3 soldiers, 2 rebels killed in Aceh

3 soldiers, 2 rebels killed in Aceh

BANDA ACEH: Three soldiers and two Free Aceh Movement (GAM) separatist rebels have died in the latest violence in the tsunami-hit province of Aceh, the military said on Sunday.

The three soldiers were killed during an ambush by some 15 rebels in South Aceh district on Friday, said local military chief Jamhur Ismail.

The rebels, in a press statement, said the attack was carried out due to "oppressive" actions against Acehnese people by the troops.

They accused the soldiers of forcing Acehnese men and women to cook and wash clothes in many military camps.

The rebels said soldiers had shot dead two of their men in northern Aceh on Friday.

The rebels have been fighting for three decades for the independence of Indonesia's westernmost province, a conflict that has left more than 12,000 people -- mostly civilians -- dead.

The military said this month it had killed more than 3,300 rebels since it launched the offensive two years ago. Over 200 soldiers had been killed and more than 500 wounded, it added.

A peace process which collapsed in 2003 ahead of a military offensive to crush the rebels was restarted in the wake of last year's tsunami disaster in which 128,000 people were killed in Aceh. --AFP