Indonesia rebuffs Israeli media allegations about imminent normalization with Tel Aviv

Indonesia has dismissed Israeli media allegations that the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country is seeking to establish diplomatic ties with the Tel Aviv regime, after Israel and Morocco agreed last week to normalize relations in a deal brokered by the United States.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Teuku Faizasyah said in a statement on Tuesday that there was not any such possibility, and that the ministry has never been in contact with Israel.

“In exercising Indonesian foreign policy with regard to the Palestinian issue, the Foreign Ministry has consistently worked in accordance with the mandate of the Constitution,” Faizasyah said.

The remarks came after Israeli English-language daily newspaper The Jerusalem Post, citing an unnamed diplomatic source, reported on Sunday that Oman and Indonesia could be next in line to establish diplomatic relations with Israel in the coming weeks.

The diplomatic source further alleged that talks with the two countries had advanced, and normalization could be announced before US President Donald Trump leaves office on January 20.

Indonesia has long been a staunch supporter of the Palestinian cause and statehood and has refused to communicate with Israel.

During his speech at the United Nations General Assembly on September 3, Indonesian President Joko Widodo reiterated his country’s unswerving support for Palestine.

He said at the time that Palestine is the sole participant of the 1955 Bandung Conference — a meeting on world peace attended by Asian and African nations — which has not attained independence yet.

Additionally, Indonesian Islamic groups and pro-Palestinian NGOs have condemned recent normalization deals between several Arab states and Israel.

The Indonesian Committee for Palestinian Solidarity (KISPA) said in October that Israel was an occupying entity and should not be trusted to bring peace to the region.

“Any form of support or normalization with Israel means supporting the occupation,” KISPA Chair Muhendri Muchtar said.

Muchtar added that normalization betrays the Palestinian cause and the Indonesian people firmly reject it as their Constitution opposes all forms of colonialism.

The Hidayatullah Islamic Organization also denounced normalization of relations with the Tel Aviv regime back then, saying it aims to justify Israeli violations of Palestinian rights.

Israel and Morocco agreed on December 10 to normalize relations, making the North African country the fourth Arab state since August to strike a deal aimed at normalizing relations with Israel. The others were the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan.

On September 15, US President Donald Trump hosted a White House ceremony, where Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signed normalization agreements with Emirati Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Abdullatif al-Zayani.

Trump later announced on October 23 at the White House that Sudan and Israel had also agreed to normalize relations.

The normalization deals have drawn widespread condemnation from Palestinians, who seek an independent state in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip, with East Jerusalem al-Quds as its capital. They say the deals ignore their rights and do not serve the Palestinian cause.