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Indonesia deploys 1,500 troops to battle Borneo wildfires

Fires have burned more than 200,000 hectares since January to July, and officials said six helicopters are set to arrive to expand waterbombing operations.

Reported · Written up by our desk · Emerging Markets

Indonesia is sending an additional 1,500 soldiers to Borneo to help tackle wildfires and smog, according to an official cited by SCMP Economy.

The government said fires between January and July have burned over 200,000 hectares of land, an area described as roughly three times the size of Jakarta, as dry conditions intensified under a powerful El Nino weather pattern.

President Prabowo Subianto ordered the expanded response during a visit to Borneo, with Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya saying three Indonesia National Armed Forces battalions, or around 1,500 personnel, would be brought in from outside Kalimantan starting on Saturday.

Wijaya also said six helicopters were scheduled to arrive to boost waterbombing operations, as the fires have spread across parts of the island Indonesia shares with Brunei and Malaysia.

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