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🇮🇩 Indonesia Receives Fallen Peacekeepers with Full Honors
Indonesia received the bodies of three United Nations peacekeepers killed in Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon during a solemn ceremony at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang on Saturday, April 4, 2026 .
President Prabowo Subianto presided over the arrival ceremony, paying his final respects as the flag-draped coffins were carried into a terminal hall by uniformed personnel . Former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono also attended, wearing a sky-blue UN peacekeeping beret recalling his own mission in Bosnia in the 1990s .
The fallen soldiers were identified as Captain Zulmi Aditya Iskandar, 33; First Sergeant Muhammad Nur Ichwan, 26; and Private First Class Farizal Rhomadhon, 28 . All three were posthumously promoted by one rank .
Following the airport ceremony, their remains were transported to hometowns via military aircraft: Ichwan and Rhomadhon to Yogyakarta Province, and Iskandar to Cimahi, West Java, for burial .
🇵🇰 Pakistan Demands Accountability
Pakistan strongly condemned the attacks on Indonesian peacekeepers and called for a “prompt, thorough, transparent, and impartial investigation” .
Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN, described the incidents as “a disturbing pattern and serious violations of UN Security Council resolutions and international humanitarian law” . He stressed that “strict accountability is essential to ensure justice and deter future attacks” against UN personnel .
Pakistan expressed its “unwavering solidarity” with Indonesia, the affected families, and all UN peacekeepers serving in Lebanon .
The Attacks and International Condemnation
The three Indonesian peacekeepers were killed in two separate incidents in southern Lebanon on March 29 and 30, 2026 :
| Soldier | Date | Circumstances |
|---|---|---|
| Farizal Rhomadhon | March 29 | Killed when a projectile struck his position (attributed to Israeli tank fire) |
| Zulmi Iskandar & Muhammad Nur | March 30 | Died after an explosion struck a UNIFIL logistics convoy |
UN sources indicated that fire from an Israeli tank was responsible for Rhomadhon’s death, according to Al Jazeera . Three additional Indonesian peacekeepers were wounded Friday in a blast inside a UN facility near Odaisseh .
The MIKTA nations (Türkiye, Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, and Australia) condemned the killings “in the strongest terms,” stating that attacks on UN personnel are “unacceptable and violate international law” .
Indonesia’s Call for Action
Foreign Minister Sugiono called for a thorough UN investigation, emphasizing that peacekeeping missions should not expose soldiers to harm . “There must be a security guarantee for peacekeeping personnel,” he said .
Indonesia urged the UN Security Council to convene an emergency session of troop-contributing countries to review and enhance the safety of UNIFIL personnel . The Indonesian foreign ministry described the attacks as “utterly unacceptable,” warning that Israel’s incursion in southern Lebanon risks placing UN peacekeepers in “sustained danger” .
The Broader Conflict
The peacekeeper deaths occurred amid Israel’s broader military campaign in Lebanon, which began after Hezbollah entered the US-Israeli war on Iran following the assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on February 28 .
Lebanese authorities report that at least 1,422 people have been killed and 3,294 injured in Israeli attacks since March 2, with over a million people displaced .
The UN peacekeeping force has reported increasing damage to its infrastructure, with 17 surveillance cameras linked to UNIFIL’s main headquarters in Naqura destroyed by the Israeli army .
The families of the fallen soldiers expressed shock and grief. Iskandarudin, 60, father of Zulmi Aditya Iskandar, told reporters: “We were really sad and regretful, because this is a UN troop, a peacekeeping troop, not deployed for war” .
