Nearly 2000 bodies have been recovered from Palu since an earthquake and tsunami struck the Indonesian city, an official said Monday, warning the number would rise with thousands still missing.

The death toll from the twin disaster on Sulawesi island that erased whole suburbs in Palu has reached 1,944, said local military spokesman M. Thohir.

"That number is expected to rise, because we have not received orders to halt the search for bodies," Thohir, who is also a member of the government's official Palu quake taskforce, told AFP on Monday.

Authorities have said as many as 5,000 are believed missing in two hard-hit areas since the September 28 disaster -- indicating far more may have perished than the current toll.

Hopes of finding anyone alive have faded and the search for survivors amid the wreckage has turned to gathering and accounting for the dead.

The disaster agency said the official search for the unaccounted would continue until October 11 at which point they would be listed as missing, presumed dead.

The government has said it will declare those communities flattened in Palu as mass graves and leave them untouched.

Gopal, whose aunt and uncle are missing, picked through wreckage Monday knowing just days were left to find his loved ones.

"Even if they (search teams) stop looking, we will still try to find them ourselves," the 40-year-old said in Balaroa, one of the hardest hit neighbourhoods.

"When we can no longer do it ourselves, we leave it to Allah," Gopal, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, added.

Excavators and rescuers combed Balaroa on Monday, where a massive government housing complex was all but swallowed up by the disaster.

Rescuers have struggled to extract decomposing bodies from the tangled mess left behind.

Officials say as many as 5,000 people were feared buried at Balaroa and Petobo, another decimated community.

Petobo, a cluster of villages, was subsumed when vibrations from the 7.5-magnitude quake turned soil to quicksand -- a process known as liquefaction.

Relief efforts have escalated to assist 200,000 people in desperate need. Food and clean water remain in short supply, and many are dependent entirely on handouts to survive.

Helicopters have been running supply drops to more isolated communities outside Palu, where the full extent of the damage is still not entirely clear.

The Red Cross said Monday it had treated more than 1,800 people at medical clinics and administered first aid to a similar number in the immediate disaster zone.&nbsp;

Indonesia sits along the world's most tectonically active region, and its 260 million people are vulnerable to earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions.

Nearly 2000 bodies have been recovered from Palu since an earthquake and tsunami struck the Indonesian city, an official said Monday, warning the number would rise with thousands still missing.

Nearly 2000 bodies have been recovered from Palu since an earthquake and tsunami struck the Indonesian city, an official said Monday, warning the number would rise with thousands still missing. The death toll from the twin disaster on Sulawesi island that erased whole suburbs in Palu has reached 1,944, said local military spokesman M. Thohir. "That number is expected to rise, because we have not received orders to halt the search for bodies," Thohir, who is also a member of the government's official Palu quake taskforce, told AFP on Monday. Authorities have said as many as 5,000 are believed missing in two hard-hit areas since the September 28 disaster -- indicating far more may have perished than the current toll. Hopes of finding anyone alive have faded and the search for survivors amid the wreckage has turned to gathering and accounting for the dead. The disaster agency said the official search for the unaccounted would continue until October 11 at which point they would be listed as missing, presumed dead. The government has said it will declare those communities flattened in Palu as mass graves and leave them untouched. Gopal, whose aunt and uncle are missing, picked through wreckage Monday knowing just days were left to find his loved ones. "Even if they (search teams) stop looking, we will still try to find them ourselves," the 40-year-old said in Balaroa, one of the hardest hit neighbourhoods. "When we can no longer do it ourselves, we leave it to Allah," Gopal, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, added. Excavators and rescuers combed Balaroa on Monday, where a massive government housing complex was all but swallowed up by the disaster. Rescuers have struggled to extract decomposing bodies from the tangled mess left behind. Officials say as many as 5,000 people were feared buried at Balaroa and Petobo, another decimated community. Petobo, a cluster of villages, was subsumed when vibrations from the 7.5-magnitude quake turned soil to quicksand -- a process known as liquefaction. Relief efforts have escalated to assist 200,000 people in desperate need. Food and clean water remain in short supply, and many are dependent entirely on handouts to survive. Helicopters have been running supply drops to more isolated communities outside Palu, where the full extent of the damage is still not entirely clear. The Red Cross said Monday it had treated more than 1,800 people at medical clinics and administered first aid to a similar number in the immediate disaster zone. Indonesia sits along the world's most tectonically active region, and its 260 million people are vulnerable to earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions.

