One soldier dies in latest Aceh violence<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): A soldier was killed by Keudu Karieng villagers
\nearly Sunday morning in the Meurah Mulia district of North Aceh,
\nshortly after the visit of outgoing chief of the Armed Forces
\n(ABRI) General Affairs Lt. Gen. Fachrul Razi on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Soldiers recovered the body of First Sgt. Burhanuddin on
\nSunday, near the village in the Meurah Mulia district, during a
\nsearch prompted by report that he had been killed, according to
\nLilawangsa military commander Col. Johnny Wahab.<\/p>\n
\"It's tragic and saddening,\" Johnny told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
From North Aceh's capital of Lhokseumawe, D&R reported that
\nthe beating took place until 3 a.m..<\/p>\n
Burhanuddin, 38 -- survived by a wife and four children -- was
\na member of a military unit in the district.<\/p>\n
According to Johnny, Burhanuddin was visiting his parents in
\nthe village, 30 kilometers north of Lhokseumawe, when a group of
\nlocals he reportedly knew asked for his help to resolve a fight
\namong some villagers.<\/p>\n
Burhanuddin arrived on a bicycle at 5:30 p.m. and found many
\npeople waiting for him, Johnny said. The ill-fated sergeant was
\ntaken away by the villagers and later beaten to death in the
\nearly hours of Sunday, he said.<\/p>\n
At around 5 a.m., his body was taken by two men, identified as
\nMuchtar and Alamsyah, to a village mosque, but a cleric there
\nturned them away and criticized them for bringing the body, he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
They then took the body from the mosque and dumped it where it
\nwas later found by soldiers, according to Johnny. The two men are
\nbeing questioned by police, he said.<\/p>\n
Johnny also said that on Saturday, another violent incident
\nbroke out in a village in East Aceh's Pidie regency, where a mob
\ntorched two houses in Bandar Dua district belonging to two
\nsuspected informants, locally known as cuak, identified as
\nSulaiman and Mahdi.<\/p>\n
The two were beaten and are now being treated at the Sigli
\ngeneral hospital.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the situation in Meurah Mulia was still tense on
\nSunday as hundreds of soldiers blocked the way to the
\nsubdistrict, according to rights activist Yakob Hamzah of the
\nIskandar Muda Legal Aid office in Lhokseumawe.<\/p>\n
\"A local villager came to our office this morning (Sunday) to
\ncomplain of the presence of soldiers in their village. The
\nsoldiers are picketing their houses and shops, scaring villagers
\nfrom leaving,\" Yacob told the Post.<\/p>\n
Yacob was quick to condemn the killing of the above soldier
\nbut said it needed to be observed from a wider perspective. \"It
\nall started from various incidents n the past. We need both
\ncultural and legal solutions,\" Yacob said.<\/p>\n
Aceh has seen prolonged tension following the lifting of the
\nmilitary operations here.<\/p>\n
The military said seven off-duty soldiers were killed on their
\nway home for New Year holidays and two others abducted. The
\nsubsequent raid on villages said to hide a separatist leader
\nresponsible for the attacks and abduction of the soldiers ended
\nin the death of 17 civilians. An attack by soldiers on villagers
\nbeing detained ended in four detainees dead, for which the
\nsoldiers are being tried. (aan)<\/p>",
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