In this world, there is no place that is immune from terror acts like this."
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The recent terrorist attacks in Brussels, Belgium, have prompted the Indonesian government to tighten security measures across the country and to issue a travel advisory for Indonesians in or planning to visit Belgium.

"We have told all (security personnel) to prevent (any possible terror act) and to increase alertness," Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Luhut Binsar Padjaitan stated a few hours after the Brussels attacks on March 22.

The Indonesian government does not want such a terror attack to happen in the country, he emphasized.

Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Retno L.P. Marsudi expressed her sympathy and offered condolences to the Belgian government, people, and families of the victims of the Brussels attacks.

"We strongly condemn terror acts, and let us unite in fighting terrorism," she stated before officially opening the Sixth Bali Process Ministerial Conference on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons, and Related Transnational Crime in Bali, on March 23.

She called on all 45 Bali Process member countries to unite in the fight against terrorism.

Terror attacks have increased and become a global threat, therefore international and regional cooperation is needed for early detection and surveillance through the Interpol and other relevant organizations, Marsudi noted.

The minister ordered Indonesian Ambassador to Belgium Yuri Thamrin on March 22 to obtain information on the latest situation and the condition of Indonesian citizens in Brussels.

Belgian public broadcaster VRT raised the death toll of the twin attacks respectively in Zaventem Airport and Maelbeek Metro Station, Brussels to 34, with 20 people killed in the blast in a metro train and 14 in the explosions at the airport, Reuters reported.

Two explosions tore through Brussels Airport on March 22 morning, and a blast struck a metro station in the capital shortly afterwards.

The blasts at the airport and metro station occurred four days after the arrest in Brussels of a suspected terrorist involved in the November terror attacks in Paris that killed 130 people.

The Indonesian government has issued a travel advisory for its citizens planning to visit Belgium following the Brussels attacks.

The travel advisory has been issued as Belgium remains on threat level four, the highest in the Belgian scale.

The foreign ministry has urged all Indonesian citizens in Belgium and Brussels, in particular, to stay vigilant and to avoid places that could be targets of terror acts.

The Indonesian nationals in Belgium are also reminded to always follow the directives and advice of the local authorities to ensure their personal safety and security in locations that they would visit.

Indonesians planning to go to Brussels have been advised to temporarily postpone their visit.

If they decide to go ahead with their plan, they are requested to obtain full information on the security situation in their destinations.

The Indonesian Embassy in Brussels has started hotline numbers: +32 478957214 and +32 478405728.

The Indonesian Embassy in Brussels is about 10 kilometers away from the Zaventem Airport, while the Maelbeek Metro Station is 6.5 kilometers away.

As per the ministrys data, at least 1,630 Indonesians were staying in Belgium, with most living in Brussels.

Indonesian Ambassador to Belgium Yuri Thamrin visited a hospital to meet the family of three victims believed to have Indonesian citizenship.

According to information provided by the womans husband, who is a Belgian, his wife and both their children are Indonesian nationals, although it still needs to be confirmed.

Currently, the woman and her daughter are still being treated in the ICU due to severe injuries, while her son only suffered minor injuries.

Earlier, Deputy Foreign Minister A.M. Fachir had confirmed that the three victims of the Brussels attacks were Indonesians: a mother and her son and daughter.

"According to the latest report, our citizens were injured and are currently being treated in a Belgian hospital. She and her children were about to return to Indonesia (when the explosions occurred)," he added.

At the request of the Belgian husband, the identities of the injured Indonesians are not disclosed to the media.

In the meantime, Vice President M Jusuf Kalla has called on the Indonesian nationals in Europe and the Middle East to stay vigilant following attacks in Brussels.

"Such a situation could happen not only in Europe, but also in Asia, Turkey, or anywhere in the Middle East. Everyone must stay vigilant, without giving up ones routine activity," Kalla said here on March 23 while paying a working visit to Hainan, China.

He told Indonesian nationals overseas to report their whereabouts to Indonesian embassies or local consulate general offices.

"In this world, there is no place that is immune from terror acts like this. Just be careful, and citizens must report to the embassies so that they can facilitate in reaching out and extending assistance (in case it is needed)," he noted.
(T.F001/INE/KR-BSR)

Reporter: Fardah
Editor: Priyambodo RH
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