'No such plans': Indonesia MFA refutes Israeli media report of President Prabowo visiting Israel

Just hours after Israeli media claimed that Indonesia’s president Prabowo Subianto was due to be the first Indonesian president to visit Israel, his country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs swiftly quashed the rumours, saying that there were “no such plans”.

No Such Plans

The Times of Israel reported on Oct. 13 that Prabowo would arrive in Israel on Oct. 14, citing a source “familiar with the details”.

The report, barely three paragraphs long, referenced a speech that Prabowo had given in September at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), where he called for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and ended his speech with the Hebrew word for peace, “Shalom”.

Prabowo is currently in Egypt, taking part in a multinational Gaza summit, despite only having received an invitation on Oct. 11.

Egypt borders both Israel and Gaza.

However, Indonesia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has denied that such a visit will take place.

On Oct. 13, Indonesian outlets such as the Jakarta Globe quoted the Indonesian MFA as saying “there are no such plans reported”.

It also reported that Prabowo would return to Indonesia immediately after the summit’s conclusion.

Billboard

Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim nation, and Prabowo have previously signalled their support for the Palestinian cause, with Prabowo using a drawing of watermelons as his social media profile picture for several weeks in 2023.

But during his September UNGA speech, he indicated that a diplomatic relationship could be established between Indonesia and Israel if Israel recognised an independent Palestinian state.

This was seized on by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in his own UNGA speech, although Netanyahu has repeatedly and unambiguously rejected the possibility of an independent Palestinian state.

This has not stopped some in Israel from placing Prabowo on a large advertising banner in Tel Aviv, with other world leaders including United States President Donald Trump, Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi; under the slogan “get it done”, likely referencing the return of hostages.

Hostage exchange

The news and its denial came on the same day that Israel and Hamas exchanged captives, with Hamas returning 20 live hostages and the remains of 28 other hostages for around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

This represents the first phase of a peace deal brokered by United States President Donald Trump.

The second phase involves Hamas disarming and surrendering political power, while Gaza will be overseen in part by an International Stabilisation Force.

The ISF’s composition has yet to be revealed, but hypothetically getting Indonesia to participate would have once been considered highly improbable.

Top image via @Menlu_RI/X