More bodies found as death toll from Indonesia quake nears 2,000

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/us-china-to-hold-key-talks-to-reduce-trade-military-tensions-170026">US, China to hold key talks to reduce trade, military tensions</a>

China and the United States are set to hold high-level talks here on Monday to reduce the spiralling trade and military tensions between the world's two largest economies.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/kim-pompeo-agree-to-2nd-us-north-korea-summit-at-earliest-date-170028">Kim, Pompeo agree to second US-North Korea summit 'at earliest date'</a>

Kim Jong Un has agreed to hold a second summit with US President Donald Trump as soon as possible, Seoul said Sunday, after Washington's top diplomat held "productive" talks on denuclearisation with the North Korean leader in Pyongyang.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/china-pumps-109-billion-into-economy-as-trade-war-bites-on-growth-170027">China pumps $109 billion into </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/china-pumps-109-billion-into-economy-as-trade-war-bites-on-growth-170027">economy</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/china-pumps-109-billion-into-economy-as-trade-war-bites-on-growth-170027"> as trade war bites on growth</a>

China's central bank said on Sunday that it was cutting the reserve requirement ratios (RRRs) by one per cent from October 15 which will inject a net $ 109.2 billion in cash into the banking system, amid a deepening trade war with the US that has increased pressure on growth in the world's second-largest economy.&nbsp;

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/5000-believed-missing-in-two-hard-hit-indonesian-quake-zones-1763-dead-169999">5,000 believed missing in two hard-hit Indonesian quake zones; 1,763 dead</a>

As many as 5,000 people are believed missing from two hard-hit areas in Palu more than a week after the Indonesian city was devastated by an earthquake and tsunami, an official said Sunday.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/business-economy/ril-worst-affected-as-top-10-most-valued-companies-lose-rs-255995-crore-in-m-cap-169998">Mukesh Ambani's RIL worst affected as top 10 companies lose Rs 2.5 lakh cr in market cap</a>

A weak broader market pulled down the combined market valuation of the top 10 most valued Indian companies by a whopping Rs 2,55,995 crore last week, with RIL taking the steepest hit.

US, China to hold key talks to reduce trade, military tensions China and the United States are set to hold high-level talks here on Monday to reduce the spiralling trade and military tensions between the world's two largest economies.

US, China to hold key talks to reduce trade, military tensions China and the United States are set to hold high-level talks here on Monday to reduce the spiralling trade and military tensions between the world's two largest economies. Kim, Pompeo agree to second US-North Korea summit 'at earliest date' Kim Jong Un has agreed to hold a second summit with US President Donald Trump as soon as possible, Seoul said Sunday, after Washington's top diplomat held "productive" talks on denuclearisation with the North Korean leader in Pyongyang. China pumps $109 billion into economy as trade war bites on growth China's central bank said on Sunday that it was cutting the reserve requirement ratios (RRRs) by one per cent from October 15 which will inject a net $ 109.2 billion in cash into the banking system, amid a deepening trade war with the US that has increased pressure on growth in the world's second-largest economy. 5,000 believed missing in two hard-hit Indonesian quake zones; 1,763 dead As many as 5,000 people are believed missing from two hard-hit areas in Palu more than a week after the Indonesian city was devastated by an earthquake and tsunami, an official said Sunday. Mukesh Ambani's RIL worst affected as top 10 companies lose Rs 2.5 lakh cr in market cap A weak broader market pulled down the combined market valuation of the top 10 most valued Indian companies by a whopping Rs 2,55,995 crore last week, with RIL taking the steepest hit.

News brief: Big stories of the day

Indonesian rescue workers will stop searching for the bodies of victims of an earthquake and tsunami on the island of Sulawesi on Thursday, the national disaster mitigation agency said on Sunday.

The announcement came after the official death toll from the 7.5 magnitude quake and a tsunami it triggered on Sept. 28 rose to 1,763.

Bodies are still being recovered, especially from the ruins of buildings in the small city of Palu and from neighbourhoods hit by liquefaction, a phenomenon that turns the ground into a roiling quagmire, in the south of city.

"Evacuation stops on October 11," the national disaster mitigation agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho told a news briefing, using an Indonesian word that applies to the search and retrieval of both living and dead people.

"Victims who have not been found are declared missing," he said. Some limited searching might still be undertaken but large-scale searches with many personnel and heavy equipment would cease, he said.

Many hundreds of people are still buried in mud and debris in the south of Palu, where neighbourhoods were obliterated by liquefaction and desperate relatives have been seeking help to find loved ones.

Dozens of rescuers removed 34 bodies from one place on Saturday.

Nugroho said the debris would be removed from those places and they would be turned into public spaces like parks and sports venues. Surveys would be carried out and people living in areas vulnerable to liquefaction would be moved.

"We don't want the community to be relocated to such dangerous places," he said.

Most of the dead have been found in Palu, the region's main urban centre.

Figures for more remote areas, some just re-connected to the outside world by road, are trickling in. The heaviest casualties appear to have been in Palu.

PRAYERS

One grieving father appeared resigned to the fact the search for victims will end within days.

"What’s the point anyway? At this stage they are not even recognisable," said Ondre, 38, who makes toys for a living.

His wife and two daughters were swept away in the tsunami that hit Palu's seafront shortly after the earthquake.

He found the bodies of his wife and older daughter but is still looking for his younger daughter, aged two.

Speaking by a mass grave atop a hill overlooking Palu's bay as the sun began to set, Ondre said he had come to offer prayers for his little daughter.

