TENS of thousands of people killed in last month’s Burmese cyclone may never be identified because their bodies have decomposed so badly and many ended up far from home, an aid organisation said yesterday.

INDONESIA yesterday ordered foreign aid workers in tsunami-devastated Aceh province to have military escorts in areas facing violence by insurgents, even as the vice-president welcomed a cease-fire offer by the rebels.

The death toll from epic tidal waves that rocked 11 countries rose to 40,000 people today after Sri Lanka and Indonesia significantly increased their confirmed deaths.