Jakarta (Antara Bali) - The Indonesian government continues to encourage its citizens in Yemen to evacuate from the country amidst rising tensions in the region.
The Indonesian government has announced an evacuation impetus due to security conditions in Yemen worsening since from early Thursday.
According to the press release from Indonesia¿s Foreign Ministry Affairs on Saturday, the total number of Indonesian citizens in Yemen was said to be 4,159 and were spread across various regions.
Among them, at least 2,686 people were students and 1,488 were registered as migrant workers.
According to the Indonesian Embassy in Yemen's Sanaa city, most of the Indonesians were residing in the southern part of Yemen that is not seeing so much turmoil.
The government had started the evacuation process in February for citizens, who wished to voluntarily return to Indonesia.
Till date, a total of 175 Indonesian citizens had signed up for evacuation, with 141 having been evacuated from Yemen and brought back to Indonesia.
The Indonesian Embassy is still facilitating the evacuation and protection of citizens on a limited basis. The Embassy has also prepared an emergency contingency plan in case the situation worsens.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs added that the government was still monitoring and evaluating developments in Yemen in order to take appropriate measures related to the situation.
The Indonesian government had asked all Indonesian citizens, who live in Yemen, to be vigilant and avoid areas of conflict.
The government had also requested Indonesian citizens to postpone their trip to Yemen until the situation was more conducive.
The embassy in Yemen is also providing services to Indonesian citizens through a 24 hour accessible hotline at +967 738115555.
The civil war in Yemen has intensified and the Battle against the Houthi Shiite militia, who had staged a coup replacing the government of Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, was expanding.
The battle now also involves the Gulf States coalition led by Saudi Arabia, after the Yemeni President sought assistance from these countries. (WDY)