"I don’t want her to feel like her father never tried to find her. My soul wouldn’t rest," he said.

Sulawesi is one of Indonesia's five main islands and, like the others, is exposed to frequent earthquakes and tsunamis.

In 2004, a quake off Sumatra island triggered a tsunami across the Indian Ocean that killed 226,000 people in 13 countries, including more than 120,000 in Indonesia.

Earlier on Sunday, dozens of Christians gathered outside ruined churches for open-air services to give thanks for their survival and to mourn members of their congregation killed in the disaster.

Indonesia has the world's biggest Muslim population but there are Christian communities throughout the archipelago, including in Palu.

"We are so relieved to be alive but sad because so many of our congregation died," said Dewi Febriani, a 26-year-old economics student, after a service in a tent set up outside the Toraja Church in Jono Oge village, just south of Palu.

Jono Oge was particularly hard hit by liquefaction.

Dozens of teenagers at a nearby church and Bible camp were killed. Many of their bodies lie buried in the mud.

A big aid operation is gearing up to help hard-hit communities where some 70,000 people have been displaced.

Indonesian rescue workers will stop searching for the bodies of victims of an earthquake and tsunami on the island of Sulawesi on Thursday, the national disaster mitigation agency said on Sunday.

Indonesian rescue workers will stop searching for the bodies of victims of an earthquake and tsunami on the island of Sulawesi on Thursday, the national disaster mitigation agency said on Sunday. The announcement came after the official death toll from the 7.5 magnitude quake and a tsunami it triggered on Sept. 28 rose to 1,763. Bodies are still being recovered, especially from the ruins of buildings in the small city of Palu and from neighbourhoods hit by liquefaction, a phenomenon that turns the ground into a roiling quagmire, in the south of city. "Evacuation stops on October 11," the national disaster mitigation agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho told a news briefing, using an Indonesian word that applies to the search and retrieval of both living and dead people. "Victims who have not been found are declared missing," he said. Some limited searching might still be undertaken but large-scale searches with many personnel and heavy equipment would cease, he said. Many hundreds of people are still buried in mud and debris in the south of Palu, where neighbourhoods were obliterated by liquefaction and desperate relatives have been seeking help to find loved ones. Dozens of rescuers removed 34 bodies from one place on Saturday. Nugroho said the debris would be removed from those places and they would be turned into public spaces like parks and sports venues. Surveys would be carried out and people living in areas vulnerable to liquefaction would be moved. "We don't want the community to be relocated to such dangerous places," he said. Most of the dead have been found in Palu, the region's main urban centre. Figures for more remote areas, some just re-connected to the outside world by road, are trickling in. The heaviest casualties appear to have been in Palu. PRAYERS One grieving father appeared resigned to the fact the search for victims will end within days. "What’s the point anyway? At this stage they are not even recognisable," said Ondre, 38, who makes toys for a living. His wife and two daughters were swept away in the tsunami that hit Palu's seafront shortly after the earthquake. He found the bodies of his wife and older daughter but is still looking for his younger daughter, aged two. Speaking by a mass grave atop a hill overlooking Palu's bay as the sun began to set, Ondre said he had come to offer prayers for his little daughter. "I don’t want her to feel like her father never tried to find her. My soul wouldn’t rest," he said. Sulawesi is one of Indonesia's five main islands and, like the others, is exposed to frequent earthquakes and tsunamis. In 2004, a quake off Sumatra island triggered a tsunami across the Indian Ocean that killed 226,000 people in 13 countries, including more than 120,000 in Indonesia. Earlier on Sunday, dozens of Christians gathered outside ruined churches for open-air services to give thanks for their survival and to mourn members of their congregation killed in the disaster. Indonesia has the world's biggest Muslim population but there are Christian communities throughout the archipelago, including in Palu. "We are so relieved to be alive but sad because so many of our congregation died," said Dewi Febriani, a 26-year-old economics student, after a service in a tent set up outside the Toraja Church in Jono Oge village, just south of Palu. Jono Oge was particularly hard hit by liquefaction. Dozens of teenagers at a nearby church and Bible camp were killed. Many of their bodies lie buried in the mud. A big aid operation is gearing up to help hard-hit communities where some 70,000 people have been displaced.

Indonesia says to end search for quake victims on Thursday

A week after a major earthquake brought devastation to Indonesia's Sulawesi island, Ichsan Hidayat told how the bodies of his sister and her 43-day-old daughter were found under a sea of mud and debris, the mother clutching her baby to her chest.

Hidayat was not on Sulawesi last Friday when the 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck, triggering a phenomenon called soil liquefaction, which turns the ground into a roiling quagmire.

The neighbourhood of Petobo, in the south of the city of Palu, where his sister, Husnul Hidayat, lived with her daughter, Aisah, was wiped out.

Rescuers who recovered the bodies told Hidayat his sister was found holding Aisah close.

