Indonesia says it understands the consequences of its decision to block Israeli athletes from entering the country, but defends the move as part of its pledge to “maintain international order.”
In a post on Instagram, Indonesian Sports Minister Erick Thohir says that his country barred Israeli competitors from the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in order to maintain “security, public interest and public order.”
Thohir adds that Indonesia “understands that this decision has consequences.”
Yesterday, the International Olympic Committee said that due to the Indonesian move, the IOC would suspend any dialogue with Jakarta over hosting any Olympic or Youth Olympic events until the country promises to allow “all participants, regardless of nationality, to attend.”
The IOC also said it would call on all international sporting federations to follow suit in boycotting Indonesia as a host country for competitions and conferences.
Your next read: ToI Editors' Picks
LIMITED TIME OFFER: Join The Times of Israel Community today and you'll receive a physical book of your choice, carefully curated by our editors.
Choose between two must-reads: When We See You Again by Rachel Goldberg-Polin, a searing portrait of a mother’s grief and strength following unthinkable tragedy;
Or Out of the Sky: Heroism and Rebirth in Nazi Europe by Matti Friedman, the gripping and surprising tale of a forgotten moment during World War II.
As a Community member, you’ll also enjoy our DocuNation series of outstanding Israeli documentary films, an ad-free experience of our site and podcasts, commenting privileges, and more.
CHOOSE YOUR BOOK
CHOOSE YOUR BOOK
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You're a dedicated reader
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Join Our Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
From the Liveblog of
Thursday, October 23, 2025
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
