Army seizes guns in Aceh

BANDA ACEH, Aceh: Indonesian troops have seized 37 foreign- made weapons, including 22 rifles from a village witchdoctor, in an operation against separatists in the province, Antara said yesterday.

It reported the weapons seizures in three locations took the total number of guns found since May 1996 to 120 along with more than 8,000 rounds of ammunition. Last month, 45 rifles were seized.

The report said soldiers in the Samalanga subdistrict of the North Aceh regency, about 1,600 km northwest of Jakarta, found 19 Russian-designed AK-47s, three U.S.-made M-16s and 1,500 bullets hidden under the bed of a village witchdoctor.

Antara said the man, identified only as Afn D, and his wife were taken into custody. Gun ownership in Indonesia is tightly controlled.

In the second seizure, at another village in Samalanga on Wednesday, soldiers found three AR-15 rifles, and in the adjacent Pidie regency seized another 10 AK-47s, one M-16 and a grenade launcher.

The military has said the recent weapons seizures were a strong indication the rebels were planning a "comeback".