U.S. President Donald Trump ’s proposal to relocate some of the 2 million people of Gaza to other countries, including Indonesia, is viewed as a scheme to eliminate the state of Palestine.
International relations expert from Padjajaran University, Teuku Rezasyah, said international law stipulates that a political entity is recognized as state if it has territory, population that inhabits the territory, the population’s ability to manage themselves, and international recognition.
“In the context of Palestine, if the U.S. makes Palestinians leave, their country will no more exists. This is like annihilating the State of Palestine,“ Rezasyah spoke to Indonesia Business Post on Thursday, January 23, 2025.
He said it is the United States that destroys the live of Palestinians and complicate their struggle for statehood with its determinant position in the United Nations Security Council.
“Currently, the U.S. leaves the world responsible for Palestinians. [They] stir up trouble and then walk away,” he cited.
The Indonesian Foreign Ministry issued a statement on Tuesday, January 21, 2025 that the Government of Indonesia has never received any information from anyone, nor any plans regarding the relocation of some of Gaza’s 2 million inhabitants to Indonesia as part of post-conflict reconstruction efforts.
The ministry said it refrained from speculating on issues of which no information is available, while stressing that Indonesia’s stance remains unequivocal: Any attempts to displace or remove Gaza’s residents is entirely unacceptable.
“Such efforts to depopulate Gaza would only serve to perpetuate the illegal Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory and align with broader strategies aimed at expelling Palestinians from Gaza,” it said.
The ministry also emphasized that ceasefire in Gaza must serve as a momentum to start dialogue and negotiations towards realizing a two-state solution, in accordance with international law and internationally agreed parameters.
Earlier, NBC reported on Saturday, January 18, 2025 that US President Donald Trump’s team is considering “temporarily relocating some of Gaza’s two million Palestinians outside the besieged enclave while it is rebuilt.
The American TV network cited an anonymous transition official as saying that one of the temporary host countries considered for refugees was Indonesia.
NBC also reported that incoming Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff is considering a visit to war-torn Gaza, as part of efforts to maintain the ceasefire deal between Hamas and Israel.
“You got to see it, you got to feel it,” the transition official said, adding that doing so would allow Witkoff to see “the dynamics playing out on the ground himself, rather than taking Israel’s word for it.”
According to the source, Witkoff is working to achieve long-term stability for the Israelis and two million displaced Palestinians, the path encompassed in the three stages of the deal concluded last week.
Witkoff’s meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on January 11, 2025 was critical in concluding a deal.
