Indonesia calls off search for journalists missing while covering eruption

Indonesian rescuers have called off a search on its 10th day for eight people missing at sea, including five journalists who were covering the eruption of Mount Anak Krakatau earlier this month.

Banten governor Andra Soni, announced late on Thursday the search would be called off because rescuers have not found the missing people, adding it could be restarted if there were new leads.

Photojournalists from local and foreign media organisations, including Turkey's Anadolu Agency, had departed from Banten province on September 7 aboard a speedboat before losing contact, initially triggering the search-and-rescue operation.

Ash from Mount Anak Krakatau, situated halfway between Java and Sumatra islands, blanketed the capital Jakarta, and some surrounding areas after its initial eruption late on September 4.

The eruption led to the closure of eight airports for safety reasons, affecting more than 340,000 travellers.

Indonesia sits on the seismically active Pacific "Ring of Fire" and has 500 volcanoes, ​127 of which are active, according to its volcanology agency.