Bodies of Three TNI Soldiers from Lebanon Expected to Arrive This Weekend
The Ministry of Defence has stated that the bodies of three TNI soldiers who died while carrying out the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) peacekeeping mission in Lebanon are expected to arrive in Indonesia this weekend. Head of the Defence Information Bureau at the Ministry of Defence’s General Secretariat, Rico Ricardo Sirait, said that the three bodies are currently at Saida Hospital in Lebanon for the preparation process.
He explained that the bodies are scheduled to be repatriated on Friday, arriving in Indonesia on Saturday, or departed on Saturday and arriving on Sunday. However, this schedule is still tentative.
Rico explained that limited flights due to the escalation of conflict in the Gulf region are an obstacle in the repatriation process. “The scarcity of flights in the current Gulf conflict area makes the repatriation schedule uncertain. We will provide updates once there is certainty,” Rico said at his office on Thursday, 2 April 2026.
Previously, three TNI soldiers died and five others were injured in two separate incidents in southern Lebanon on 29-30 March 2026, amid the escalation of conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, which has impacted the security situation in the UNIFIL operational area. The three fallen soldiers are Captain Zulmi Aditya Iskandar, Sergeant First Class Muhammad Nur Ikhwan, and Private First Class Farizal Rhomadhon.
The first incident occurred in the Adchit al-Qusayr area when a projectile explosion struck the UNIFIL force area, killing one soldier. A day later, another explosion occurred near Bani Hayyan and hit a patrol vehicle, causing the deaths of the other two soldiers.
Meanwhile, the three TNI soldiers who sustained serious injuries are still undergoing treatment at one of the hospitals in Beirut. The two soldiers with minor injuries have completed their treatment. “They are now improving and in a more stable condition than before,” Rico said. The series of incidents demonstrates the increasing risks faced by Indonesian peacekeeping forces in the UNIFIL mission in the conflict-ridden southern Lebanon area.