Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia said on Saturday that it will send a search team and medical supplies to neighboring Indonesia where a powerful earthquake flattened buildings, killing at least 2,700 people and injuring thousands.
Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak said a 56-member team from Malaysia's disaster relief agency, five doctors and several paramedics will leave Saturday night for Yogyakarta on board an air force plane.
''The medical team will bring with them one ton of medicine and other essentials like blankets to be distributed to the victims,'' he was quoted as saying by the national news agency, Bernama.
The magnitude 6.2 quake struck near Yogyakarta on Java island Saturday morning as many people slept, causing death and damage in many nearby towns.
Najib said Indonesia had sought Malaysia's help, adding that Malaysia would dispatch additional assistance if the situation warranted.
Meanwhile, Najib said that Malaysian peacekeeping troops arrived in East Timor Saturday morning to help quell the ongoing violence in that country.
He said the 219 army paratroopers and commandos have been deployed at the airport, port, government buildings and embassies in the East Timor capital, Dili.
''The Australian military is coordinating the operation,'' Najib said.
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