"Today, I prayed that they are in a better place. They deserve better,” Hidayat told Reuters as he left Friday prayers at a mosque in the centre of Palu, 1,500 km (930 miles) northeast of Indonesia's capital, Jakarta.

Worshippers knelt to pray on red carpets put down outside the mosque as the building is unsafe due to quake damage.

Indonesia has the world's biggest Muslim population but also pockets of Christians, including on Sulawesi, and other religions.

The official death toll from the quake and the tsunami it triggered stands at 1,571, but it will certainly rise.

Most of the dead have been found in Palu. Figures for more remote areas, some still cut off by destroyed roads and landslides, are only trickling in, if at all.

No one knows how many people were dragged to their deaths when the ground under Petobo and nearby areas south of Palu, dissolved so violently.

The national disaster agency says 1,700 homes in one neighbourhood alone were swallowed up and hundreds of people killed.

Hasnah, 44, also a resident of Petobo, has trouble remembering all of the relatives she's trying to find in the tangled expanse of mud and debris.

"More than half of my family are gone," Hasnah said as she sobbed. "I can’t even count how many. Two of my children are gone, my cousins, my sister, my brother in law and their children. All gone."

Homes were sucked into the earth, torn apart and shunted hundreds of metres by the churning mud.

"The earth was like a blender, blending everything in its way," said Hasnah, who like many Indonesians goes by only one name.

'THEY LIED'

Hasnah said she has enough food and water but she's furious that a search and rescue operation in her area only began on Thursday.

"They said they would come with the heavy machines but they didn’t," she said. "They lied."

Sick of waiting for help, villagers themselves have been searching, Hasnah said.

"We’ve marked the possible bodies with sticks. You can see a foot sticking out, but there's no one here to dig them out."

Rescue workers retrieved several bodies later on Friday.

As the sun set, a mass prayer ceremony was held by Palu's seafront that was scoured by the tsunami.

"We pray for the ones who have died and for those yet to be found," the imam said. "Allahu Akbar," or God is Greatest, responded the congregation.

The first signs of recovery are evident in Palu. Electricity has been restored and some shops and banks have reopened and aid and fuel are arriving.

Vice President Jusuf Kalla, visiting the disaster zone, said recovery would be completed in two years, beginning with a two-month emergency response phase when everyone who lost their house would get temporary shelter.

Doctors have been flocking to help from other parts of Indonesia.

The Budi Agung hospital has 134 beds with about 20 more set up in a tent outside, all full. A hospital ship is also due to arrive.

Doctors said many patients have been at high risk of infection because they were buried in mud.

Rescue workers are pushing into outlying districts cut off for days. Villagers rushed a Red Cross helicopter that landed at Sirenja village near the quake's epicentre, about 75 km (45 miles) north of Palu, to drop off supplies.

Some quake damage was evident but the coast did not appear to have been battered by the tsunami, a Reuters photographer said.

Sulawesi is one of the archipelago nation's five main islands, and like the others, is exposed to frequent earthquakes and tsunami.

In 2004, a quake off Sumatra island triggered a tsunami across the Indian Ocean that killed 226,000 people in 13 countries, including more than 120,000 in Indonesia.

A week after a major earthquake brought devastation to Indonesia's Sulawesi island, Ichsan Hidayat told how the bodies of his sister and her 43-day-old daughter were found under a sea of mud and debris, the mother clutching her baby to her chest.

