Meeting Biden Next Week, Jokowi Will Convey Indonesia's Position On Gaza

JAKARTA - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) will convey Indonesia's position on the current situation in the Gaza Strip, when meeting US President Joe Biden in Washington DC on November 13.

"President Jokowi will convey Indonesia's position regarding the situation in Gaza to President Joe Biden," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Lalu Muhamad Iqbal as reported by ANTARA, Thursday, November 9.

The bilateral meeting of Jokowi-Biden will take place after the Extraordinary Summit of Islamic Cooperation Organizations (OKI) in Riyadh on 11-12 November 2023, to respond to the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas group in Gazabe and the humanitarian impact it has caused.

According to Iqbal, the summit will be focused on discussing the latest developments in the situation in Gaza and consolidating joint efforts by OIC countries to stop Israel's atrocities in Gaza at this time.

"Because the bilateral meeting took place right after the OKI Summit, it is certain that President Jokowi will also convey the results of the summit to President Joe Biden," he said.

The US is an ally and supporter of Israel, so Washington's position is deemed to have greatly affected the conflict in Gaza which over the past month has killed more than 10,000 victims, including children and women.

On several occasions, President Jokowi expressed criticism for the violence and attacks that resulted in civilian casualties in Gaza.

This Indonesian call is closely related to the safety of six Indonesian citizens who are still in Gaza.

Three Indonesian citizens are Muhammad Husein's family who are still waiting to be evacuated, while the other three people are volunteers who work at the Indonesian Hospital in Gaza.

The three volunteers decided to continue to carry out their humanitarian duties in Gaza and refused to be evacuated.