Jakarta. A senior diplomat said Wednesday that Indonesia had already long prepared a backup plan to protect hundreds of its citizens in Iran, a country that is currently at war with Israel. However, the Southeast Asian nation only plans to evacuate its nationals if the war worsens.

Longstanding enemies Iran and Israel have been trading strikes since last week. Indonesia has urged everyone to exercise restraint while making sure that its citizens remain safe and sound. 

According to the Foreign Affairs Ministry’s citizen protection director Judha Nugraha, no Indonesian is among the civilian casualties in the Iran-Israel conflict. 

There are 386 Indonesians currently residing in Iran, many of whom are students in Qom. Some 194 Indonesian nationals are also in Israel, although they mainly live in its southern part as interns. Indonesia had already long raised the alert status to level 2, warning its citizens in Tehran to remain cautious. 

“Since last year, our embassy in Tehran has already prepped a contingency plan and set the level 2 alert. We will continue to keep an eye on the latest developments,” Judha told a virtual press conference.

The government has informed Indonesians in Iran of this so-called contingency plan via a teleconference. 

“If any escalations happen at any time, we can raise the alert status to level 1 and finally carry out the evacuation process. We have coordinated with the relevant agencies to make sure that the evacuation process and the citizens’ arrival in Indonesia go smoothly,” Judha said. 

Iranian Ambassador to Indonesia Mohammad Boroujerdi recently said that Tehran would “stand ready” to help with the evacuation.

A circular issued by the Indonesian embassy in Tehran last April told citizens to return home on their own if possible. 

The war-induced airspace shutdowns had left 42 Indonesian pilgrims stranded in Jerusalem. All have set foot in Indonesia via Jordan earlier this week, according to Judha.

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