Death toll in deadly flooding and landslides in Indonesia rises to 21

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesian rescuers retrieved four more bodies after they resumed their search Wednesday for people missing after floods and landslides on Indonesia’s main island of Java, bringing the death toll to 21.

Waters from flooded rivers tore through nine villages in Pekalongan regency of Central Java province and landslides tumbled onto mountainside hamlets after the torrential rains Monday.

Videos and photos released by National Search and Rescue Agency showed workers digging desperately in villages where roads and green-terraced rice fields were transformed into murky brown mud and villages were covered by thick mud, rocks and uprooted trees.

National Disaster Management Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari said flooding triggered a landslide that buried two houses and a cafe in the Petungkriyono resort area. The disasters all together destroyed 25 houses, a dam and three main bridges connecting villages in Pekalongan. At least 13 people injured and nearly 300 people were forced to flee to temporary government shelters.

The search and rescue operation that was hampered by bad weather, mudslides and rugged terrain was halted Tuesday afternoon due to heavy rain and thick fog that made devastated areas along the rivers dangerous to rescuers.

On Wednesday, they searched in rivers and the rubble of villages for bodies and, whenever possible, survivors in worst-hit Kasimpar village, said Budiono, who heads a local rescue office.

Scores of rescue personnel recovered three mud-caked bodies, including a 5-month old baby, as they searched a Petungkriyono area where tons of mud and rocks buried two houses and a café. Another body was pulled out from under a broken bridge near a river in Kasimpar village. Rescuers are still searching for five people reported missing.

Landslides and floods were also reported in many other provinces, Muhari said. On Monday, a landslide hit five houses in Denpasar on the tourist island of Bali, killing four people and leaving one missing.

Heavy seasonal rain from about October to March frequently causes flooding and landslides in Indonesia, an archipelago of 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or near fertile floodplains.

Landslides of earth, rock and debris can happen suddenly or slowly and can be caused by rain, erosion, or changes to the slope’s material. Rain adds weight to the slope, making it more unstable.

The slope’s steepness or erosion at the base can make landslides more likely. They can be caused by the movement of nearby bodies of water or vibrations from earthquakes, mining or traffic. The types and sizes of the rocks and soils can determine how much water land can absorb before weakening and collapsing.

Studies have found that landslides could become more frequent as climate change increases rainfall.

Associated Press writer Isabella O’Malley in Philadelphia contributed to this report.

Rescuers search for victims at the site of a landslide in Pekalongan, Central Java, Indonesia, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Janaki DM)

Rescuers search for victims as the wreckage of a car rests in the mud in an area affected by a landslide following a flash flood that killed multiple people in Pekalongan, Central Java, Indonesia, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Janaki DM)

Rescuers search for victims at the site of a landslide in Pekalongan, Central Java, Indonesia, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Janaki DM)

Rescuers search for victims near the wreckages of vehicles in an area affected by a landslide following a flash flood that killed multiple people in Pekalongan, Central Java, Indonesia, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Janaki DM)

The wreckage of a car is stuck in the mud at an area affected by a landslide following a flash flood which killed a number of people in Pekalongan, Central Java, Indonesia, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Janaki DM)

People affected by a flash flood walk on a muddy road in Pekalongan, Central Java, Indonesia, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Janaki DM)

People examine the damage at an area affected by a landslide following a flash flood in Pekalongan, Central Java, Indonesia, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Janaki DM)

Workers clear a road cut off by a landslide following a flash flood in Pekalongan, Central Java, Indonesia, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Janaki DM)

The wreckage of a car is stuck in the mud at an area affected by a landslide following a flash flood in Pekalongan, Central Java, Indonesia, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Janaki DM)

In this photo released by Indonesia's National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), rescuers carry the body of a victim of flash flood in Pekalongan, Central Java, Indonesia on Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (BNPB via AP)

In this photo released by Indonesia's National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), rescuers carry the body of a victim of flash flood in Pekalongan, Central Java, Indonesia on Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (BNPB via AP)

