Former Palestinian Ambassador to Indonesia, Ribhi Awad Passed Away

Jakarta, MINA – Former Palestinian Ambassador to Indonesia Ribhi Y. Awad was passed away on Tuesday.

The sad news from the former Palestinian Ambassador who had served in Jakarta for a long time was received from an official source from the Palestinian Embassy to Indonesia in Jakarta.

“He passed away in [Cairo] Egypt at 9 am local time at the age of 82 years,” said an official source from the Palestinian Embassy in Jakarta.

Ribhi’s life is indeed a diplomat. The man whose full name is Ribhi Yusuf Awad has been a diplomat for 38 years. Apart from Indonesia, Ribhi, who claims to be close to Yasser Arafat, has served as a diplomat in Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Algeria, Tunisia, Kenya, and Finland.

Ribhi and Yasser Arafat both attended military education in Damascus, Syria. Ribhi Awad has also been assigned as a communications officer in Beirut, Lebanon. In that country he established relationships with local media and journalists.

In 1968, Ribhi Awad attended an emergency Fatah meeting in Beirut. At that time, by Yasser Arafat he was given the mandate to be a spokesman for Fatah.

A year later Yasser Arafat became the leader of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) which consisted of various struggle groups.

Meanwhile, Ribhi Awad became Yasser Arafat’s mainstay diplomat. He began serving in Indonesia in 1992, and left Jakarta, ending his tenure in Indonesia in the last week of May 2006.

At that time, the Palestinian Embassy was at Jalan Diponegoro No 59, adjacent to the residence of Dr Mohammad Hatta (co-Proclaimer of Indonesian Independence, former Vice President), right at the corner of the intersection of Jalan Pegangsaan Barat. Several years ago the Palestinian Embassy moved, not far from the first place, on Jalan Ki Mangunsarkoro. (T/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)