INDONESIAN MILITARY SENDS MORE SOLDIERS TO LEBANON

TNI Chief General Gatot Nurmantyo. Photo: Kompas.com

Jakarta, 29 Safar 1437/11 December 2015 (MINA) – The Indonesian military (TNI) has sent another 1,169 soldiers to join the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) for the 2015 to 2016 term, Antara News reported.

TNI Chief General Gatot Nurmantyo bid farewell to the soldiers in a military ceremony held at the TNI Headquarters in Cilangkap, East Jakarta, on Friday.

The soldiers are part of the Garuda Contingent Task Force (Satgas Konga) who will carry out the UN peace mission in Lebanon.

During a speech at the farewell ceremony, Nurmantyo affirmed that the participation of the Garuda Contingent in the UN peace mission has earned the country international recognition, which has improved its reputation worldwide.

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“As Unifil officers, Garuda soldiers are national envoys sent to perform the mission of the nation,” he emphasized.

The TNI chief has urged the soldiers to increase their preparedness, understanding of the procedures, and alertness for handling any developments, which may have an impact on the security situation in Lebanon.

“Avoid committing violations, which may obstruct you from performing your duties and remain on standby wherever you are stationed,” he stated.

The 1,169 soldiers are divided into several task forces, with 850 of them being the personnel of the mechanical battalion of the TNI Konga XXIII-J/Unifil led by Lt Col Dwi Sasongko, 75 being personnel of the military police unit of Konga XXV-H/Unifil led by Lt Col Zulkarnain, and 150 personnel of the Force Protection Company (FPC) Konga XXVI-H2/Unifil led by Major Inf. Catur Sutoyo.

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In addition, 50 personnel will join the task force of the Force Headquarter Support Unit (FHQSU) of Konga XXVI-H1/Unifil led by Col Kav Jala Argananto, six personnel will join the task force of Cimic of TNI Konga XXXI-F/Unifil led by Capt. Batara Alex Bulo.

Also 18 personnel of the task force of the Military Community Outreach Unit (MCOU) of Konga XXX-F/Unifil led by Major Roni Agus Widodo, nine personnel will join the level 2 hospital task force of Konga XXIX-G/Unifil led by Major Purbanto Budi Susetyo, and 11 personnel will join Milstaf Seceast Unifil led by Col Abdul Rahman.(T/R04/R03)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)