In this undated photo released by Indonesia's National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, rescuers search for the victims of flash flood which triggered a landslide, in Pekalongan, Central Java, Indonesia. (BNPB via AP)

In this undated photo released by Indonesia's National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, rescuers carry the body of a victim of flash flood which triggered a landslide, in Pekalongan, Central Java, Indonesia. (BNPB via AP)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Top national security officials for President Donald Trump, including his defense secretary, texted plans for upcoming military strikes in Yemen to a group chat in a secure messaging app that included the editor-in-chief for The Atlantic, the magazine reported in a story posted online Monday. The National Security Council said the text chain “appears to be authentic.”

Trump initially told reporters he was not aware that the highly sensitive information had been shared, 2 1/2 hours after it was reported. He later appeared to joke about the breach.

The material in the text chain “contained operational details of forthcoming strikes on Iran-backed Houthi-rebels in Yemen, including information about targets, weapons the U.S. would be deploying, and attack sequencing,” editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg reported.

It was not immediately clear if the specifics of the military operation were classified, but they often are and at the least are kept secure to protect service members and operational security. The U.S. has conducted airstrikes against the Houthis since the militant group began targeting commercial and military vessels in the Red Sea in November 2023.

Just two hours after Goldberg received the details of the attack on March 15, the U.S. began launching a series of airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen.

The National Security Council said in a statement that it was looking into how a journalist’s number was added to the chain in the Signal group chat. In addition to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, it included Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Tulsi Gabbard, Trump's director of national intelligence.

Goldberg said he received the Signal invitation from Mike Waltz, Trump's national security adviser, who was also in the group chat.

Hegseth in his first comments on the matter attacked Goldberg as “deceitful” and a “discredited so-called journalist” while alluding to previous critical reporting of Trump from the publication. He did not shed light on why Signal was being used to discuss the sensitive operation or how Goldberg ended up on the message chain.

“Nobody was texting war plans and that’s all I have to say about that,” Hegseth said in an exchange with reporters after landing in Hawaii on Monday as he began his first trip to the Indo-Pacific as defense secretary.

Trump on Tuesday in a brief interview with NBC News' Garrett Haake downplayed the incident as “the only glitch in two months" of his administration "and it turned out not to be a serious one.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Tuesday said in post on X that no war plans were discussed and that “No classified material was sent to the thread.”

Leavitt said on Monday the president still has the “utmost confidence” in Waltz and the national security team. Trump told NBC News on Tuesday that Waltz "has learned a lesson, and he’s a good man.”

Earlier Monday, Trump told reporters: “I don’t know anything about it. You’re telling me about it for the first time.” He added that The Atlantic was “not much of a magazine.”

By early evening, the president jokingly brushed it aside. He amplified a social media posting from Elon Musk spotlighting a conservative satirical news site article with the cutting headline: “4D Chess: Genius Trump Leaks War Plans to ‘The Atlantic’ Where No One Will Ever See Them."

Government officials have used Signal for organizational correspondence, but it is not classified and can be hacked. Privacy and tech experts say the popular end-to-end encrypted messaging and voice call app is more secure than conventional texting.

Leavitt said the White House counsel’s office has provided guidance to Trump’s top officials on a number platforms to communicate as safely and efficiently as possible.

The sharing of sensitive information comes as Hegseth's office has just announced a crackdown on leaks of sensitive information, including the potential use of polygraphs on defense personnel to determine how reporters have received information.

Sean Parnell, a spokesman for Hegseth, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on why the defense secretary posted operational plans on an unclassified app.

The administration's handling of the highly sensitive information was swiftly condemned by Democratic lawmakers. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called for a full investigation.

“This is one of the most stunning breaches of military intelligence I have read about in a very, very long time,” Schumer, a New York Democrat, said in a floor speech Monday afternoon.

“If true, this story represents one of the most egregious failures of operational security and common sense I have ever seen,” said Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, in a statement.

He said American lives are “on the line. The carelessness shown by Trump’s Cabinet is stunning and dangerous. I will be seeking answers from the Administration immediately.”

Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said in a statement that he was “horrified” by the reports.

Himes said if a lower-ranking official “did what is described here, they would likely lose their clearance and be subject to criminal investigation. The American people deserve answers,” which he said he planned to get at Wednesday’s previously scheduled committee hearing.

Some Republicans also expressed concerns.

Sen. Roger Wicker, the Mississippi Republican who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, told reporters Monday, “We’re very concerned about it and we’ll be looking into it on a bipartisan basis.”

Reed said he would be speaking with Wicker about what the committee will do to “follow up” on the Signal leak. And Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he wants to learn more about what happened.

“Obviously, we got to to run it to the ground, figure out what went on there,” said Thune, a South Dakota Republican.

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson offered a notably forgiving posture.

“I think it would be a terrible mistake for there to be adverse consequences on any of the people that were involved in that call," Johnson said. "They were trying to do a good job, the mission was accomplished with precision."

The handling of national defense information is strictly governed by law under the century-old Espionage Act, including provisions that make it a crime to remove such information from its “proper place of custody” even through an act of gross negligence.

The Justice Department in 2015 and 2016 investigated whether former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton broke the law by communicating about classified information with her aides on a private email server she set up, though the FBI ultimately recommended against charges and none were brought.

In the Biden administration, some officials were given permission to download Signal on their White House-issued phones, but were instructed to use the app sparingly, according to a former national security official who served in the Democratic administration.

The official, who requested anonymity to speak about methods used to share sensitive information, said Signal was most commonly used to communicate what they internally referred to as “tippers” to notify someone when they were away from the office or traveling overseas that they should check their “high side” inbox for a classified message.

The app was sometimes also used by officials during the Biden administration to communicate about scheduling of sensitive meetings or classified phone calls when they were outside the office, the official said.

The use of Signal became more prevalent during the last year of the Biden administration after federal law enforcement officials warned that China and Iran were hacking the White House as well as officials in the first Trump administration, according to the official.

The official was unaware of top Biden administration officials — such as Vice President Kamala Harris, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and national security adviser Jake Sullivan — using Signal to discuss sensitive plans as the Trump administration officials did.

Signal’s encryption protocol is open source, meaning that it’s freely available for anyone to inspect, use or modify. The encryption protocol is also used by another popular chat service, social media company Meta’s WhatsApp platform.

Some of the toughest criticism targeted Hegseth, a former Fox News Channel weekend host. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, an Iraq War veteran, said on social media that Hegseth, “the most unqualified Secretary of Defense in history, is demonstrating his incompetence by literally leaking classified war plans in the group chat.”

In the chain of messages, Vance questioned whether Americans would understand the importance of strikes that came with the risk of “a moderate to severe spike in oil prices” and if the timing of the operation might be a “mistake.”

“I am willing to support the consensus of the team and keep these concerns to myself,” Vance argued. “But there is a strong argument for delaying this a month, doing the messaging work on why this matters, seeing where the economy is, etc.”

Vance also made the case that Europe would benefit much more than the U.S. by the action aimed at decimating the Houthis and securing Red Sea shipping lanes.

“If you think we should do it let’s go. I just hate bailing Europe out again,” Vance said in a back-and-forth with Hegseth.

“I fully share your loathing of European free-loading. It’s PATHETIC,” Hegseth replied. He added, “I think we should go.”

The vice president’s communications director, William Martin, released a statement downplaying the debate. He said Vance “unequivocally supports this administration’s foreign policy.”

Leavitt is one of three Trump administration officials who face a lawsuit from The Associated Press on First and Fifth Amendment grounds. The AP says the three are punishing the news agency for editorial decisions they oppose. The White House says the AP is not following an executive order to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.

AP writers Stephen Groves, Kevin Freking and Lisa Mascaro contributed reporting.

Locals inspect the site reportedly struck by U.S. airstrikes overnight in Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo)

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth does a television interview outside the White House, Friday, March 21, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)