The first phase would include 1,000 people, Indonesia's president said.
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto said on Wednesday that his country would be willing to fly out and temporarily host wounded and orphans from the Gaza Strip.
“We will evacuate the wounded, orphans, and those traumatized [by the conflict]. Or anyone whom the Palestinian government and relevant parties believe should be evacuated to Indonesia,” said Subianto, according to the Jakarta Globe.
The first phase would include 1,000 people, he added.
Prabowo made the announcement at Jakarta’s Halim Perdanakusuma airport before heading on a weeklong tour of the Middle East to talk with regional leaders about the Gaza crisis.
His first stop will be the United Arab Emirates. He will also visit Turkey, Egypt, Qatar and Jordan, according to the report.
Indonesia’s foreign minister would immediately travel to consult with the Palestinians and other “parties in that region regarding the implementation,” said Prabowo.
The Indonesian president specified however that certain conditions would have to be met, including that all parties approve of the evacuation. He emphasized that the move would be temporary.
“The evacuees may only stay in Indonesia temporarily until they have recovered. They must return to where they come from once the situation in Gaza allows it,” said Prabowo, according to the Globe.
Indonesia had received “many requests” to take a more active part in resolving the Gaza crisis, he added without elaboration.
U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday renewed his call to relocate Gazans who wish to leave to safer locales.
During a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office, Trump said that if the Gazans were moved to different countries, it would create “a freedom zone … a zone where people aren’t going to be killed every day.”
At the same meeting, Netanyahu added: “What the president is talking about is: give people a choice. What is wrong with giving people a choice? … Enabling the people of Gaza to really make a choice to go wherever they want?”
Image - JNS/Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto taking the oath of office on Oct. 20, 2024. Credit: Ministry of State Secretariat of the Republic of Indonesia via Wikimedia Commons.