Indonesia revives Vietnam War island medical facility for 2,000 wounded Gazans

Indonesia is preparing a medical facility on Galang Island to treat approximately 2,000 wounded residents from Gaza. These individuals will receive treatment and are expected to return to Gaza after their recovery. The facility is located on Galang Island, which is currently uninhabited.

According to a presidential spokesperson, this initiative is not an evacuation but rather a provision of medical assistance to war victims. This plan follows an earlier offer by President Prabowo Subianto to shelter wounded Palestinians, which was a proposal that faced some criticism, as reported by Asharq Al Awsat.

The medical facility will be established on Galang Island, located off Sumatra and south of Singapore. The island is currently uninhabited, and the facility aims to provide treatment and temporary shelter for the wounded Gaza residents and their families. The expectation is that the patients will return to Gaza once they have recovered.

According to Gaza health officials, Israel’s offensive in the region since October 2023 has resulted in the deaths of over 60,000 Palestinians, including both fighters and non-combatants. Consequently, Indonesia has been actively providing humanitarian aid to Gaza since.

Hasan Nasbi, the presidential spokesperson, emphasised that this medical assistance is not an evacuation. The initiative aims to treat approximately 2,000 Gaza residents who have been injured or displaced due to the conflict. However, Nasbi did not provide a specific timeframe for the operation and directed further inquiries to Indonesia’s foreign and defence ministries.

The plan to shelter wounded Palestinians was initially proposed months prior by President Prabowo Subianto. This proposal faced criticism from Indonesian clerics who viewed it as aligning too closely with a suggestion by then US President Donald Trump to permanently relocate Palestinians from Gaza. In response to Trump’s suggestion, Indonesia’s foreign ministry reiterated its support for a two-state solution and firmly rejected any attempts to forcibly displace Palestinians.

Galang Island has a history of providing refuge. In 2020, a hospital was opened on the island to treat victims of the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to that, until 1996, Galang served as a refugee camp run by the United Nations, housing 250,000 people who had fled the Vietnam War.

Indonesia’s initiative on Galang Island underscores its commitment to humanitarian aid without compromising its stance on Palestinian sovereignty. As history repeats itself on this former refugee haven, the focus remains on healing, not displacement