Philip Mertens at the parade of members of the West Papua National Liberation Army Photo: Reuters
At least six Indonesian soldiers killed, 30 missing after armed separatists attacked a unit searching for a kidnapped New Zealand pilot in the troubled province of Papua.
Philipp Mertens was taken hostage in February when rebels stormed his single-engine plane shortly after it landed in a remote , mountainous province of Nduga.
Two months later, an Indonesian army rescue attempt turned fatal over the weekend when insurgents attacked troops looking for a 37-year-old Susi Air pilot near a separatist stronghold.
The Indonesian military said they were militants. shot a soldier who fell into a ravine 15 meters deep. While the squad was recovering the body, the separatists launched a second attack.
Heavy rain makes the search difficult
While officials have so far confirmed only one dead, army documents seen by the Associated Press list six victims, while as rebels say nine servicemen died during the clash. Approximately 30 people have gone missing and many have reportedly fled into the jungle.
“It is still not known exactly how many members of the Indonesian army died and were injured,” said military spokesman Colonel Herman Taryaman. «We are still searching, but heavy rain, fog and lack of communications have hampered our search and evacuation.»
Rebels say that Mr. Mertens will be held hostage until Papua gains independence Photo: AP
In a statement, the West Papua National Liberation Army claimed responsibility for the attack. They added that the ambush was an attempt to obstruct the military's efforts to bring back Mr Mertens, as well as revenge for the deaths of two insurgents during a firefight with the Indonesian military last month.
The group has been seeking independence from Jakarta for decades and has said it targeted the pilot project because of New Zealand's cooperation with Indonesia. The rebels insist that they will only release Mr. Mertens when Papua is self-governing.
“The Indonesian government must stop its security operation in Papua and be ready to negotiate with our leaders through a neutral third party. from a UN agency,” rebel spokesman Sebbi Sambom said.
He added that his group had offered to negotiate with both Indonesia and New Zealand, but had yet to receive a response from either government.< /p>
Their messages are similar to those presented in a video of Mr Mertens sent to the BBC shortly after he was captured. In it, the pilot was dressed in dark shorts, a denim jacket and a black T-shirt, and was surrounded by rebels armed with machine guns, bows and arrows.
He also appeared to be reading the rebels' statement. echoing their demands in a dispute that goes back to Indonesia, which took over the region in the sixties.
This resource-rich region was a Dutch colony until 1961, but was incorporated into Indonesia after a widely criticized UN-sponsored referendum in 1969. Only about 1,000 Papuans took part in the vote.
The independence movement has been in full swing since then, but since 2018 the struggle for independence has led to more deadly and frequent attacks.
In September 2019 2009, violent riots gripped the region, fueled by renewed calls for self-government and anger over reports of racist slurs and the use of tear gas against Papuan students in the Indonesian city of Surabaya. At least 59 people, more than half of them under the age of 25, were reportedly killed in the unrest.
But the separatists have previously insisted they would treat Mr. Mertens «humanely» and that he will remain in custody. alive.
“If New Zealand and the Australian government do not want to respond to our demands, we will not release him,” Sambom said in February. “But he will stay with us and we will ask him to teach our young people who are learning to fly.”
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