VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

VOINews, Jakarta - Communication and Informatics Ministry's (Kominfo's) Director General of Public Information and Communication Usman Kansong expressed hope that the state media would strengthen its position as a "clearing house" for various information circulating on social media.

"There are some requirements for state media in being a clearing house," Kansong remarked while opening a forum group discussion (FGD) themed "The Role of State Media in the Making the 2024 Elections Peaceful" here on Thursday.

State media, including ANTARA News Agency, national radio broadcasting institution RRI, and public broadcaster TVRI, attended the FGD.

Kansong remarked that the state media, in being a clearing house for the flow of information, should be independent and that independence must be measured.

"The question is who are we siding with? It is something like that," he remarked.

He admitted that no mass media, including state media, is completely independent.

"We align with who? If we look at it, the right term (for ANTARA, RRI, and TVRI) is 'public media', not state media. That is, public broadcaster, public radio, public television," he explained.

In addition, he said that state media must, of course, side with the government as an organizational entity or agency and "not side with the government as individuals."

"Siding with the government, not with its officials. Stand with the state as an entity, not individuals," Kansong remarked.

On a separate occasion, Deputy Minister of Communication and Informatics Nezar Patria stated that his side continues to supervise the radio frequency spectrum to prevent various potential abuses, especially during the 2024 elections.

Patria remarked that the dissemination of hoaxes and disinformation related to elections can be done through various means, including illegal radio frequency channels.

"We need to participate in making the 2024 election safe by securing our (radio) frequency space," he noted in the ministry's statement. (Antaranews)

VOINews, Jakarta - The Jakarta Health Office continues to conduct case detection efforts against mpox by tracing close contacts for 24 hours to prevent spread of the disease.

“We carry out a 24-hour investigation, including close contact tracing, to check the spread of cases,” Head of the Jakarta Health Office Ani Ruspitawati confirmed here on Thursday.

Detection efforts have been conducted because, as of October 25, the mpox case count in Jakarta has reached 13.

Of the total 13 mpox patients, 12 are still undergoing isolation at hospitals, while one patient has recovered.

Nine people are categorized as suspects or those suspected of having mpox symptoms.

In addition, the Jakarta Health Office continues to follow up on the findings of suspected or probable cases of mpox from health facilities in Jakarta. The office continues to coordinate with the Ministry of Health regarding case finding, recording, and reporting.

According to Ruspitawati, regional public hospitals in Jakarta as well as the Prof Dr Sulianto Saroso Infectious Disease Hospital can serve as referral hospitals for mpox patients to get further treatment.

This is also aimed at facilitating patients whose house conditions make it difficult to conduct self-isolation.

“If the mpox patient is declared recovered by the doctor, a follow-up test through PCR test or special examination is not necessary. Then, the patient can carry out their activities again like before,” she explained.

The health office has also coordinated with other institutions that must be alert against mpox spread, including those engaged in handling the health of animals and wild animals in Jakarta.

The coordination includes risk assessment and disseminating information about mpox to the public through various information media. Currently, mpox vaccination is still being administered to groups vulnerable to the infection.

Moreover, the Jakarta Health Office continues to communicate about the risks in accordance with the Mpox Prevention and Control Guidelines of the Ministry of Health, especially to certain groups. (Antaranews)

VOINews, Jakarta - Israel said its ground forces had pushed into Gaza overnight to attack Hamas targets as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was "preparing for a ground invasion" that could be one of several.

"I will not elaborate on when, how or how many," he said in a televised update to citizens on Wednesday evening.

The besieged Palestinian enclave is already reeling from almost three weeks of Israeli bombardment, which was triggered by a mass killing spree in southern Israel by the Iranian-backed Hamas militants who run Gaza.

Hamas has threatened to kill some of the more than 200 hostages it brought back to Gaza, of whom Israel says more than half hold foreign passports, from 25 countries.

Other Iranian-backed groups have since attempted attacks on Israel elsewhere in the region; Western leaders fear that a high death toll among Palestinian civilians, who have already been killed in large numbers by Israeli air strikes, could spark a wider war.

U.S. President Joe Biden held a call with Netanyahu, discussing "ongoing efforts to locate and secure the release" of Americans believed held hostage in Gaza, the White House said overnight.

It said safe passage for foreigners wishing to leave Gaza, a continuous flow of aid into the narrow coastal strip, which is blockaded by Israel, and a pathway to permanent peace with the Palestinian people were also discussed.

"The President reiterated that Israel has every right and responsibility to defend its citizens from terrorism and to do so in a manner consistent with international humanitarian law," the White House said.

The comments reflect a balancing act over U.S. support for Israel's actions after Biden was criticised for casting doubt on Palestinian casualty figures.

NETANYAHU SUGGESTS MORE THAN ONE GROUND INVASION PLANNED

Israeli army radio said the military had overnight staged its biggest incursion into northern Gaza in the current war against Hamas, which Israel has vowed to eliminate.

The military later released video on X showing armoured vehicles crossing the highly fortified barrier from Israel and blowing up buildings "in preparation for the next stages of combat".

"Tanks and infantry struck numerous terrorist cells, infrastructure and anti-tank missile launch posts," it said.

Palestinians in Gaza said Israeli air strikes had pounded the territory again overnight and people living in central Gaza, near the Bureij refugee camp and east of Qarara village, reported intensive tank shelling all night.

Hamas did not comment directly on the Israeli report but said its armed wing had struck an Israeli helicopter east of Bureij. The Israeli military said it was "not aware of this".

Israel has carried out weeks of intense bombardment of the densely populated Strip following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israeli communities, which it says killed some 1,400 people.

