KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 7 — The government cannot send a peacekeeping force to Palestine without getting a mandate from the United Nations (UN), the Dewan Negara was told today.

Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan said as a member of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and UN, Malaysia has decided to wait for a decision from the UN and avoid acting unilaterally.

"Many have sent WhatsApp, written in social media asking why we are not sending soldiers to Palestine. This I need to clarify... We cannot arbitrarily send out our forces past the country’s borders.

"Remember, the moment our forces move across our borders, that is tantamount to a declaration of war on the country concerned. We are not in such a situation,” he said when winding up the debate on the Supply Bill 2024 at the Defence Ministry stage today.

Mohamad said the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) had been acknowledged by the UN for its role at the international level since Malaysia started participating in peacekeeping missions in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Timor Leste and the latest, as the Malaysian Battalion (Malbatt) to Lebanon.

He said any decision to send a peacekeeping force was not determined by the Defence Ministry but was guided by a policy set by the Foreign Ministry.

Mohamad is confident that Malaysia would be among the countries to be asked by the UN to join a peacekeeping mission in Palestine if the UN, the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) get the mandate from the UN Security Council regarding the need for peacekeepers in the troubled area.

"Based on this mandate and the government’s decision to be part of a peacekeeping mission, the ministry and I will not hesitate to send our forces to join the mission,” he added.

The House will sit again on Monday. — Bernama