​​​​​​ISTANBUL

Indonesia has prepared 20,000 personnel for deployment to the Palestinian enclave of the Gaza Strip’s mission, Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin said Friday.

The peacekeeping force includes medical teams and engineers and could be deployed soon with the necessary international support, said Sjafrie, according to the Antara state-run news agency.

Indonesia has two options to secure approval for the deployment, including one under "the auspices of the United Nations (UN)," Sjafrie said during a meeting at the Ministry of Defense in central Jakarta.

The second includes "under the approval of an international organization initiated by the President of the United States," he added.

He said the second option would require high-level diplomatic engagement and agreements between heads of state.

"For Arab countries, namely Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, if they give the green light, Indonesia would be happy to get involved," said Sjafrie, adding that Israel's approval for the plan would be essential.

Under US President Donald Trump’s 20-point plan to end the war in Gaza, a phased ceasefire agreement between the Palestinian resistance group, Hamas, and Israel, brokered through regional and international mediation, took effect Oct. 10.

Phase one includes the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and a partial Israeli withdrawal. It also envisages rebuilding Gaza and establishing a new governing mechanism without Hamas, including a temporary International Stabilization Force (ISF).

No details have been finalized.

Israel continues to violate the ceasefire daily, causing hundreds of Palestinian casualties.

Since October 2023, Israeli attacks have killed more than 69,000 victims, mostly women and children, injured over 170,000, and left the enclave uninhabitable.

Intelligence sharing with Jordan

Sjafrie’s statement came during Jordanian King Abdullah II’s visit to Jakarta, where he met Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto.

He said Indonesia and Jordan will share intelligence regarding the situation in Gaza.

After his meeting with Armed Forces chief Yousef Ahmed Al-Hunaiti, the Indonesian defense minister said, “We will jointly form a committee to exchange intelligence and updates. Given Jordan’s geographic proximity to Gaza, we see strategic value in collaborating with them to better understand conditions on the ground.”

Sjafrie stressed that Jakarta needs the intelligence in light of its plans to deploy a peacekeeping force.

He added that the two countries will also collaborate in developing drone technology through a partnership between state-owned weapons manufacturer PT Pindad and Jordan's defense company Deep Element, as part of broader bilateral military agreements to strengthen defense technology capabilities.