A week after a major earthquake brought devastation to Indonesia's Sulawesi island, Ichsan Hidayat told how the bodies of his sister and her 43-day-old daughter were found under a sea of mud and debris, the mother clutching her baby to her chest. Hidayat was not on Sulawesi last Friday when the 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck, triggering a phenomenon called soil liquefaction, which turns the ground into a roiling quagmire. The neighbourhood of Petobo, in the south of the city of Palu, where his sister, Husnul Hidayat, lived with her daughter, Aisah, was wiped out. Rescuers who recovered the bodies told Hidayat his sister was found holding Aisah close. "Today, I prayed that they are in a better place. They deserve better,” Hidayat told Reuters as he left Friday prayers at a mosque in the centre of Palu, 1,500 km (930 miles) northeast of Indonesia's capital, Jakarta. Worshippers knelt to pray on red carpets put down outside the mosque as the building is unsafe due to quake damage. Indonesia has the world's biggest Muslim population but also pockets of Christians, including on Sulawesi, and other religions. The official death toll from the quake and the tsunami it triggered stands at 1,571, but it will certainly rise. Most of the dead have been found in Palu. Figures for more remote areas, some still cut off by destroyed roads and landslides, are only trickling in, if at all. No one knows how many people were dragged to their deaths when the ground under Petobo and nearby areas south of Palu, dissolved so violently. The national disaster agency says 1,700 homes in one neighbourhood alone were swallowed up and hundreds of people killed. Hasnah, 44, also a resident of Petobo, has trouble remembering all of the relatives she's trying to find in the tangled expanse of mud and debris. "More than half of my family are gone," Hasnah said as she sobbed. "I can’t even count how many. Two of my children are gone, my cousins, my sister, my brother in law and their children. All gone." Homes were sucked into the earth, torn apart and shunted hundreds of metres by the churning mud. "The earth was like a blender, blending everything in its way," said Hasnah, who like many Indonesians goes by only one name. 'THEY LIED' Hasnah said she has enough food and water but she's furious that a search and rescue operation in her area only began on Thursday. "They said they would come with the heavy machines but they didn’t," she said. "They lied." Sick of waiting for help, villagers themselves have been searching, Hasnah said. "We’ve marked the possible bodies with sticks. You can see a foot sticking out, but there's no one here to dig them out." Rescue workers retrieved several bodies later on Friday. As the sun set, a mass prayer ceremony was held by Palu's seafront that was scoured by the tsunami. "We pray for the ones who have died and for those yet to be found," the imam said. "Allahu Akbar," or God is Greatest, responded the congregation. The first signs of recovery are evident in Palu. Electricity has been restored and some shops and banks have reopened and aid and fuel are arriving. Vice President Jusuf Kalla, visiting the disaster zone, said recovery would be completed in two years, beginning with a two-month emergency response phase when everyone who lost their house would get temporary shelter. Doctors have been flocking to help from other parts of Indonesia. The Budi Agung hospital has 134 beds with about 20 more set up in a tent outside, all full. A hospital ship is also due to arrive. Doctors said many patients have been at high risk of infection because they were buried in mud. Rescue workers are pushing into outlying districts cut off for days. Villagers rushed a Red Cross helicopter that landed at Sirenja village near the quake's epicentre, about 75 km (45 miles) north of Palu, to drop off supplies. Some quake damage was evident but the coast did not appear to have been battered by the tsunami, a Reuters photographer said. Sulawesi is one of the archipelago nation's five main islands, and like the others, is exposed to frequent earthquakes and tsunami. In 2004, a quake off Sumatra island triggered a tsunami across the Indian Ocean that killed 226,000 people in 13 countries, including more than 120,000 in Indonesia.

Bodies of mother clutching baby found as Indonesia quake toll rises above 1,500

Indonesia has cracked down on "fake news" about its deadly quake-tsunami disaster, with police arresting nine people for spreading hoaxes in a bid to prevent further panic spreading among survivors.

False reports claiming that another huge quake was about to hit Sulawesi island -- which is already reeling from last Friday's double tragedy that has killed over 1,400 people -- have circulated online in recent days.&nbsp;

Another Facebook post used a photo of the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami aftermath to depict what it claimed was a scene from the seaside city of Palu.

A caption read: "Those who share this post will be spared from calamities".

Setyo Wasisto, Indonesia's national police spokesman, told Kompas TV on Thursday that nine people had been arrested on suspicion of spreading false news. Most of the contents were posted to Facebook, he added.

Indonesia has a long-standing problem with internet hoaxes, and fake news is never far behind after a disaster.

The country has one of the world's biggest online audiences, with a population of 260 million people and one of the world's highest social media usage rates.

"If anyone predicts another massive earthquake or tsunami, it's fake news," said Daryono, head of the geophysics agency's quake and tsunami information centre, who like many Indonesians goes by one name.

"If you spread this kind of information, you're just going to create more suffering and confusion for people."

Teams from Indonesia's communications ministry and disaster agency have taken to Twitter and other social media to debunk fake claims in recent days.

Communication and Information Ministry spokesman Ferdinandus Setu told AFP a 70-strong team was working 24 hours a day on fake reports about disaster, including a claim that Palu's mayor was among the dead.

"We've confirmed that the mayor is still alive and healthy," Setu said.

Rampant hoaxes&nbsp;

Once the team debunks the contents, the ministry announces the findings through regular press releases and also gives the findings to the police.

The disaster agency's efforts are being fronted by spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, who has won admirers for battling to update journalists around the clock despite suffering from terminal cancer.

"I apologise if I cannot respond to every question from journalists, my friends. If I was healthy, I would surely do it no matter what," Nugroho told reporters this week, even as he continues to hold daily press briefings, take journalists' calls and communicate on social media.

Hoaxes were also rampant during a quake disaster on the island of Lombok, next to Bali, this summer.

Indonesian police have clamped down on fake news and online hate speech more broadly in recent months, ahead of next year's presidential election.&nbsp;

President Joko Widodo -- who has battled false internet claims that he is a communist -- inaugurated a new cyber security agency in January.

The following month, the communications ministry announced it was deploying new software to identify fake news websites.

Members of the Muslim Cyber Army (MCA) -- a cluster of loosely connected groups accused of using Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to attack the government and stoke religious extremism -- have been rounded up.

Some 130 million Indonesians -- about half the population -- spend an average of nearly three-and-a-half hours a day on social media, one of the highest rates in the world, according to data from London-based creative agency We Are Social and social media management platform Hootsuite.

The country was also late to introduce digital literacy programmes, experts say.

