Hundreds held a mass prayer for rain in a smoke-filled Indonesian city on Friday, desperately hoping that downpours will extinguish <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/indonesia-forest-fires-surge-stoking-global-warming-fears-249212">forest fires</a> and wash away toxic haze covering wide swathes of the country that has forced mass school closures.

Illegal fires to clear land for farming are raging on Indonesia's Sumatra and Borneo islands with firefighters battling round the clock through charred forests, and water-bombing helicopters deployed to douse the flames.

Dense smoke has blanketed Pekanbaru, a provincial capital on Sumatra, leaving the sky dark even at midday and residents fearing for their health.

Around 1,000 Pekanbaru residents, many dressed in white Muslim robes with rudimentary face masks held a prayer Friday in an open field as a thick, acrid fog drifted around them.

"I'm praying so that the rain will come immediately and this smog will be gone soon," said retired 57-year-old civil servant Rahmad, who goes by one name.

"It's been really bad for the past month &nbsp; I can't breathe if I don't wear a mask. Some of my neighbours have gotten really sick," he AFP.

Friday is a holy day in Indonesia, the world's biggest Muslim-majority country, where forest fires are an annual problem but have been worsened this year by particularly dry weather.

Fatimah El-Kareem, a 26-year-mother, fled Pekanbaru with her baby over health fears.

"I was so worried. My child is only one year old and still so vulnerable," she told AFP by telephone from hometown in another part of Sumatra.

"The smog isn't only suffocating, but it smells terrible. Every morning it was just getting worse and worse you couldn't get any fresh air," she added.

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International concern has been mounting about the long-term impact of such blazes, as rainforests play a vital role in protecting the planet against global warming.

'Never been this tired' 

The haze really affects me tremendously. I can't breathe or do things outside as I normally do," elementary school teacher Yulinar said at the mass prayer, coughing and squinting her bloodshot eyes.

The 45-year-old, who also uses one name, said she hoped she and her students could soon return to their shuttered school.

The governor of smog-hit Central Kalimantan on Borneo island which Indonesia shares with Malaysia and Brunei said Friday nearly 3,900 schools would be closed temporarily to protect students, with more than 9,000 shuttered in Sumatra.

Officials across the border in Malaysia said dozens of schools would be closed on Friday in the region surrounding its haze-hit capital Kuala Lumpur.

Back in Sumatra, Hendri Kusnardi was among thousands of firefighters deployed to battle the blazes."We're working non-stop," said the 25-year-old, dirty and drenched in sweat.

"I've never been this tired. But I'm not the only one &nbsp; everyone's exhausted."

The fires in Indonesia have sent toxic smoke floating over Malaysia, triggering a diplomatic row, as nearby Singapore has also warned residents to reduce outdoor activities.

Frictions spiked after Malaysian Environment Minister Yeo Bee Yin this week accused her Indonesian counterpart of being "in denial" after Jakarta insisted fires in Malaysia had caused the smog there.

On Friday, Indonesia said it had sealed off dozens of plantations where smog-belching fires are blazing, and warned that owners including Malaysia and Singapore-based firms could face criminal charges if the investigation turns up evidence of illegal burning.

Jakarta is struggling to tame the blazes as many burn underground in carbon-rich peat, which has been cleared across vast areas of the country for plantations.

"I hope farmers and companies stop starting these fires," Rahmad said in Pekanbaru. "It's a man-made disaster."

Hundreds held a mass prayer for rain in a smoke-filled Indonesian city on Friday, desperately hoping that downpours will extinguish forest fires and wash away toxic haze covering wide swathes of the country that has forced mass school closures.

