Rebels in Indonesia's Papua say they killed 17 people this week

Papuan students taking part in a demonstration in front of the US embassy in Jakarta on April 9, 2025, calling for the closure of the Freeport gold mining company, which operates the world's largest gold mine in Papua, and to highlight human rights violations in the Indonesian province. - AFP

JAKARTA: Rebels in Indonesia's Papua region said on Thursday (April 10) they have killed more than 17 people since the weekend, claiming that they were soldiers in disguise as gold miners, and police said the insurgents were holding two hostages.

A low-level but increasingly deadly battle for independence has simmered between security forces and rebels in resource-rich Papua ever since it was controversially brought under Indonesian control in a vote overseen by the United Nations in 1969.