Jakarta, Oct. 13 -- Indonesian Home Affairs Minister Tito Karnavian has instructed regional leaders to ban all forms of land burning to prevent new forest and land fire hotspots as fires remain in several regions.

"I have issued a Home Affairs Ministerial Instruction to all regional heads, prohibiting burning under any circumstances during an emergency like this," Tito said at a press conference at the Ministry of Home Affairs headquarters in Jakarta on Monday.

He stated that land burning prevention must be strictly enforced through collaboration between local governments, Regional Leadership Coordination Forums (Forkopimda), the military, the police, and community leaders.

Tito called on all regional heads, from the provincial to the ...