THE military said it killed 14 Papuan fighters during an operation to free a village from the control of separatists this week and that residents had welcomed its troops.
The Free Papua Movement has fought for independence since the area was brought under Indonesian control following Dutch rule in a vote overseen by the United Nations in 1969.
Papua is one of Indonesia’s poorest regions, despite being rich in resources including natural gas, copper and gold.
Local military official Iwan Dwi Prihartono said Indonesian troops moved towards the village of Soanggama on Tuesday night, and a firefight with a group of about 30 separatists broke out on Wednesday morning.
It took until midday for the soldiers to secure the village, with 14 separatist fighters dead and the others fleeing into a nearby forest and leaving weapons and equipment behind, he said.
Sebby Sambom, a spokesperson for the Papua separatists, said in a statement that the Indonesian military had killed a total of 15 people, including 12 civilians and three of its members, calling the killings unlawful. — Reuters