Indonesia has cracked down on "fake news" about its deadly quake-tsunami disaster, with police arresting nine people for spreading hoaxes in a bid to prevent further panic spreading among survivors.

Indonesia has cracked down on "fake news" about its deadly quake-tsunami disaster, with police arresting nine people for spreading hoaxes in a bid to prevent further panic spreading among survivors. False reports claiming that another huge quake was about to hit Sulawesi island -- which is already reeling from last Friday's double tragedy that has killed over 1,400 people -- have circulated online in recent days. Another Facebook post used a photo of the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami aftermath to depict what it claimed was a scene from the seaside city of Palu. A caption read: "Those who share this post will be spared from calamities". Setyo Wasisto, Indonesia's national police spokesman, told Kompas TV on Thursday that nine people had been arrested on suspicion of spreading false news. Most of the contents were posted to Facebook, he added. Indonesia has a long-standing problem with internet hoaxes, and fake news is never far behind after a disaster. The country has one of the world's biggest online audiences, with a population of 260 million people and one of the world's highest social media usage rates. "If anyone predicts another massive earthquake or tsunami, it's fake news," said Daryono, head of the geophysics agency's quake and tsunami information centre, who like many Indonesians goes by one name. "If you spread this kind of information, you're just going to create more suffering and confusion for people." Teams from Indonesia's communications ministry and disaster agency have taken to Twitter and other social media to debunk fake claims in recent days. Communication and Information Ministry spokesman Ferdinandus Setu told AFP a 70-strong team was working 24 hours a day on fake reports about disaster, including a claim that Palu's mayor was among the dead. "We've confirmed that the mayor is still alive and healthy," Setu said. Rampant hoaxes Once the team debunks the contents, the ministry announces the findings through regular press releases and also gives the findings to the police. The disaster agency's efforts are being fronted by spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, who has won admirers for battling to update journalists around the clock despite suffering from terminal cancer. "I apologise if I cannot respond to every question from journalists, my friends. If I was healthy, I would surely do it no matter what," Nugroho told reporters this week, even as he continues to hold daily press briefings, take journalists' calls and communicate on social media. Hoaxes were also rampant during a quake disaster on the island of Lombok, next to Bali, this summer. Indonesian police have clamped down on fake news and online hate speech more broadly in recent months, ahead of next year's presidential election. President Joko Widodo -- who has battled false internet claims that he is a communist -- inaugurated a new cyber security agency in January. The following month, the communications ministry announced it was deploying new software to identify fake news websites. Members of the Muslim Cyber Army (MCA) -- a cluster of loosely connected groups accused of using Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to attack the government and stoke religious extremism -- have been rounded up. Some 130 million Indonesians -- about half the population -- spend an average of nearly three-and-a-half hours a day on social media, one of the highest rates in the world, according to data from London-based creative agency We Are Social and social media management platform Hootsuite. The country was also late to introduce digital literacy programmes, experts say.

Indonesia battles fake news after quake-tsunami disaster

The death toll from the powerful earthquake and tsunami in Indonesia has crossed 1,300 people, news reports citing the&nbsp;country's disaster management agency officials said Wednesday.

The reports said&nbsp;the death toll jumped to at least 1,347 from the previously confirmed figure of 1,234.

Indonesia's Palu island was hit by a strong 7.5-magnitude earthquake on Friday and subsequent tsunami waves which destroyed roads, triggered landslides and downed bridges on the island and in surrounding areas.

The quake brought down hotels, shopping malls and countless houses in Palu, while tsunami waves as high as six metres (20 feet) scoured its beachfront shortly afterwards.

More than 65,000 homes were also damaged and more than 60,000 people have been displaced and are in need of emergency help.

Meanwhile, the United Nations on Tuesday said that almost 200,000 people are in need of urgent help, among them are tens of thousands of children.

Survivors are battling thirst and hunger, with food and clean water in short supply, and local hospitals are overwhelmed by the number of injured.

As rescue efforts were being hampered due to the lack of personnel and heavy machinery Indonesian President Joko Widodo has ordered the national search and rescue agency to send more police and soldiers into the affected districts as rescuers are struggling to reach some areas after some remote areas have been got cut off due to severed transport links.

The government has also said it would accept offers of international aid, after shunning outside help earlier this year when an earthquake struck Lombok island.

According to a report by AFP, along the road to Donggala -- a large town close to the epicentre of the quake -- there were more scenes of destruction. The town itself appeared relatively unscathed, but in the worst affected areas, it was difficult to find a single vertical surface.

Indonesia, one of the most disaster-prone nations on earth, straddles the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire", where tectonic plates collide and many of the world's volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur.

On Tuesday as well, Indonesia was shit by another two mild quakes which struck the island of Sumba, hundreds of kilometres from Palu.

However, so far no damage or casualty has been reported from Sumba island.

(with inputs from news agencies)

The death toll from the powerful earthquake and tsunami in Indonesia has crossed 1,300 people, news reports citing the country's disaster management agency officials said Wednesday.

