Govt to send team to Mideast

JAKARTA: A team from the manpower and transmigration ministry will leave for the Middle East on Thursday to make plans for the evacuation of Indonesian nationals ahead of a possible U.S.-led war on Iraq, the ministry's official said.

The team will make preparations over the next two weeks for the evacuation of Indonesians in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, I Gusti Made Arka, the team's vice chairman, said on Tuesday, adding that the government had already prepared a number of airplanes to evacuate Indonesian nationals in the event of war.

According to reports, Indonesian nationals in the area will be evacuated to Dubai if the United States and its allies launch an attack on Iraq.

There are some 60,000 Indonesians working in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates. The government recently flew back home 97 Indonesians from Iraq.

"If necessary, the others will be brought home too," Made Arka said. --Antara