Post misrepresents Indonesian peacekeeping proposal in Gaza | Fact check

Hannah Hudnall, USA TODAY

The claim: Indonesia announced it will send troops to protect Palestinians from Israel

A June 3 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) shows a picture of a large group of soldiers standing in front of a line of tanks.

"Indonesia just announced it's ready to deploy its troops to protect Palestinians from Israel," reads text in the post. "The Zionists are running out of friends."

The post's caption says, "If only more muslims country (sic) would speak up."

The post was liked more than 8,000 times in less than two weeks. Similar versions of the claim were shared on Instagram, Facebook and X, formerly Twitter.

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Our rating: False

This is a misrepresentation of a statement by Indonesia's president-elect. He said Indonesia would send peacekeeping troops to Gaza to protect all sides if requested by the United Nations.

No Indonesian plan to defend Palestinians against Israel

While speaking June 1 at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Indonesia's president-elect Prabowo Subianto said his country was willing to send peacekeeping troops to Gaza to "maintain and monitor" a ceasefire if needed.

He did not say his country would send troops to defend Palestinians from Israel amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, but said Indonesia would send troops to protect "all sides."

"When needed and when requested by the U.N., we are prepared to contribute significant peacekeeping forces to maintain and monitor this prospective ceasefire as well as providing protection and security to all parties and to all sides," Prabowo said.

He said Indonesia would also be willing to send medical personnel to help "all sides" and would evacuate and treat up to 1,000 wounded Palestinian civilians.

"Indonesia calls for a just solution to the problem," Prabowo said. "And that means the rights of not only Israel to exist, but also the rights of the Palestinian people to have their own homeland, their own state, living in peace."

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Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi later specified the country would only send peacekeeping troops if authorized by a U.N. mandate, according to the Indonesian outlet Antara.

Prabowo and Indonesia's defense minister met with Secretary of State Antony Blinken on June 12 to discuss a proposal for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, according to a statement from the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta. The group discussed how the proposal "would benefit both Israelis and Palestinians alike."

Though Indonesia's outgoing president Joko Widodo publicly criticized Israel's attacks in Gaza, Indonesia has not announced any plans to send troops to fight Israel.

USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

Reuters also debunked the claim.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: No Indonesian plan to 'protect Palestinians from Israel' | Fact check

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