The China-Indonesia Peace (Heping) Garuda-2024 joint Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) exercise held a closing ceremony at an Indonesian air force base on Saturday.
The joint exercise, which kicked off on Dec 1, was held simultaneously in several camps of the Indonesian National Army in Jakarta and Banten Province of Indonesia, with the participation of troops from land, sea and air forces of both sides.
At the closing ceremony, the officers and soldiers of the two armies organized cultural exchange activities and weapons and equipment display. The commanders of both sides addressed the ceremony, summarizing the outcomes of the joint exercise while putting forward prospects for the two sides to deepen military exchanges in the future.
"Through the joint exercise, we have deepened the pragmatic cooperation between the two armies and improved the joint action capabilities of the troops. Our two sides also jointly strengthened the justice forces for maintaining regional peace and stability. We look forward to holding joint exercises with the Indonesian National Army on a larger scale, with more subjects and at a higher level in the future," said Zheng Hua, an officer of the command and coordination department of China-Indonesia "Peace Garuda-2024" joint exercise.
In this joint exercise which lasted over a period of six days, the two sides conducted joint exercises and training on multiple subjects of the three services of land, sea and air, including mobile water source treatment, natural disaster rescue operations, maritime search and rescue, vertical rescue, parachute training, and material airdrops.
During the training, participants of both sides overcame difficulties such as bad weather and technical and tactical differences, fully exchanged and discussed their ideas and made all-out efforts in actual combat training, which achieved fruitful results.
China-Indonesia "Peace Garuda 2024" joint exercise concludes
The Iranian government is focusing on public concerns and maintaining stable supplies of essential goods amid recent protests, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a televised interview on Sunday.
In the city of Karaj, northwest of the capital Tehran, daily life has largely continued as normal. A video filmed by a local resident on Sunday shows food stores open and grocery shelves fully stocked.
"This is the block near my home, and there are some food stores here. Daily life continues here. Last night we did not see many protests in Karaj. Right now the city is very safe. This is a grocery store close to my home. All the food is available; nothing is in shortage. Here are noodles and different types of beans. Here are dairy products, cheese, and yogurt. I also checked other grocery stores and didn't see any shortages. Everything is available," said local resident Ali Reza.
Iranian officials have described recent disturbances as acts orchestrated by the "enemy," including some carried out by well-trained and armed "terrorists." The incidents have caused casualties among security personnel and civilians, as well as property damage.
The Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani has directed authorities to severely punish the "terrorists."
Meanwhile, Iran's police chief Ahmad-Reza Radan said on Sunday that the police had raised alert levels and arrested several leaders of the troublemakers during the operations on Saturday.
President Pezeshkian noted in the interview that the normal demands of the Iranian people are reasonable and justified, but they must realize that triggering riots and carrying out terrorist acts are the enemy's attempts to undermine the country. He urged the public to remain vigilant.
Also on Sunday, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf warned that Tehran would regard U.S. and Israeli bases and facilities in the Middle East as "legitimate targets" if Washington takes military action against Iran. His remarks followed media reports saying U.S. President Donald Trump is "seriously considering authorizing a strike" against Iran.
Iranian state media reported that at least 109 members of Iran's security forces have been killed in clashes since the protests began 14 days ago. Meanwhile, human rights groups based outside the country said the number of protesters killed has exceeded 200, though the figure could not be independently verified.
The protests initially erupted over a sharp depreciation of the rial and sweeping subsidy reforms. Iranian authorities have blamed the unrest on foreign-linked agents and sanctions imposed by the United States.
Iranian president says government focusing on ensuring supplies amid protests
