44 Pegunungan Bintang Residents Evacuated Amid OPM Threat

The TNI Habema Operational Command evacuated 44 gold miners fleeing from Kawe Village in Awimbon District, Pegunungan Bintang Regency, Papua Highlands Province. They escaped due to fears of the Free Papua Movement (OPM) operating in the area on Sunday, 24 May 2026.

“This evacuation is a demonstration of the state’s presence in providing protection to civilians affected by security disturbances in the remote areas of Papua Highlands,” said Head of Public Affairs for Koops Habema, Lieutenant Colonel M Wirya Arthadiguna, in an official press release from Jakarta on Monday, 25 May 2026.

However, Wirya did not provide detailed chronology of how the 44 residents escaped from OPM militants. He stated that the evacuation process began when the 44 individuals arrived at Tanah Merah Port in Boven Digoel Regency using three longboats from Kawe Village in Awimbon District.