) official has denied allegations of "conspiracy" and "false accusations" against Richard Daschbach, who was dismissed from the priesthood for sexual abuse committed in Timor-Leste.

Jakarta – Indonesia recorded 16,744 new Covid-19 cases on Saturday to take the country's total to 3,967,048. While the surge in newly cases has been slowing in recent weeks, the daily death toll continues to top 1,000.

A Polish man imprisoned in an Indonesian jail after visiting West Papua as a tourist is doing okay, according to his lawyer.

Jakub Skrzypski is serving a seven-year sentence for treason after being arrested in Papua in 2018 when he was found to have consorted with Papuan pro-independence activists.

Dio Suhenda and Ary Hermawan, Jakarta – A graffiti depicting President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo with his eyes covered and captioned "404: not found" in Batuceper, Tangerang, Banten, has become a symbol of political resistance in an increasingly illiberal Indonesia.

Faris Alfiq – The Indonesian Broadcast Commission has given a written warning to South Jakarta-based television channel, Trans TV, over its broadcast of the 2017 movie, Baywatch.

Show deemed to contain 'sensual' depictions of women

Did you know that humans and orangutans share about 96 percent of their DNA? Sadly, the apes' human-like characteristics and intelligence have contributed to their popularity as attractions in zoos and entertainment parks worldwide, which is, in turn, contributing to the species' rapidly declining population.

Jakarta – Indonesia has evacuated its 26 nationals including embassy staff from Kabul amid chaotic situation and political uncertainties after the Taliban return to power in Afghanistan following the departure of US military forces from the country, the foreign minister said on Friday.

Andita Rahma, Jakarta – Head of the National Police Criminal Investigation Unit Comm. General Agus Andrianto urged his personnel to avert from acting aggressively against street mural artists behind the wall painting resembling the President, which became viral as its eyes were covered by a statement '404: Not Found.'

Bali is hoping to fill the pandemic tourist void by becoming a quarantine destination for foreign travelers entering Indonesia, which an official said would benefit the local tourism industry.

Rohana Kuddus – Leapfrogging from a provincial furniture factory to become President of Indonesia, Joko Widodo was greeted by a Time magazine cover hailing him as 'A New Hope' for the world.

Caesar Akbar, Jakarta – The notorious Bank Bali graft case convict, Djoko Tjandra, received a two month remission from the Law and Human Rights Ministry on Indonesia's 76th independence day commemoration.

Ronna Nirmala, Jakarta – A pro-independence activist in Indonesia's Papua province will stand trial next week on charges of treason, says his lawyer.

A day earlier, one protester suffered gunshot wounds when police opened fire to disperse a rally demanding the activist Victor Yeimo's release, activists and a church group said.

An Indonesian COVID-19 conspiracy theorist attacked a judge in court after he was handed a sentence for his antics, as seen in a video that has circulated widely on social media.

Arnold Belau, Jayapura – The West Papua National Committee (KNPB) emphasized that Victor Yeimo's treatment should be prioritized before conducting a trial at the District Court.

All adult foreign nationals in Indonesia can now sign up to get their COVID jabs, with the Chamber of Commerce (Kadin) in Jakarta now accepting vaccine registrations for a date set next week.

Hengky Yeimo, Jayapura – The Jayapura District Court has started to examine the pretrial motion filed by the legal advisory team of Victor Yeimo, the international spokesperson for the West Papua National Committee (KNPB) and the Papuan People's Petition leader, who is named a suspect for allegedly provoking the anti-racism protests in 2019.

Indonesian security forces have used discriminatory excessive force and racially abused protesters peacefully opposing the renewal of the Papuan Special Autonomy Law, new research by Amnesty International has revealed.

Achmad Nasrudin Yahya, Jakarta – Amnesty International Indonesia is concerned that the public will become even more reluctant to express an opinion after police acted excessively by hunting down and arresting a person who painted a mural critical of the government.

Jakarta – Indonesian police have arrested 53 militants suspected of planning an attack on independence day this week, including alleged members of networks blamed for past attacks like the 2002 Bali bombings, the police said on Friday.

Pribadi Wicaksono (Contributor), Jakarta – The new daily cases of Covid-19 recorded in the Yogyakarta region is currently dipping on Wednesday after the special region logged another all time low of 700 daily cases. Active cases have also dropped considerably despite remaining above 20,000 cases.

Jakarta – Indonesia has received close to 1.6 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine produced by Pfizer on Thursday, the first batch of 50 million doses the country ordered from the American pharmaceutical giant to boost its vaccination effort.

Anne Suryani and Ahmad Bukhori Muslim – The Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in abrupt shifts in schooling practices across the world, including in Indonesia.

The United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) has called on Indonesian authorities to immediately and unconditionally release Papuan leader Victor Yeimo from custody.

Benny Wenda, interim president of the ULMWP, said Yeimo was a "clear victim" of Indonesian racism and his health was deteriorating under captivity.

A'an Suryana – A few weeks ago, Religious Affairs Minister Cholil Yaqut Qoumas became a target of public criticism and praise for congratulating followers of the minority Baha'i faith in Indonesia on celebrating their Nowruz holiday.

