Yusril Ihza Mahendra ensures that Indonesia's support for Palestine is not related to the Abdul Karim case

JAKARTA - Coordinating Minister for Legal, Human Rights, Immigration, and Corrections (Menko Kumham Imipas) Yusril Ihza Mahendra emphasized that Indonesia's commitment to supporting the Palestinian people's struggle remains consistent and unchanged, even though the government deported a Palestinian citizen who is also an Interpol fugitive, Abdul Karim Raeq Miqdad.

Yusril made the statement during an audience with the leadership of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) in Jakarta to provide an explanation regarding the deportation of Abdul Karim, which has recently become a public concern.

"The handling of the case does not change Indonesia's commitment to Palestine," Yusril said when confirmed in Jakarta, Thursday.

According to Yusril, Indonesia's support for the Palestinian people's struggle has been a consistent political stance since 1948 and has never changed.

Therefore, he emphasized that the case of Abdul Karim is an individual criminal case and is under the jurisdiction of another country, so it cannot be associated with Indonesia's policies and political attitudes towards Palestine.

"Indonesia's commitment to the Palestinian people's struggle has never changed since 1948," he said.

Abdul Karim's deportation based on the Interpol Red Notice

Yusril explained that Abdul Karim's deportation was carried out based on the red notice or Interpol red notice mechanism. This step was taken because Indonesia did not have an extradition agreement with the Republic of Cyprus.

According to him, the Government of Cyprus has sufficient initial evidence and has designated Abdul Karim as a suspect for alleged criminal acts committed in the country's jurisdiction.

Communication between the Cyprus Police and the Indonesian National Police (Polri), continued Yusril, has been taking place since May 21, 2026, long before Interpol issued a red notice on July 16, 2026.

After the notification was received by NCB-Interpol Indonesia, the deportation process was carried out on July 17, 2026. The Cypriot government even sent a special plane with police escort to pick up Abdul Karim in Jakarta.

Yusril emphasized that Interpol has very strict procedures before issuing a red notice. One of the main requirements is to ensure that the case filed is not related to religion, politics, human rights, or military affairs.

"After going through the examination process, this case was declared as a purely criminal case, so it became the basis for Indonesia to follow up on the request in accordance with the applicable mechanism," he explained.

Denies Narasi Abdul Karim as a Scholar and Humanitarian Activist

Responding to various information circulating in the community, Yusril also straightened out the narrative that referred to Abdul Karim as a Palestinian scholar and humanitarian activist in the Gaza Strip.

Based on the results of coordination between the Indonesian government and the Palestinian Embassy in Jakarta, the information was confirmed to be untrue.

In addition, Yusril denied the issue that said Abdul Karim would be handed over to Israel after arriving in Cyprus.

The Indonesian government, he said, had requested direct guarantees from the Cypriot government. In the guarantee it was emphasized that Abdul Karim would not be handed over to a third country because it was against the provisions in force in the Interpol mechanism.

MUI Appreciates Government's Clarification Steps

In a meeting held at the MUI Office, Jakarta, Wednesday (22/7) evening, MUI Chairman KH Anwar Iskandar appreciated Yusril's presence who opened a space for dialogue with the leaders of MUI and Islamic community organizations.

"On behalf of the MUI management, I would like to express my gratitude to Prof. Yusril. We know that his busy schedule is very extraordinary, but he still took the time to attend directly at MUI. Jazakumullah khairan, may this be a value of virtuous deeds," said Anwar.

According to him, the audience was an important momentum to carry out tabayyun or clarification so that Islamic community leaders and leaders could gain a complete understanding of the deportation case of Abdul Karim.

He emphasized that the government's explanation did not reduce Indonesia's constitutional commitment which has consistently supported Palestinian independence since the beginning.

The audience was also attended by the Chairman of MUI for Foreign Relations Sudarnoto Abdul Hakim, Chairman of MUI for Law Wahiduddin Adams, Chairman of MUI for Brotherhood Zaitun Rasmin, Special Staff to the Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Imipas for Administration Herdito Sandi Pratama, and Special Staff to the Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Imipas for Foreign Relations Ahmad Usmarwi Kaffah.