CURNOW: Seven executives have been arrested in Indonesia in connection to the fires that are plaguing Southeast Asia. The companies are accused of burning land to clear it for new crops. Those agricultural fires are banned by the government because they create thick smog, posing serious health risks. Hospitals have been inundated with people complaining of chest pains and trouble breathing. People have been told to stay indoors; 2,000 schools have been closed across Indonesia and Malaysia, sending 1.5 million students home. The Chinese dissident artist, Ai Weiwei, is in London and hanging out with the founder of WikiLeaks. Ai had posted this selfie on Instagram after he visited Julian Assange. The two men posed with their middle fingers raised. We've blurred that bit out. The artist has only recently been allowed to leave China following a four-year travel ban. Assange has been holed up in the Ecuadoran embassy in London since 2012 to avoid being extradited to Sweden to face rape allegations. Well, that does it for us here at the INTERNATIONAL DESK. I'm Robyn Curnow. Don't go away. "WORLD SPORT" with Amanda Davies is up next.
Blankets of Smog Cover Southeast Asia