The US had failed in a series of quiet diplomatic efforts with top Malaysian leaders to get them to be less hostile to Israel.

Experts say it could benefit a significant diaspora of Malaysians living overseas, notwithstanding concern over the question of loyalty to king and country.

Syahrul Yasin Limpo is the the sixth minister in President Joko Widodo's Cabinet to face corruption allegations.

Environment minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad says Malaysia is still 'seriously' considering a law similar to Singapore that holds companies liable for air pollution.

The archipelago nation of 270 million people, Southeast Asia's biggest economy, is seeking to modernise its military but has lagged its regional peers in recent years.

Groups have filed a complaint with Indonesia's national human rights commission alleging that three state-owned arms makers had been selling equipment to Myanmar since the coup.

While forest fires are typically started by farmers to clear land for plantations, authorities say putting out fires this year has been harder due to El Nino.

The so-called 'omnibus law' is key to President Joko Widodo's legacy of economic reform as he prepares to leave office next year.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo inaugurated a US$7.3 billion high-speed railway connecting the country's capital with the city of Bandung, a China-backed project that has been marred with problems.

The government says the move is aimed at protecting offline merchants and marketplaces in Southeast Asia's biggest economy.

Jokowi will complete his final term in office next year but his manoeuvres to install his relatives in positions of political influence have raised eyebrows in a country that only 25 years ago broke free of authoritarian rule.

Ministers have repeatedly said that e-commerce sellers using predatory pricing on social media platforms are threatening offline markets in Indonesia.