VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

VOINews, Jakarta - Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi has reaffirmed that her side has been striving to evacuate 10 Indonesian citizens from the Gaza Strip every day amid an escalation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

"Almost every day I communicate with representatives of our citizens in Gaza. However, the evacuation could not be done yet because the situation is still very difficult," she said in a press statement on the development of the Gaza situation, which was received here on Wednesday.

She further said that she has been communicating with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and various parties who can help carry out the safe evacuation of Indonesian citizens.

"We will mobilize all efforts to evacuate Indonesian citizens safely," she assured.

Based on the ministry's data, the 10 Indonesian citizens trapped in Gaza comprise 3 MER-C volunteers at the Indonesian Hospital and 7 Indonesian nationals who are married to locals.

Marsudi said that the evacuation of Indonesian citizens can only be carried out if a ceasefire is agreed upon between the two nations, which have witnessed an escalation in conflict since the Hamas group attacked Israeli territory on October 7, 2023.

On October 13, the Indonesian government successfully evacuated 4 Indonesian citizens from the West Bank and surrounding areas.

Meanwhile, as many as 129 Indonesian citizens living in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and parts of the West Bank chose not to return to their home country because they felt their situation was still safe.

In a telephone conversation on October 15, Marsudi and Malaysian Foreign Minister Zambry Abdul Kadir discussed the issues related to the latest developments in Palestine.

The two, according to Kadir, discussed the importance of an uninterrupted humanitarian corridor to Gaza to quickly address the mounting humanitarian crisis. (Antaranews)