The death toll from the powerful earthquake and tsunami in Indonesia has crossed 1,300 people, news reports citing the country's disaster management agency officials said Wednesday. The reports said the death toll jumped to at least 1,347 from the previously confirmed figure of 1,234. Indonesia's Palu island was hit by a strong 7.5-magnitude earthquake on Friday and subsequent tsunami waves which destroyed roads, triggered landslides and downed bridges on the island and in surrounding areas. The quake brought down hotels, shopping malls and countless houses in Palu, while tsunami waves as high as six metres (20 feet) scoured its beachfront shortly afterwards. More than 65,000 homes were also damaged and more than 60,000 people have been displaced and are in need of emergency help. Meanwhile, the United Nations on Tuesday said that almost 200,000 people are in need of urgent help, among them are tens of thousands of children. Survivors are battling thirst and hunger, with food and clean water in short supply, and local hospitals are overwhelmed by the number of injured. As rescue efforts were being hampered due to the lack of personnel and heavy machinery Indonesian President Joko Widodo has ordered the national search and rescue agency to send more police and soldiers into the affected districts as rescuers are struggling to reach some areas after some remote areas have been got cut off due to severed transport links. The government has also said it would accept offers of international aid, after shunning outside help earlier this year when an earthquake struck Lombok island. According to a report by AFP, along the road to Donggala -- a large town close to the epicentre of the quake -- there were more scenes of destruction. The town itself appeared relatively unscathed, but in the worst affected areas, it was difficult to find a single vertical surface. Indonesia, one of the most disaster-prone nations on earth, straddles the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire", where tectonic plates collide and many of the world's volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur. On Tuesday as well, Indonesia was shit by another two mild quakes which struck the island of Sumba, hundreds of kilometres from Palu. However, so far no damage or casualty has been reported from Sumba island. (with inputs from news agencies)

Death toll in Indonesia earthquake, tsunami crosses 1,300: Reports

Some 1,600 survivors from Indonesia's earthquake and tsunami were whisked to safety by a Navy warship Wednesday, providing much-needed relief for a lucky few after five days marked by shortages and grief.

The KRI Makassar docked at the devastated city of Palu in central Sulawesi to take families, the elderly and the infirm to the relative safety of Makassar in the island's south.

The ship came loaded with humanitarian aid "which will be distributed in Central Sulawesi, especially Palu and Donggala" said Palu Navy base commander Tommy Herlambang.

In anticipation of the return voyage, old women on wheelchairs were lifted aboard the vessel as military doctors examined patients and parents distracted children with lollipops and toys.

In the cargo bay, clusters of families sat around on blankets as if picnicking in the park.

"We want to find safety, because we heard the mud has started to move again," said Rusella, one of the evacuees.

Friday's quake reduced buildings to rubble around Palu and left over 1,400 people dead.&nbsp;

A further 200,000 people in the vicinity of the quake need urgent assistance, according to the UN's humanitarian affairs office.

Some 1,600 survivors from Indonesia's earthquake and tsunami were whisked to safety by a Navy warship Wednesday, providing much-needed relief for a lucky few after five days marked by shortages and grief.

Some 1,600 survivors from Indonesia's earthquake and tsunami were whisked to safety by a Navy warship Wednesday, providing much-needed relief for a lucky few after five days marked by shortages and grief. The KRI Makassar docked at the devastated city of Palu in central Sulawesi to take families, the elderly and the infirm to the relative safety of Makassar in the island's south. The ship came loaded with humanitarian aid "which will be distributed in Central Sulawesi, especially Palu and Donggala" said Palu Navy base commander Tommy Herlambang. In anticipation of the return voyage, old women on wheelchairs were lifted aboard the vessel as military doctors examined patients and parents distracted children with lollipops and toys. In the cargo bay, clusters of families sat around on blankets as if picnicking in the park. "We want to find safety, because we heard the mud has started to move again," said Rusella, one of the evacuees. Friday's quake reduced buildings to rubble around Palu and left over 1,400 people dead. A further 200,000 people in the vicinity of the quake need urgent assistance, according to the UN's humanitarian affairs office.

Indonesia: Warship evacuates hundreds from quake-struck Palu

Indonesian search teams continue to look for missing at collapsed hotel

The tsunami that ravaged the Indonesian city of Palu was outsized compared to the earthquake that spawned it, but other factors -- including a long, narrow bay -- conspired to create monster waves, scientists say.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/indonesia-steps-hunt-survivors-quake-toll-passes-1200-168980">Over 1200 people are already known to have died</a> in the disaster, and officials say that toll is likely to rise -- perhaps into the thousands.

The 7.5-magnitude quake, which struck early evening on Friday -- a time when many in the Muslim-majority country would have been at the mosque -- brought buildings down all over Palu and its surrounding area.

But it was an unlikely confluence of geophysical conditions that gave rise to a localised tsunami that washed away many other structures and certainly added to the human cost.

