Indonesia dismisses rebel claim of army deaths in Papua

Indonesia’s military chief on Tuesday dismissed a separatist group claim that they had killed more than a dozen government soldiers who were searching for a New Zealand pilot taken hostage by the rebels in the restive Papua region.
Adm. Yudo Margono and the military’s top brass flew to the region on Monday after initial information said attackers from the West Papua Liberation Army, the armed wing of the Free Papua Movement, ambushed 36 government soldiers in the hilly district of Nduga in mountainous Papua Highlands province.
Rebel spokesperson Sebby Sambom said in a statement on Monday that his group’s fighters were holding the remains of 12 soldiers, including nine who he said “were arrested and executed.” The rebels offered no proof to back up their statement.
Margono confirmed only one fatality and said four other soldiers were missing. The rest returned to their post, he said. Five were wounded and were in stable condition and evacuated to a hospital in Timika, a mining city in neighboring Central Papua province.