T

he Indonesian Embassy in Abuja, Nigeria, received a threat from a little-known group in Nigeria called MOG (Men of God), urging the Indonesian government to refrain from executing Nigerian nationals.

The letter, received by embassy staff, is likely a response to the execution of three Nigerian nationals on Nusakambangan prison island near Cilacap in Central Java, shortly after midnight on April 29, according to government officials.

Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi confirmed the incident with The Jakarta Post on Wednesday, saying that the Nigerian authorities had been informed. '€œThe threat was received by the embassy officials in the form of a letter on May 11 at 9 a.m. local time,'€ Retno said. '€œWe'€™ve alerted the local authorities of the threat.'€

The Indonesian Embassy in Nigeria has yet to analyze or receive more information regarding the threat apart from the sender of the letter, signed by MOG and featuring a picture of a person with a covered face.

'€œThere isn'€™t any [more information about MOG]. The local authorities are investigating the threat,'€ she said in a short message.

In the letter, the MOG threatened the Indonesian government with severe action against the embassy and its personnel, five of whom were named in the letter, if the country executed Nigerians in the future.

The Nigerian Embassy in Jakarta could not be reached for comment.

Ministry spokesperson Arrmanatha Nasir also confirmed the incident during a press briefing at the ministry office complex in Central Jakarta on Wednesday.

Arrmanatha said the government took all threats against its ranks '€œvery seriously'€ and that a standard operational procedure (SOP) for handling threats of this nature had been promptly carried out by embassy officials in Abuja.

The ministry spokesman cited a previous example when the Indonesian Embassy in Canberra, Australia received a suspicious package containing white powder. The SOP was carried out and the Australian Federal Police seized the package for further investigation, he said. The threat received in Canberra was also widely regarded as a response to the executions, which involved two members of the Bali Nine Australian drug ring.

'€œOur mission in Abuja is currently coordinating with local law enforcement officials to determine the seriousness of the threat and the corresponding security measures needed for individual protection,'€ Arrmanatha said.

'€œThe threat is being traced.'€

There has been public outcry from within the country and abroad in response to the execution of eight death row inmates at the hands of an Indonesian firing squad late last month.

The eight were Indonesian Zainal Abidin, Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, Brazilian Rodrigo Gularte, Nigerians Sylvester Obiekwe Nwolise, Raheem Agbaje Salami and Okwudili Oyatanze and Ghanaian Martin Anderson.

Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso of the Philippines was spared after a woman who allegedly recruited her to act as a drug courier gave herself up to police in the Philippines a day prior to the scheduled executions.