Indonesian rescuers find a body near wreckage of a plane that crashed with 11 aboard

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesian rescuers on Sunday recovered a body in their search for 11 people aboard a plane that crashed while approaching a mountainous region on Sulawesi island.

The body of a man was retrieved from a ravine about 200 meters (656 feet) deep on the slope of Mount Bulusaraung, near scattered aircraft debris, said Muhammad Arif Anwar, who heads Makassar’s Search and Rescue Office.

Teams also found additional wreckage, including parts of the aircraft frame and passenger seats, and visually identified what is believed to be the engine of the turboprop ATR 42-500 that crashed on Saturday afternoon, Anwar said.

The plane, operated by Indonesia Air Transport, was on its way from Yogyakarta on Indonesia's main island of Java to Makassar, the capital city of South Sulawesi province, when it vanished from radar shortly after being instructed by air traffic control to correct its approach alignment.

The plane was carrying eight crew members and three passengers from the Marine Affairs and Fisheries Ministry who were aboard as part of an airborne maritime surveillance mission.

Strong winds, heavy fog and steep rugged terrain have slowed the search, said Maj. Gen. Bangun Nawoko, the South Sulawesi’s military commander. He said that visibility at the summit was about 5 meters (16 miles).

Rescuers spotted additional bodies lying along a steep cliff, but haven't been able to reach them yet, said Brig. Gen. Andre Clift Rumbayan, who leads the specialized search units.

The search was halted as darkness fell Sunday and was to resume on Monday morning.

Indonesia relies heavily on air transport and ferries to connect its more than 17,000 islands. The Southeast Asian country has been plagued by transportation accidents in recent years, from plane and bus crashes to ferry sinkings.

In this photo provided by the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS), members of its rescue team conduct a searching operation amid debris of an airplane around Mount Bulusaraung, South Sulawesi province, Indonesia, Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026, after the turboprop ATR 42-500 lost contact Saturday. (BASARNAS via AP)

In this photo provided by the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS), members of its rescue team conduct a searching operation around Mount Bulusaraung, South Sulawesi province, Indonesia, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, after a passenger aircraft lost contact while approaching the mountainous region between Indonesia’s main island of Java and Sulawesi island. (BASARNAS via AP)

In this photo released by the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS) on Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, an Indonesia rescue team search looks out from a helicopter during a search operation for a passenger aircraft that lost contact with ground control while approaching a mountainous region between Java and Sulawesi islands in Indonesia. (BASARNAS via AP)

This photo provided by the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS) shows debris of an ATR 42-500 turboprop airplane at Mount Bulusaraung in South Sulawesi province, Indonesia, Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026, after the aircraft lost contact Saturday. (BASARNAS via AP)

LISBON, Portugal (AP) — A record 11 candidates are standing in Portugal’s presidential election Sunday, with a populist party leader poised to possibly bring another political breakthrough for Europe’s growing far-right parties.

The large field makes it unlikely that any candidate will capture more than 50% of the vote for a first-round win. That would leave the two top candidates to compete in a runoff ballot next month.

Almost 11 million people are eligible to vote in the election, with most results expected late in the day. The winner will replace President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, who has served the limit of two five-year terms.

Polls opened at 8 a.m. on a mostly sunny day across the country and were due to close 12 hours later.

By midday, just over 20% of registered voters had cast their ballot, up from 17% in the last presidential election in 2021, authorities said.

Among the front-runners, according to recent opinion polls, are André Ventura, the leader of the populist Chega (Enough) party. Chega’s surge in public support made it the second-largest party in Portugal’s parliament last year, just six years after it was founded.

One of Ventura’s main targets has been what he calls excessive immigration, as foreign workers have become more conspicuous in Portugal in recent years. “Portugal is ours,” he says.

During the election campaign, Ventura put up billboards across the country saying, “This isn’t Bangladesh” and “Immigrants shouldn’t be allowed to live on welfare.”

Such blatant anti-immigrant sentiment expressed in public was unthinkable in Portugal just a few years ago.

Other leading candidates are from the country’s two main parties that have alternated in power for the past half-century: Luís Marques Mendes from the center-right Social Democratic Party, currently in government, and António José Seguro of the center-left Socialist Party.

A strong challenge is expected from retired Rear Adm. Henrique Gouveia e Melo, who is running as an independent and won public acclaim for overseeing the speedy rollout of COVID-19 vaccines during the pandemic.

Only one woman is among the candidates. Portugal has never had a female or non-white head of state.

Last May, Portugal held its third general election in three years in its worst spell of political instability for decades. Steadying the ship is a key challenge for the next president.

Ventura, the populist leader, has sought to turn immigration into a campaign issue, but voters appear more concerned about a housing crisis and the cost of living.

A law permitting euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide in Portugal that parliament approved in 2022, but has been held up by constitutional objections, will likely land on the president’s desk for approval.

In Portugal, the president is largely a figurehead with no executive power. Mostly, the head of state aims to stand above the political fray, mediating disputes and defusing tensions.

However, the president is an influential voice and possesses some powerful tools, being able to veto legislation from parliament, although the veto can be overturned. The head of state also possesses what in Portuguese political jargon is called an “atomic bomb” — the power to dissolve parliament and call early elections.

Political events in Portugal have little bearing on the overall direction of the European Union. It has one of the bloc’s smallest economies, and its armed forces are of a modest size.

A runoff between the top two finishers on Sunday will be held on Feb. 8.

That will decide who serves a five-year term at the president’s riverside “pink palace” in Lisbon.

A man folds his ballot as he votes in Portugal's presidential election at a polling station in Lisbon, Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)

Presidential candidate Henrique Gouveia e Melo, a retired Rear Admiral running as an independent, shakes hands with a fish seller at a market in Lisbon, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026, while campaigning for Sunday's presidential election. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)

Presidential candidate Andre Ventura, of the populist Chega party, gestures to supporters while campaigning for Sunday's presidential election, in Lisbon, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)

Presidential candidate Antonio Jose Seguro, of the center-left Socialist Party, delivers a speech at his campaign closing rally ahead of Sunday's presidential election, in Lisbon, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)

Presidential candidate Antonio Jose Seguro, of the center-left Socialist Party, delivers a speech at his campaign closing rally ahead of Sunday's presidential election, in Lisbon, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)

Presidential candidate Antonio Jose Seguro, of the center-left Socialist Party, delivers a speech at his campaign closing rally ahead of Sunday's presidential election, in Lisbon, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)

Presidential candidate Luis Marques Mendes, center right, from the center-right Social Democratic Party, with his wife Rosa Sofia Salazar, in the background, greets supporters while campaigning for Sunday's presidential election, in Lisbon, Portugal, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)

Presidential candidate Luis Marques Mendes, from the center-right Social Democratic Party, with his wife Rosa Sofia Salazar, gestures to supporters while campaigning for Sunday's presidential election, in Lisbon, Portugal, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)