UPDATE 1 — Indonesia's new disaster mitigation chief plans to assess foreign aid to tackle wildfires

(Recast with comments from new officials) Prabowo appointed new chiefs for disaster agency, peatland body New appointments came as Indonesia struggles to contain wildfires Haze also affected Malaysia, Singapore, East Timor JAKARTA, Oct 15 (Reuters) — Indonesian authorities said on Thursday they would consider offers of foreign assistance to tackle the country's biggest forest fires in over a decade after President Prabowo Subianto named new disaster management leaders. The Southeast Asian nation is facing intense criticism as it struggles to control its most intense wildfires since 2015 after an El Niño-driven drought turned forests and land highly flammable. The fires have been raging for months and hundreds of thousands of people have contracted respiratory illnesses in the worst-hit provinces, while the transboundary haze has also hampered air quality in neighbouring countries, forcing school closures in Malaysia and East Timor. "The sky yesterday was very yellow... People's activities are far reduced because of this condition. We hope there will be rain soon that will ease this problem," 46-year-old Adinata, a resident of Palangka Raya city in Central Kalimantan, told Reuters.