File picture of New Zealand pilot Philip Mehrtens reading a statement prepared by the group of separatists in Papua on March 10, 2023. - The Jakarta Post/Twitter
JAKARTA: An armed rebel group in the easternmost region of Papua released a proposal on Tuesday (Sept 17) to free New Zealand pilot Phillip Mehrtens, who they kidnapped more than a year ago.
Mehrtens was abducted by a faction of the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) led by Egianus Kogoya in Nduga, Papua Highlands, on Feb 7, 2023, and remains in captivity with the TPNPB, the armed wing of the Free Papua Movement (OPM).
