The Defence Ministry is prepared to assist the Foreign Ministry if there is a need to bring Malaysians in Iran back following the Iran-Israel conflict.
However, the decision is subject to Wisma Putra’s approval after assessing the latest situation in Iran, said Defence Minister Mohamed Khaled Nordin.
He said the government is sure to take appropriate actions to ensure that Malaysians are safe from the conflict of war.
“So far there is no (war in Iran), nothing more than a temporary drone attack... Accordingly, we (the Defence Ministry) depend on Wisma Putra. They know everything (the development of the situation in Iran).
“It doesn’t mean that the armed forces will be ordered to go there (Iran) but if we must, we first need to study the logistics, the routes we can or cannot use to enter.
“If this happens, the ‘frontliner’ is the Foreign Ministry, to tell us (the Defence Ministry) what role to play because as the armed forces, we cannot go straight into people’s countries,” Khaled added.
Unverified news sources
Khaled said before the decision to repatriate Malaysians is made, the situation in Iran needs to be carefully studied.
“All countries and the world want the best, which is that this conflict does not last long. We don’t even know if the news sources are authentic (retaliatory attack between Iran and Israel).
“If we look at the response, it is said that a drone from Israel was sent to Isfahan, the area where there is a nuclear centre in Iran. The drones have all been successfully shot down... nothing more than that.
“So the source (authenticity of the news) is not certain. The Israeli side did not say anything, the United States did not say anything either. What we hear is only from TikTok,” he added.
Earlier, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim was reported to have said that the government is ready to bring Malaysians in Iran back if the conflict between Iran and Israel becomes more worrying.
Last Friday, Israel launched an attack on Iran in response to Tehran’s attack the weekend before.
Tel Aviv previously warned of retaliating after Iran launched 300 drones and missiles at Israel, but most were intercepted.
Tehran’s attack was in response to Israel’s bombing of the Iranian consulate in Damascus earlier this month.
- Bernama
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