"The waves were at least two-to-three metres high, and possibly twice that," said Jane Cunneen, a research fellow at Curtin University's Faculty of Science and Engineering in Bentley, Western Australia, and an architect of the Indian Ocean's tsunami warning system, developed under UN guidance.

Judging by the earthquake, however, the tsunami shouldn't have been nearly that big.

"In the overwhelming majority of cases, tsunamis are generated by so-called thrust earthquakes, which create a large vertical displacement of the seafloor," said Baptiste Gombert, an expert on tectonics at Oxford University's department of earth sciences.

The Palu tsunami, by contrast, was generated by a strike-slip fault, where chunks of Earth's crust move over or under each other along a horizontal plane.

"Strike-slip faults are less likely to generate tsunamis, as they don't uplift the seafloor too much," said Cunneen.

So what caused the deadly waves? At least three factors, experts told AFP.

Submarine landslide

One is the singularly long channel of ocean water dead-ending at the low-lying city of Palu.

"The shape of the bay definitely played a major role in amplifying the size of the waves," said Anne Socquet, an earthquake expert at the Institute of Earth Sciences in Grenoble who has studied the region's seismic faults.

"The bay acted like a funnel into which the tsunami waves entered."

As the bay narrowed and became more shallow, the water was pushed up from below and squeezed from the sides at the same time.

A second ingredient was the size and location of the quake.

Magnitude 7.5 is a powerful earthquake -- only a few are recorded every year.&nbsp;

The one that struck Palu "was also really shallow, which means greater seafloor displacement," said Gombert.&nbsp;

To make things worse, the rupture was close to shore, leaving scant time or distance for the waves to dissipate.

Finally, circumstantial evidence suggests that the tsunami was magnified by the underwater equivalent of a landslide.

"The earthquake may have caused a submarine landside near the mouth of the bay, or even within the bay itself," said Cunneen, noting the waterway's steep earthen walls.

This would help explain why the waves were so big near Palu, but much smaller in the surrounding area.

"Such events are very hard to predict with our current tsunami warning systems, which rely on quick estimates of earthquake magnitude and location," Cunneen added.

The tsunami that ravaged the Indonesian city of Palu was outsized compared to the earthquake that spawned it, but other factors -- including a long, narrow bay -- conspired to create monster waves, scientists say.

The tsunami that ravaged the Indonesian city of Palu was outsized compared to the earthquake that spawned it, but other factors -- including a long, narrow bay -- conspired to create monster waves, scientists say. Over 1200 people are already known to have died in the disaster, and officials say that toll is likely to rise -- perhaps into the thousands. The 7.5-magnitude quake, which struck early evening on Friday -- a time when many in the Muslim-majority country would have been at the mosque -- brought buildings down all over Palu and its surrounding area. But it was an unlikely confluence of geophysical conditions that gave rise to a localised tsunami that washed away many other structures and certainly added to the human cost. "The waves were at least two-to-three metres high, and possibly twice that," said Jane Cunneen, a research fellow at Curtin University's Faculty of Science and Engineering in Bentley, Western Australia, and an architect of the Indian Ocean's tsunami warning system, developed under UN guidance. Judging by the earthquake, however, the tsunami shouldn't have been nearly that big. "In the overwhelming majority of cases, tsunamis are generated by so-called thrust earthquakes, which create a large vertical displacement of the seafloor," said Baptiste Gombert, an expert on tectonics at Oxford University's department of earth sciences. The Palu tsunami, by contrast, was generated by a strike-slip fault, where chunks of Earth's crust move over or under each other along a horizontal plane. "Strike-slip faults are less likely to generate tsunamis, as they don't uplift the seafloor too much," said Cunneen. So what caused the deadly waves? At least three factors, experts told AFP. Submarine landslide One is the singularly long channel of ocean water dead-ending at the low-lying city of Palu. "The shape of the bay definitely played a major role in amplifying the size of the waves," said Anne Socquet, an earthquake expert at the Institute of Earth Sciences in Grenoble who has studied the region's seismic faults. "The bay acted like a funnel into which the tsunami waves entered." As the bay narrowed and became more shallow, the water was pushed up from below and squeezed from the sides at the same time. A second ingredient was the size and location of the quake. Magnitude 7.5 is a powerful earthquake -- only a few are recorded every year. The one that struck Palu "was also really shallow, which means greater seafloor displacement," said Gombert. To make things worse, the rupture was close to shore, leaving scant time or distance for the waves to dissipate. Finally, circumstantial evidence suggests that the tsunami was magnified by the underwater equivalent of a landslide. "The earthquake may have caused a submarine landside near the mouth of the bay, or even within the bay itself," said Cunneen, noting the waterway's steep earthen walls. This would help explain why the waves were so big near Palu, but much smaller in the surrounding area. "Such events are very hard to predict with our current tsunami warning systems, which rely on quick estimates of earthquake magnitude and location," Cunneen added.

Indonesia tsunami worsened because of the shape of Palu bay: Scientists

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