Aceh rebels kill five soldiers, injure 20 others

Aceh rebels kill five soldiers, injure 20 others

JAKARTA (JP): A group of separatist rebels shot five anti-riot
troop personnel dead and injured a score of others on Monday in a
dawn ambush in Reng Krueng village in Pidie regency, 170
kilometers east of the provincial capital Banda Aceh.

The clash took place amid attempts to initiate a peace
process, with a number of Acehnese figures, including separatist
movement leaders in exile, planning a meeting in Bangkok on July
24 and July 25.

The chief of Lilawangsa Military Command overseeing North
Aceh, East Aceh and Pidie regencies, Col. Syafnil Armen, told a
news conference that a group of at least 10 rebels killed
privates U. Pasaribu, Sugianto, Hasibuan and Agus during the
shoot-out. The armed fight also left 10 soldiers severely
wounded, while 10 others suffered minor injuries.

The troops, riding on a truck, were on their way back to their
post in Sigli, the capital of Pidie, after aiding their friends
whose truck overturned on a sharp bend late on Sunday. Two
soldiers were injured in the accident.

Syafnil declined to identify those who were injured in the
gunbattle, which lasted about 30 minutes. They are now being
treated at a military hospital in Lhokseumawe and the Sigli state
hospital.

The rebel group escaped into nearby forests after the ambush.
Fatalities on their side are unknown, Syafnil said.

Speaking at a media conference here on Monday, Aceh Police
chief Col. Bahrumsyah labeled the separatist rebels "criminals"
and said the security authorities "would pursue justice for their
unlawful deeds".

He also alleged the group to have purchased weapons through
selling marijuana.

An angry Indonesian Military Chief of General Affairs Lt. Gen.
Sugiono called for tougher measures against the rebel groups,
referring to their actions as "brutal acts which endanger the
national unity".

Separately, Acehnese figure Hasballah M. Saad said the planned
exclusive Bangkok meeting among Aceh natives was aimed at putting
an end to violence in the province.

Hasballah told The Jakarta Post that Hasan Tiro, an Aceh
resistance leader living in Sweden, and Carmel Budihardjo have
confirmed their participation in the two-day meeting.

Aceh Governor Syamsudin Mahmud, Sidney Jones of the Human
Rights Watch in Malaysia and Hasballah himself would also attend
the meeting.

"The most important thing is that we will sit together and
listen to one another in a bid to help calm down the tension and
stop the continued killings in Aceh," Hasballah said.

"The longer the tension continues the more the people will
suffer," he said.

Hasbalah warned that despite the mounting tension, the
Acehnese people would never give up to the use of violence
exerted by the security authorities.

Several Aceh leaders have suggested the withdrawal of security
personnel from troubled Aceh. But Indonesian Military Commander
Gen. Wiranto insisted that the anti-riot troops would remain to
restore order.

Also on Monday, Minister of Transportation Giri Suseno
Hadihardjono announced that the government would fulfill some of
the promises made to the people of Aceh during President B.J.
Habibie's visit in March.

Giri said the government would start building 15 kilometers of
a 486-kilometer railway linking Banda Aceh and Medan in North
Sumatra. The government plans also to extend the runway of the
Iskandar Muda airport in the provincial capital to enable haj
pilgrims to fly directly to Jedda in Saudi Arabia in March.
(rms/prb)