Gaza's health ministry said on Wednesday that more than 6,500 Palestinians had been killed in the air strikes.

In Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, an Israeli air strike hit a house, killing a mother, her three daughters and a baby boy.

The father said his parents had been made homeless by Israelis in 1948 and that he would not leave, whatever happened. Holding the baby's body, with those of his family nearby, he said:

"He is only two months and a half old, what did he do? Did he kill? Did he wound someone? Did he capture someone? They were innocent children inside their house."

The director of the Nasser hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis, Nahed Abu Taaema, said the bodies of 77 people killed in air strikes had been brought in overnight, most of them women and children, Hamas's Al-Aqsa radio station reported.

Many Palestinians are sheltering in Khan Younis's hospitals, schools, homes and existing refugee camps and on the street after Israel warned them to leave their homes in the north.

Israel did not respond directly to the report but said its forces had struck a Hamas surface-to-air missile launch post in the Khan Younis area, which it said had been placed next to a mosque and kindergarten.

It was not clear if both sides were referring to the same incident.

Humanitarian supplies are critically low but world powers failed at the United Nations to agree on how to call for a lull to the fighting to deliver significant amounts of aid. Mass graves have begun to be used as the civilian toll has mounted.

The Palestinian Red Crescent said 12 trucks had crossed from Egypt carrying food, water and medical supplies on Thursday, making 74 trucks since Saturday, still only a small fraction of Gaza's peacetime needs. Israel has not allowed fuel in, saying Hamas would just add it to its stockpile.

U.S. CONCERNED ABOUT IRANIAN-BACKED ATTACKS ON ITS TROOPS

Reflecting concerns the Gaza war may spread, the Wall Street Journal reported that Israel had agreed to delay invading Gaza until U.S. air defence systems can be placed in the region, as early as this week, to protect American forces.

Asked about the report, U.S. officials told Reuters that Washington had raised concerns with Israel that Iran and Iranian-backed Islamist groups could escalate the conflict by attacking U.S. troops in the Middle East. An Israeli incursion into Gaza could be a trigger for Iranian proxies, they said.

Israeli warplanes struck Syrian army infrastructure on Wednesday in response to rockets fired from Syria, an ally of Iran. Israel has also targeted Syria's Aleppo airport and Iranian-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Iran, Israel's arch-enemy, which backs armed groups in Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen as well as Hamas as part of a long-running bid for regional ascendancy, has warned Israel to stop its onslaught on Gaza. (Reuters)

VOINews, Jakarta - Israel has told civilians in the northern Gaza Strip, including residents of Gaza City, to move to the south of the enclave, saying it will be safer there as the military attacks Hamas following its Oct. 7 cross-border assault.

However, Israeli warplanes have continued to hit sites in southern Gaza, spreading fear among the evacuees that they are just as vulnerable there as they were in their homes in the north. Here is an overview of the situation.

WHY IS ISRAEL STILL HITTING THE SOUTH?

Since telling Gazans to head south, the Israeli military (IDF) has continued to pound targets across the area, killing an unknown number of civilians. In all, authorities in Gaza say 6,546 Palestinians have died since Israeli strikes started on Oct. 7.

Residents said the bombardment of the south intensified on Oct. 25. One strike brought down several apartment buildings in Khan Younis, some 10 km (6 miles) from the Egyptian border.

The IDF has said that even if Hamas's main power centre is in Gaza City, it is nonetheless entrenched among the civilian population across the enclave.

"Wherever a Hamas target arises, the IDF will strike at it in order to thwart the terrorist capabilities of the group, while taking feasible precautions to mitigate the harm to uninvolved civilians," the military said on Wednesday, reiterating previous statements.

The military has said the homes where militants live are "legitimate targets" even if civilians live alongside them.

"The so-called private home is not a private home," a senior Israeli air force officer told reporters in a recent briefing.

WHY DID ISRAEL ORDER THE EVACUATION SOUTH?

The Israeli military said on Oct. 12 that nearly half of Gaza's 2.3 million population should move to the southern half of Gaza within 24 hours. The military said the order was aimed at moving civilians away from "Hamas terror targets", which it believes are concentrated in the north.

Military spokesman Jonathan Conricus subsequently said: "We are preparing the area for significant military activity in Gaza City. That is the next stage. That's why we are asking civilians to go south of the Gaza River."

Israel has massed troops on the border with Gaza and is widely expected to launch a land invasion.

On Oct. 18, the military urged residents of Gaza to evacuate to what it called a humanitarian zone in Al Mawasi, on the coast of southern Gaza.

Israel renewed its warnings on Oct. 22, saying that anyone staying in the north could be identified as sympathisers of a "terrorist organisation" if they did not leave.

HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE MOVED?

Hamas has urged Palestinians to ignore the Israeli warnings.

Israel said on Wednesday it had attacked Hamas roadblocks that it believed were stopping people evacuate.

Despite Hamas's attempts to stop an exodus, residents and international aid organisations say there has been a mass displacement of people away from the north and other areas of the enclave seen as a especially vulnerable to attack.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimated on Oct. 24 that more than 1.4 million people are internally displaced (IDPs) within Gaza.

Gaza's border crossings with both Egypt and Israel are closed, effectively trapping residents inside the enclave.

WHAT HAS THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY SAID?

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said giving hundreds of thousands of people just hours to leave their homes was "dangerous and deeply troubling". Many Western governments have called for a pause in the fighting to open humanitarian corridors for the trapped civilians. Arab nations have called for Israel to stop the war. (Reuters)