Initial information from Indonesian military reports said there were about 36 soldiers at a post in Nduga district when attackers from the West Papua Liberation Army - the armed wing of the Free Papua Movement - opened fire on Saturday.
Indonesian military spokesman Rear Admiral Julius Widjojono speaks during a press conference at the Indonesian military headquarters in Jakarta, Indonesia, Sunday, April 16, 2023. Photo: AP
At least six people were killed and 21 others fled into the woods, according to some military reports. However, a military spokesman confirmed only one death. Nine soldiers are believed to be in rebel custody.
Papua military spokesman Colonel Herman Taryaman said the soldiers were part of a team searching for Phillip Mark Mehrtens, a New Zealand pilot working for Indonesian airline Susi Air who was kidnapped by militants in February. He said authorities were looking for about 30 soldiers.
“It is still unclear exactly how many Indonesian soldiers were killed and injured,” Taryaman said. “We are still searching, but heavy rain, fog and lack of communication have hampered our search and evacuation efforts.”
Admiral Julius Widjojono, spokesman for the Indonesian National Armed Forces, told a news conference in the capital Jakarta that the search operation would be carried out “with maximum force”.
He said the rebels confronted regular troops as they attacked an area near the location of the pilot and his kidnappers. Widjojono said the rebels shot one soldier who fell into a 15-meter-deep ravine, and launched a second attack while troops were removing his body. He confirmed there had been only one fatality so far.
Rebel spokesman Sebby Sambom said in a statement that the group's fighters carried out the attack to avenge the killing of two militants in a gun battle with Indonesian security forces last month. He said at least nine members of Indonesia's elite military force were killed in Saturday's attack.
Sambom called on the Indonesian government to stop military operations in Papua. He also said his group had offered to negotiate with both the Indonesian and New Zealand governments over the pilot they were holding hostage, but said they had not received a response.
“The Indonesian government must stop security operations in Papua and be ready to negotiate with our leaders under the mediation of a neutral third party from a United Nations agency,” Sambom said.
Saturday’s fighting was the latest in a series of violent incidents in recent years in Papua, a former Dutch colony in western New Guinea that is ethnically and culturally distinct from much of Indonesia. Conflict between indigenous Papuans and Indonesian security forces is common.
Papua was annexed by Indonesia in 1969, following a UN-brokered vote. Rebel attacks have spiked in the past year, with dozens of rebels, security forces and civilians killed.
Mai Anh (according to AP)
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