Nowruz is the first day of the Baha'i calendar year. It is one of nine holy days for Baha'i adherents.

Kate Lamb – The World Health Organization has urged Indonesia to take action to stem transmission of the coronavirus, following new data showing that mobility for retail and recreation has reached pre-pandemic levels in some key regions.

Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – State-owned pharmaceutical company Kimia Farma has slashed the price of polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, test for Covid-19 to Rp 495,000 (about $34) in all its clinics, following the Health Ministry's new circular on the price cap on PCR tests.

Markus Junianto Sihaloho, Jakarta – Former president Megawati Soekarnoputri said on Wednesday she was very concerned with people shouting insults at President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and calling him with abusive names.

The chairwoman of the ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) also said the name-calling strategy was so ugly she often cried.

Heru Andriyanto, Jakarta – The Indonesian government has increased its climate ambition to reach net zero emissions by 2060 at the latest, a decade faster than previously estimated, a senior official said on Wednesday.

Syailendra Persada, Maudey K. Setyakusuma, Jakarta – The Health Access Justice Coalition said there are still many families of Covid-19 patients who are forced to pay treatment costs of up to hundreds of millions of rupiah to the hospital.

Meanwhile, the Government has committed to take responsibility for the entire cost of Covid-19 patients.

Budiarti Utami Putri, Jakarta – PDIP chairperson Megawati Soekarnoputri in a written statement on Wednesday on the construction of protected temple area in Bali said she is heartbroken by the waves of criticism made against President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, which in her terms made the President lose weight.

Nadia Hamid – Indonesia is seeing a disturbing trend of authorities cracking down on political satire, and the fact that a member of the First Family is doing just that – to promote his business, no less – would hopefully help push back authorities' overzealous and repressive approach in shutting down criticism.

Jakarta – A 20-year-old man with the initials RS has been questioned by police after offering a T-shirt with a picture resembling the "Jokowi 404: Not Found" mural on social media several days ago.

East Java regional police spokesperson Senior Commissioner Gatot Repli Handoko said that the man – who owns a T-shirt printing business – was taken in for questioning.

To realize the government's wish to make swab tests accessible to more Indonesians, state pharmaceutical producer and distributor Kimia Farma has become among the first to slash test prices, including that of the PCR test, which has been reduced by almost half.

Robert Campion – Indonesia persists as the epicentre of COVID-19 infections in Asia and, in terms of deaths, of the world.

Timoteus Marten, Jayapura – Most of the customary land in Wembi Village, Manam District, Keerom Regency has been taken for oil palm plantations and other development projects.

Alif Satria – On May 28, Indonesia's Special Detachment 88 (Densus 88) arrested 12 members of Jema'ah Ansharut Daulah (JAD), the country's homegrown pro-Islamic State terrorist organization, in Merauke, Papua.

Heru Andriyanto, Jakarta – The daily tally of newly coronavirus cases continues to trend down in Indonesia with 15,768 new cases recorded on Wednesday, the lowest single-day count since June 23.

There have been a total of 3.9 million Covid-19 cases in the country of 272 million since the pandemic began, according to government data.

Fitria Chusna Farisa, Jakarta – Presidential Chief of Staff Moeldoko has asked the public not to criticise President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo in a reckless manner. After all, the president is a parent to the ordinary people and must be respected.

Egi Adyatama, Jakarta – Human rights groups that consist of the Indonesian Legal Aid Institute Foundation (YLBHI), Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH Jakarta), Yayasan Inklusif, and Paritas Institute have sent an open letter demanding President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to lift the ban against an Ahmadiyah Mosque in East Kalimantan.

By Max Lane

Executive summary

Wahyudi Soeriaatmadja, Jakarta – Foreigners and Indonesians who had Covid-19 shots overseas may soon get their records verified at clinics appointed by the health ministry so that they can be used in Indonesia.

The country requires long-distance domestic travellers – by air, sea and land – to have been vaccinated.

Hundreds of Australian nationals categorized as "vulnerable" left Bali this afternoon on a chartered flight organized by their government, officials have confirmed.

Ryan Dagur – A surge in Covid-19 cases triggered by the highly transmissible Delta variant has prompted the Timor-Leste government to close schools barely a month after easing restrictions.

Armindo Maia, the minister of education, youth and sports in the Catholic-majority country, announced the closure on Aug. 17.

The neighborhood of Pantai Indah Kapuk (PIK) in North Jakarta certainly exudes exclusivity due to its plethora of elite gated communities and well-planned urban development compared to other parts of the capital, and that has seen it become victim to unfounded accusations of being un-Indonesian, including during Independence Day yesterday.

Jakarta (Agencies) – The government on Monday extended its COVID-19 curbs though relaxed some measures in eight unspecified areas on the most populous islands of Java and Bali, as fewer infections have been reported in cities.

Rahel Narda Chaterine, Jakarta – The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) has criticised President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's state of the nation address to the People's Consultative Assembly's (MPR) annual session at the parliamentary complex on Monday August 16.

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – An area of rainforest nearly five times the size of London has been destroyed in the past two decades in Indonesian New Guinea, home to Asia Pacific's largest area of intact old-growth forest, a new study shows.