By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
KUALA LUMPUR/JAKARTA (Worthy News) – Malaysia and Indonesia faced more suffering Friday, with Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim barring his cabinet members from going on leave after the displacement of over 90,000 people in a growing flood disaster that authorities fear could be the country’s worst in a decade.
Across its maritime border in flood-stricken Indonesia, rescuers recovered two more bodies from a tourist bus hit by a landslide triggered by torrential rains on Indonesia’s Sumatra island, bringing the death toll to nine, officials said.
At least 20 people have died in other landslides and floods in the region this week.
Rescuers found the bodies from the bus, which was covered by trees, mud, and rocks from the landslide on the road from Medan city to Berastagi in North Sumatra province, officials said.
The road is the main route from the regional capital, Medan, to other districts in the area.
The bus was among vehicles cut off by previous landslides along the road since Wednesday morning.
More than 10 people were also injured and were taken to a hospital in Medan city, where Christians had urged for prayers.
‘CONTINUE DUTIES’
Back in Malaysia, “All ministers have been asked to continue their duties and go down to the ground now,” Anwar told reporters.
Three people have died, and 94,778 people have been evacuated to 527 temporary shelters in nine states, with Kelantan and neighboring Terengganu the worst hit, according to the National Disaster Command Centre.
It did not have more details on the deaths.
Floods have been hampering the east coast of peninsular Malaysia during the monsoon period between October and March. Still, officials said this week’s torrential rain led to mass evacuations, mainly in the northeastern state of Kelantan, which borders Thailand.
Indonesia, too, was hard-hit with Fithriyani Tarigan, a Christian, telling Worthy News:
“At least nine people died in my village of Semangat Gunung, which is a one-hour drive from the city of Medan.”
She said it was crucial to “Please pray for my country.”
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
More Worthy News
Senate Democrats are preparing a renewed effort next week to limit President Donald Trump’s military authority, advancing a war powers resolution that would require congressional approval before any further U.S. action against Iran.
Talks at the White House between NATO chief Mark Rutte and U.S. President Donald J. Trump were expected to be overshadowed by concerns about the future role of the United States in the military alliance.
Hungary’s government offered support, mainly through intelligence, to Iran less than two weeks after Israel carried out pager detonations in September 2024 against the Hezbollah group, a report revealed Wednesday.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said all U.S. military objectives in Iran had been achieved, signaling what he described as a successful outcome of the conflict.
A Christian teenager was shot and killed in Pakistan’s volatile Punjab Province on Wednesday shortly after another person died when a truck rammed into a crowd of roughly 200 Christians, sources told Worthy News.
U.S. Vice President JD Vance said a fragile ceasefire with Iran could hold if Tehran follows through on commitments to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, while warning the situation remains uncertain.
Azerbaijan’s Supreme Court has upheld a nine-year prison sentence against Farid Mehralizade, a journalist with U.S.-backed Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), rejecting his appeal in a case condemned by critics as unjust and seen as a test of press freedom in the former Soviet republic.