Hundreds held a mass prayer for rain in a smoke-filled Indonesian city on Friday, desperately hoping that downpours will extinguish forest fires and wash away toxic haze covering wide swathes of the country that has forced mass school closures. Illegal fires to clear land for farming are raging on Indonesia's Sumatra and Borneo islands with firefighters battling round the clock through charred forests, and water-bombing helicopters deployed to douse the flames. Dense smoke has blanketed Pekanbaru, a provincial capital on Sumatra, leaving the sky dark even at midday and residents fearing for their health. Around 1,000 Pekanbaru residents, many dressed in white Muslim robes with rudimentary face masks held a prayer Friday in an open field as a thick, acrid fog drifted around them. "I'm praying so that the rain will come immediately and this smog will be gone soon," said retired 57-year-old civil servant Rahmad, who goes by one name. "It's been really bad for the past month I can't breathe if I don't wear a mask. Some of my neighbours have gotten really sick," he AFP. Friday is a holy day in Indonesia, the world's biggest Muslim-majority country, where forest fires are an annual problem but have been worsened this year by particularly dry weather. Fatimah El-Kareem, a 26-year-mother, fled Pekanbaru with her baby over health fears. "I was so worried. My child is only one year old and still so vulnerable," she told AFP by telephone from hometown in another part of Sumatra. "The smog isn't only suffocating, but it smells terrible. Every morning it was just getting worse and worse you couldn't get any fresh air," she added. Watch Video: × International concern has been mounting about the long-term impact of such blazes, as rainforests play a vital role in protecting the planet against global warming. 'Never been this tired' The haze really affects me tremendously. I can't breathe or do things outside as I normally do," elementary school teacher Yulinar said at the mass prayer, coughing and squinting her bloodshot eyes. The 45-year-old, who also uses one name, said she hoped she and her students could soon return to their shuttered school. The governor of smog-hit Central Kalimantan on Borneo island which Indonesia shares with Malaysia and Brunei said Friday nearly 3,900 schools would be closed temporarily to protect students, with more than 9,000 shuttered in Sumatra. Officials across the border in Malaysia said dozens of schools would be closed on Friday in the region surrounding its haze-hit capital Kuala Lumpur. Back in Sumatra, Hendri Kusnardi was among thousands of firefighters deployed to battle the blazes."We're working non-stop," said the 25-year-old, dirty and drenched in sweat. "I've never been this tired. But I'm not the only one everyone's exhausted." The fires in Indonesia have sent toxic smoke floating over Malaysia, triggering a diplomatic row, as nearby Singapore has also warned residents to reduce outdoor activities. Frictions spiked after Malaysian Environment Minister Yeo Bee Yin this week accused her Indonesian counterpart of being "in denial" after Jakarta insisted fires in Malaysia had caused the smog there. On Friday, Indonesia said it had sealed off dozens of plantations where smog-belching fires are blazing, and warned that owners including Malaysia and Singapore-based firms could face criminal charges if the investigation turns up evidence of illegal burning. Jakarta is struggling to tame the blazes as many burn underground in carbon-rich peat, which has been cleared across vast areas of the country for plantations. "I hope farmers and companies stop starting these fires," Rahmad said in Pekanbaru. "It's a man-made disaster."

Indonesians choked by forest fire haze pray for rain

Hundreds of tonnes of imported plastic waste will be shipped back to where it came from, Malaysia said Tuesday, insisting the country did not want to be a global dumping ground.

Around 300 million tonnes of plastic are produced every year, according to the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF), with much of it ending up in landfill or polluting the seas, in what is becoming a growing international crisis.

China had previously taken a large amount of waste for recycling but abruptly stopped last year, saying it wanted to improve its own environment.

Now Southeast Asian countries that stepped in to plug this gap say they have had enough.

"We urge developed countries to stop shipping garbage to our country," said Yeo Bee Yin, Malaysia's minister of energy, technology, science, environment and climate change, adding it was "unfair and uncivilised".

"We will return it back to the country of origin without any mercy," she said, after an inspection of several waste-filled containers at Port Klang, the country's busiest port.

Plastic imports to Malaysia have tripled since 2016, to 870,000 tonnes last year, official data showed.

The influx has sparked a rapid increase in the number of recycling plants, many of them operating without a licence and with little regard for environmental standards.

Lee Chee Kwang, an activist with Environment Protection Agency Kuala Langat, said Malaysia has "failed miserably" to manage the rubbish coming into the country.

"The government must ban entry of plastic waste and declare it as public enemy number one,” he said.

'Traitors'

While Malaysia allows the import of homogenous and clean waste plastics for the recycling industry, there are growing public calls for the government to ban the import of used plastics altogether.

The country's move to ship the refuse back was "only a symbolic public stunt which does not solve the problem," Lee said. "The solution is a total ban on imports of all kinds of plastic."

Minister Yeo vowed a crackdown on illegal imports and recycling facilities. The Malaysians involved in importing the waste are "traitors", she said.

"Malaysia will not be a dumping ground to the world," Yeo added. "We cannot be bullied by the developed countries."

