Indonesia has announced preparations to deploy up to 8,000 soldiers to Gaza, becoming the first country to signal participation in the second phase of a ceasefire arrangement brokered by the United States late last year, BBC reports.
Army Chief of Staff General Maruli Simanjuntak confirmed that training is already underway. He said the contingent would primarily undertake medical and engineering duties once deployed.
Jakarta has also joined US President Donald Trump’s newly established Board of Peace, unveiled last month. The body has been granted a United Nations Security Council mandate to form an International Stabilisation Force (ISF). The proposed force is tasked with securing Gaza’s border areas and overseeing the territory’s demilitarisation, including the disarmament of Hamas.
The Board of Peace is scheduled to convene its inaugural meeting in Washington on February 19. In addition to security matters, it will supervise the formation of a technocratic Palestinian administration in Gaza and coordinate post-war reconstruction efforts.
While the precise timeline and operational details of Indonesia’s deployment remain undecided, President Prabowo Subianto appears to have made a political commitment for the troops to participate.
The decision to join the US-led initiative has drawn criticism from several Islamic groups at home, reflecting broader public frustration in Indonesia over Washington’s role in Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. It is reported that the government may have taken the fee from the deactivation of 11mn National Health Insurance (JKN) Premium Assistance Recipients (PBI). The government has said that this measure was taken by the government to ensure that health subsidies from the state budget (APBN) are properly targeted to people in deciles 1 to 5, despite the timeline being similar to their Gaza peace council membership.
Despite backlash, President Prabowo continues to defend the move, arguing that Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim-majority country, has a responsibility to contribute to stabilising Gaza. He has maintained that Jakarta’s involvement would support efforts towards a long-term two-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.
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