MPR RI: The World Must Guarantee the Safety of UN Peacekeeping Troops
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Deputy Speaker of the MPR RI, Lestari Moerdijat, stated that the international community must guarantee the security of UN peacekeeping troops to prevent them from becoming targets of conflict, as occurred in Lebanon.
“Peacekeeping forces carry a humanitarian mandate. They must not become targets of conflict. The world must ensure maximum protection for them,” Lestari said in a statement in Jakarta on Tuesday.
Lestari conveyed condolences over the deaths of three Indonesian soldiers serving with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in southern Lebanon.
The Indonesian government, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, she said, has issued a strong condemnation and urged a thorough and transparent investigation into the incident.
She assessed the event as a serious warning to the global community, necessitating concrete steps to strengthen protection for UN forces.
The member of the House of Representatives Commission X urged ensuring firm action against every attack on UN personnel to prevent impunity.
In addition, she also encouraged the government to conduct more intensive international diplomacy to curb conflict escalation.
“This is not just grief for Indonesia alone, but for the world. Do not let the humanitarian mission be defeated by armed conflict,” she said.
The escalation of conflict in the Middle East region, she stated, shows that risks to peacekeeping forces remain high.
Therefore, Lestari urged that efforts to protect UN personnel should not only be normative commitments but be realised in concrete actions on the ground.
It is known that three TNI soldiers were reported dead in separate incidents in the UNIFIL operational area in southern Lebanon. They were part of the victims of the increasing escalation of conflict in the border area, which has heated up in recent weeks.
Since early March 2026, the conflict in southern Lebanon has killed more than 1,200 people, including civilians. In addition, several UN peacekeeping personnel have also been reported as victims, either killed or injured.
The incident that killed the Indonesian soldiers was said to have occurred due to projectile attacks and explosions around the peacekeeping forces’ duty area.