No celebrations of Israel Independence Day: Police

National Police spokesman Inspector General Anton Bahrul Alam on Friday announced that no groups in Indonesia would celebrate Israel Independence Day on May 14.

Previously, eramuslim.com published a story that somewhere in Indonesia a Jewish community planned to organize a local celebration of Israel’s Independence Day. The news raised concerns as many local Muslims, including the government, since they do not recognize the state of Israel.

“We have checked all regional branches of the police and Jakarta Police. They confirmed that no groups had requested permission to celebrate Israel Independence Day,” Anton said.

If any groups requested such permission, their requests would be denied, he added, since there was not enough time now to process their requests. “Requests for permission to organize public events should be submitted a week in advance, because it relates to coordination with many police personnel,” he said.

Anton emphasized that if the police found any groups celebrating the day, they would disband them.

“We hope no unwanted [celebrations] are held,” he said. (fem)