JAKARTA - Senior diplomat at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ple Priatna, said the Indonesian government must demand that the perpetrators of the explosion that caused the death of three TNI soldiers in South Lebanon, receive a commensurate punishment.
"As our representative in New York (the Indonesian Ambassador to the United Nations, Umar Hadi) said, we should not only emphasize the investigation (of the death of 3 TNI soldiers), but we must demand sanctions," he told Eddy Wijaya in the EdShareOn podcast which aired on Wednesday, April 8, 2026.
During the Emergency Session of the UN Security Council on the situation in Lebanon on March 31, Umar expressed the anger and deep sorrow of the Indonesian government and people over the attack on the UN peacekeeping forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
Two Indonesian soldiers who were members of UNIFIL died on March 30 due to an explosion "from an unknown source" on the side of the road in South Lebanon. The two were Captain Inf Zulmi Aditya Iskandar and Sergeant Muhammad Nur Ichwan.
A day earlier, Head Soldier Farizal Rhomadhon also fell to a Merkava tank shot by the Israeli army, the IDF. Regarding the allegation, Ple said that UNIFIL was indeed a target of the IDF.
"This is not an accident, and this is not the first incident. I note that at least four times the IDF has tried (to carry out an attack)," he said. The first incident was when UNIFIL forces around Kfar Kela village shot down a reconnaissance drone near the post. The drone was known to belong to Israel (IDF). There have also been incidents where drones have dropped grenades near UNIFIL posts.
Another incident was when the IDF placed explosives on the streets of Lebanon, and when a Merkava tank fired directly at a guard post.
"Once again, this is really a target for the IDF. They always break the rules and play the victim, making a narrative as if they were victims, even though they are the perpetrators," said Ple, who served in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 1988 to 2022.
Ple explained that the attack on the UNIFIL post was the IDF's modus operandi under the pretext of pursuing Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed Lebanese paramilitary group. In fact, the IDF knows that there are at least 300 thousand Palestinian refugees living among the local residents. Ple said that in the past in Gaza the IDF had a reason to look for Hamas (a Palestinian militant group), now in Lebanon they have a reason to look for Hezbollah.
According to him, it is clear that the IDF violated UN Security Council Resolution 1701 as well as Resolutions 425 and 426 of 1978 (regarding the establishment of the UNIFIL peacekeepers). As is known, the main focus of UNIFIL is to monitor the border area called the blue line, through the deployment of personnel in the field. These personnel patrol regularly to detect violations that are considered to trigger an escalation of the war. The results of these observations are then reported to the UN for evaluation.
Ple said that Israel should withdraw its troops from the blue line (border area) because it has taken action outside the mandate of the resolution. Not only that, the world and the UN should also impose firm sanctions on Israel, and threaten expulsion from UN membership. Because according to Ple, the current condition is a paradox.
"Resolution 1701 was created to protect Lebanon's sovereignty and stop the Israeli invasion. But this year, the situation has changed drastically: there is no longer any real protection for residents there."
Ple Priatna: UN Veto Rights Should Be LimitedThe position and attitude of the United Nations in mediating the world's geopolitical conflicts, especially those involving the United States, have been highlighted by many parties. In the conflict between Iran and the US and Israel, the UN has also been criticized for applying double standards.
This United Nations, led by Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, is considered to have deliberately let the US and Israel act as they please to interfere with the sovereignty of other countries, even though they have clearly violated international law, especially the UN Charter.
Likewise, in the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by the US military, as well as Israel's attacks and genocide in Palestine, the UN seemed to be silent. According to the senior diplomat of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ple Priatna, the UN has been destroyed from within and without.
"Human rights violations and genocide have occurred, but there has been no real action from the UN. In the Trump era, not only the UN, but international law is being shuffled. The UN Charter has been violated many times," he said when talking to Eddy Wijaya in the EdShareOn podcast which aired on Wednesday, April 8, 2026.
Ple cited the UN Resolution 2817 which was signed on March 11. This resolution condemned Iran for allegedly attacking Gulf countries such as Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar.
"But the UN does not recognize that the problem here is the US and Israel. They are the ones who attacked Iran first, but the UN did not receive any criticism or sanctions for their aggression. This is a double standard that continues to be turned on by the West, by the US-Israel pair," he explained.
According to Ple, the UN has no fangs because of the veto rule that conditions the US to cancel decisions or agreements.
"This will give impunity to Israel and make the world in turmoil," he said. For this reason, it is important that there be a reform of the UN rules, including on the right to veto. "Maybe the solution is not to eliminate the veto, but to limit its use. For example, to stop the war, not to protect the aggressor. "
Who is Eddy Wijaya? Here's his profile
Eddy Wijaya is a podcaster born on August 17, 1972. Through the YouTube account @EdShareOn, Eddy interviewed many national figures ranging from state officials, legal experts, political experts, national politicians, to local celebrities.
The man with a right cheek dimple is also a nationalist who is an activist for the marginalized and social observers by helping the community through the Wijaya Peduli Bangsa Foundation.
He is also active in the field of sports by serving as the Chairman of the Indonesian Equestrian Sports Association (Pordasi) Pacu and also served as Deputy General Chairman of the Indonesian Badminton Association (PBSI) East Jakarta. Eddy also served as an Advisor to the Indonesian Chinese Social Association, 2022-2026.
His ideas were formed because of his hard work to be independent from the age of 13 to be successful as he is now. For Eddy, the world of work is not as smooth as imagined, failure and rejection are common. This is what makes him hold on to the tagline "Success is just a matter of time". (ADV)
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
