FILE PHOTO: Papuan students demonstrate for the independence of Papua province, at the police headquarters in Surabaya on Dec. 1, 2021, to coincide with the anniversary of the Free Papua Movement. - AFP
JAKARTA: Indonesia's military said Thursday (Oct 16) it reclaimed a village in the restive Papua region following a battle with bullets and arrows that it said left 14 separatist insurgents dead. Insurgents disputed the account, saying that only three of the dead were combatants and that troops killed nine villagers.
The battle erupted Wednesday morning when dozens of rebels armed with military-grade weapons and bows and arrows attacked troops as they prepared to assault a rebel post in Soanggama village in Intan Jaya district of Central Papua province, military spokesman Lt. Col. Iwan Dwi Prihartono said.
