JAKARTA, Sept 14 (Reuters) - Indonesia's highest Islamic council has issued a fatwa on burning land and forests, a government official said on Wednesday, in an effort to halt the toxic smog that blankets the region each year.

TAIPEI, Sept 14 (Reuters) - More than half a million homes lost power across Taiwan on Wednesday and five people were injured as Super Typhoon Meranti, which is believed to be the world's strongest storm this year, hit the island.

AKUM, Cameroon, Sept 14 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Farmers in this poverty-mired region of northwest Cameroon used to watch their vegetable patches dry up and die in drought periods, even though nearby rivers and streams offered a steady flow of water.

(Reuters) - There is a 50 percent chance a tropical cyclone will develop in the next 48 hours near the Cape Verde Islands, where an area of low pressure is associated with a tropical wave, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said on Wednesday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The effects of climate change endanger U.S. military operations and could increase the danger of international conflict, according to three new documents endorsed by retired top U.S. military officers and former national security officials.

TAIPEI, Sept 14 (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of homes lost power across Taiwan on Wednesday as Super Typhoon Meranti hit the island, a storm seen as the strongest in the world so far this year, forcing schools and businesses to close and flights to be canceled.

(Reuters) - An area of low pressure located just inland near St. Augustine, Florida, has a 70 percent chance of developing into a tropical cyclone in the next 48 hours, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said on Tuesday.

(Reuters) - An area of low pressure located just inland near Daytona Beach, Florida has a 40 percent chance of developing into a tropical cyclone in the next 48 hours, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said on Tuesday.

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain recorded its warmest September day in more than 100 years on Tuesday with temperatures rising to over 34 degrees Celsius in the southern county of Kent.