Governor Khofifah welcomes two East Java students evacuated from Iran
Surabaya — East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa welcomed the return of two students from East Java who were successfully evacuated from Iran following escalating tensions and armed conflict in the Middle East region.
“Alhamdulillah, we have received a visit from two students from Jember and Malang who were studying in Iran and arrived in Indonesia today,” she said while receiving them at the headquarters of Muslimat Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) in Jakarta, as reported in Surabaya on Saturday.
She expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Kemenlu) for conducting a staged evacuation process of Indonesian citizens (WNI) from Iran amid increasing tensions in the Middle East region.
“We thank the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for successfully conducting a staged evacuation process of Indonesian citizens in Iran amid escalating tensions and conflict in the Middle East region,” she said.
According to her, given the developing situation in Iran and the Middle East, the Indonesian government’s priority is ensuring the safety of all Indonesian citizens in the country.
“Alhamdulillah, we have coordinated with the East Java Regional Liaison Office so they can be facilitated to return to their respective homes. This is the third stage and there will be more arrivals tonight,” she said.
Khofifah expressed hope that they could return safely and reunite with their families at home.
Dian, a student at the Faculty of Medicine at Shiraz University from Malang, expressed appreciation to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the East Java Provincial Government for facilitating her return to Indonesia.
She explained that the evacuation process was conducted in stages through several Indonesian diplomatic missions abroad.
“Starting with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Indonesian Embassy in Teheran in Iran, then the Indonesian Embassy in Azerbaijan, then being picked up by the Turkish Consulate General, and then facilitated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to return to Indonesia. After that, we were connected to the Regional Liaison Office to be facilitated back to our respective regions,” she said.
Muhammad Baghir, a student at the Faculty of Computer Engineering at Qom University from Jember, expressed gratitude for being able to return to Indonesia following the tense situation in Iran.
“Thank you to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the East Java Provincial Government led by Ibu Khofifah, who facilitated our safe return to our respective regions with assistance from the East Java Regional Liaison Office,” he said.