FPI: Do Not Send the TNI to Gaza to Confront Hamas

Front Pembela Islam (FPI) has warned that Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) sent to Gaza should not confront Hamas. ‘We request that there are no Indonesian soldiers dispatched to Gaza who would face the fighters in Hamas in direct confrontation; we do not want that,’ said Hanif Alatas, Secretary of the FPI’s Syuro Council, after a meeting between President Prabowo Subianto and Islamic organisations at the Istana Presidential Compound in Jakarta on Thursday, 5 March 2026. Hanif said the FPI supports and would even send volunteers if the TNI mission to Gaza is to fight for Palestinian independence. ‘If dispatched to Gaza to liberate Palestine, we will support and are prepared to back volunteers. But if sent to Gaza under American command and disarm the Gaza fighters, leading to confrontation, that is what we do not want,’ Hanif added. He noted that the request was contained in a letter handed to Prabowo. Another point in the letter is a call for Indonesia to withdraw from the Board of Peace (BoP), the peace council initiated by the United States. He said the FPI urged Indonesia to leave the Peace Council because the US and Israel are also members of the organisation. ‘Why? We trust the President’s goodwill, but we do not trust America, we do not trust Israel. Not even the prophets and messengers were betrayed by Israel. We are only human,’ he said. During the meeting yesterday, Prabowo reportedly asserted that he would withdraw from the Board of Peace if it no longer benefits Palestine. ‘The President said that if there is no longer any benefit to Palestine, no opportunity to advance Palestine’s interests, and it does not align with Indonesia’s national interests, he would withdraw,’ Hanif quoted. ‘But we should not wait for that; as of now, it has long been proven that America cannot be trusted,’ he continued. Jeffers also stated that Indonesia is among five countries committed to sending troops to join the ISF. Foreign Minister Sugiono reiterated that the plan to send TNI troops to Gaza under the International Stabilization Force (ISF) is to protect Palestinian civilians. ‘We will protect civilians there and seek to undertake humanitarian assistance in the area. We operate within the ISF framework,’ Sugiono said during a break in the UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva, Switzerland, on 24 February 2026.