The ministry said 450 tonnes of contaminated plastic waste in 10 containers -- from Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, China, Japan, Saudi Arabia and the United States -- will be shipped back.

Port officials said their contents were&nbsp;declared but did not give a date for the shipment.

"These containers are filled with contaminated, non-homogenous, low-quality, non-recyclable plastic waste, and are routed to processing facilities which do not have the technology to recycle in an environmentally sound manner," the ministry said.

Malaysia last month sent back five containers filled with plastic waste to Spain. Inspections are being carried out on more than 50 other containers brought in illegally. Yeo said it will take until the end of the year to fully deal with the problem.

She said 150 illegal waste recycling plants had been shut down.&nbsp;But the problem is widespread and citizens are taking action over the plastic influx.

Some 12,000 people in central Selangor state are protesting a recycling factory allowed to operate near their homes, community leader Joshua Tee told AFP.

"Processing such materials produces toxic fumes. Villagers say they are suffering from asthma and itchiness," he said. As little as nine per cent of plastic produced between 1950 and 2015 has been recycled.

Pictures of coral reefs smothered in plastic bags and river systems choked with PET bottles have sparked a growing worldwide awareness of the need to deal with the problem.

Hundreds of tonnes of imported plastic waste will be shipped back to where it came from, Malaysia said Tuesday, insisting the country did not want to be a global dumping ground.

Hundreds of tonnes of imported plastic waste will be shipped back to where it came from, Malaysia said Tuesday, insisting the country did not want to be a global dumping ground. Around 300 million tonnes of plastic are produced every year, according to the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF), with much of it ending up in landfill or polluting the seas, in what is becoming a growing international crisis. China had previously taken a large amount of waste for recycling but abruptly stopped last year, saying it wanted to improve its own environment. Now Southeast Asian countries that stepped in to plug this gap say they have had enough. "We urge developed countries to stop shipping garbage to our country," said Yeo Bee Yin, Malaysia's minister of energy, technology, science, environment and climate change, adding it was "unfair and uncivilised". "We will return it back to the country of origin without any mercy," she said, after an inspection of several waste-filled containers at Port Klang, the country's busiest port. Plastic imports to Malaysia have tripled since 2016, to 870,000 tonnes last year, official data showed. The influx has sparked a rapid increase in the number of recycling plants, many of them operating without a licence and with little regard for environmental standards. Lee Chee Kwang, an activist with Environment Protection Agency Kuala Langat, said Malaysia has "failed miserably" to manage the rubbish coming into the country. "The government must ban entry of plastic waste and declare it as public enemy number one,” he said. 'Traitors' While Malaysia allows the import of homogenous and clean waste plastics for the recycling industry, there are growing public calls for the government to ban the import of used plastics altogether. The country's move to ship the refuse back was "only a symbolic public stunt which does not solve the problem," Lee said. "The solution is a total ban on imports of all kinds of plastic." Minister Yeo vowed a crackdown on illegal imports and recycling facilities. The Malaysians involved in importing the waste are "traitors", she said. "Malaysia will not be a dumping ground to the world," Yeo added. "We cannot be bullied by the developed countries." The ministry said 450 tonnes of contaminated plastic waste in 10 containers -- from Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, China, Japan, Saudi Arabia and the United States -- will be shipped back. Port officials said their contents were declared but did not give a date for the shipment. "These containers are filled with contaminated, non-homogenous, low-quality, non-recyclable plastic waste, and are routed to processing facilities which do not have the technology to recycle in an environmentally sound manner," the ministry said. Malaysia last month sent back five containers filled with plastic waste to Spain. Inspections are being carried out on more than 50 other containers brought in illegally. Yeo said it will take until the end of the year to fully deal with the problem. She said 150 illegal waste recycling plants had been shut down. But the problem is widespread and citizens are taking action over the plastic influx. Some 12,000 people in central Selangor state are protesting a recycling factory allowed to operate near their homes, community leader Joshua Tee told AFP. "Processing such materials produces toxic fumes. Villagers say they are suffering from asthma and itchiness," he said. As little as nine per cent of plastic produced between 1950 and 2015 has been recycled. Pictures of coral reefs smothered in plastic bags and river systems choked with PET bottles have sparked a growing worldwide awareness of the need to deal with the problem.

Malaysia to ship back hundreds of tonnes of plastic waste

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Indonesians choked by forest fire haze pray for rain

Malaysia to ship back hundreds of tonnes of plastic waste