Indonesia introduces tight security measures ahead of G20 Summit

Indonesia this year holds the rotating presidency of the Group of 20 largest economies, which will culminate in a meeting of the heads of state and government on Nov. 15 and 16. (Reuters)
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Updated 13 November 2022
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Indonesia introduces tight security measures ahead of G20 Summit

  • Over 24,000 police, military personnel deployed to secure Bali
  • Most leaders, including Joe Biden and Xi Jinping, will attend

JAKARTA: Indonesia has introduced tight security arrangements in Bali, as it prepares to welcome world leaders and thousands of international delegates for the G20 Summit next week.

The world’s largest Muslim-majority nation this year holds the rotating presidency of the Group of 20 largest economies, which will culminate in a meeting of the heads of state and government on Nov. 15 and 16.

The summit will take place on the island of Bali, one of the planet’s most popular holiday destinations, where Indonesia has previously hosted other major international events, including the World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund annual meeting in 2018.

Security measures for the G20 Summit are being led by the Indonesian military and police, which together are set to deploy over 24,000 personnel, who have been trained to anticipate situations ranging from terrorist threats to natural disasters, as well as the possibility of violent demonstrations.

“The Indonesian National Police have tried to identify different threats that may occur,” National Police spokesperson Dedi Prasetyo told Arab News.

“The police have formed task forces to handle the possibility of these different threats and we are ready to secure all events surrounding the G20 Summit in Bali.”

Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo earlier this week confirmed the attendance of at least 17 G20 leaders, including US President Joe Biden and China’s President Xi Jinping.

But the G20 leaders are not the only top-level officials attending.

“(We) prepared VVIP task forces not only for the 20 heads of state for G20 members but also 42 other heads of state that are expected to attend (the summit) in Bali,” the Indonesian military said in a statement.

A special Air Force fleet dedicated to G20 security will comprise 13 helicopters and fighter aircraft.

The provincial government of Bali will impose restrictions on parts of the island from this Saturday to Nov. 17. Community activities, classes at schools, office work, and traditional and religious ceremonies will be suspended for five days.

Despite rumors of security threats looming over the G20 Summit, security and terrorism analyst Stanislaus Riyanta from the University of Indonesia told Arab News that “it will be very difficult to penetrate G20 venues” in Bali.

“I see that the (Indonesian) government is very ready, because it’s not just one institution that’s working here, there are several especially when it comes to security,” he said.

“From the military, police, to the intelligence agency and even the provincial government — they are all very ready for G20.”


Sri Lanka hospital releases 22 rescued Iranian sailors

Updated 2 sec ago
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Sri Lanka hospital releases 22 rescued Iranian sailors

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka discharged from hospital 22 Iranian sailors who were plucked from life rafts after their warship was sunk by a US submarine, officials said Sunday.
The sailors were treated at Karapitiya Hospital in the southern port city of Galle since Wednesday after the IRIS Dena was torpedoed just outside Sri Lanka’s territorial waters.
“Another 10 are still undergoing treatment,” a medical officer at the hospital told AFP.
He said the bodies of 84 Iranians retrieved from the Indian Ocean were also at the hospital.
Those discharged from hospital overnight had been taken to a beach resort in the same district.
Sri Lankan authorities said the survivors from the Dena were being handled according to international humanitarian law, and the government had contacted the International Committee of the Red Cross for assistance.
The island is also providing safe haven for another 219 Iranian sailors from a second ship, the IRIS Bushehr, that was allowed to berth a day after the Dena was sunk.
Sailors from the Bushehr have been moved to a Sri Lanka Navy camp at Welisara, just north of the capital Colombo, and their ship taken over by Sri Lanka’s navy.
Sri Lanka announced it was taking the Bushehr to the north-eastern port of Trincomalee, but an engine failure and other technical and administrative issues had delayed the movement, a navy spokesman said.
Sri Lanka has denied claims that it was under pressure from Washington not to allow the Iranians to return home, and said Colombo will be guided solely by international law and its own domestic legislation.
A US State Department spokesperson said the disposition of the Bushehr crew and Iranian sailors rescued at sea was up to Sri Lanka.
“The United States, of course, respects and recognizes Sri Lanka’s sovereignty in the handling of this situation,” the spokesperson told AFP in Washington.
India, meanwhile, said Saturday that it had allowed a third Iranian warship, the IRIS Lavan, to dock in one of its ports on “humane” grounds after it too reported engine problems.
The three ships were part of a multi-national fleet review held by India before the war in the Middle East started last week.
“I think it was the humane thing to do, and I think we were guided by that principle,” Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said on Saturday.
The Lavan docked in the south-west Indian port of Kochi on Wednesday.
“A lot of the people on board were young cadets. They have disembarked and are in a nearby facility,” Jaishankar said.