Brimob combs villages to track down Syafe'i

BANDA ACEH, Aceh(JP): Mobile Brigade Police (Brimob) personnel have been combing villages in Pidie regency, Aceh, over the past two days, in what is suspected to be a mission to track down the Free Aceh Movement's (GAM) war commander, Tengku Abdullah Syafe'i.

A police source, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed the two-day operation in the villages of Cot Tunong, Paya Rauf, and Lambaru. The officer also disclosed that, as of Sunday afternoon, there were no clues on the whereabouts of Syafe'i.

"One of the target villages is the place where Bondan Gunawan met Abdullah Syafe'i last year," the officer said, referring to the former secretary of government supervision who met with Syafe'i to deliver messages from President Abdurrahman Wahid.

The source said that Brimob personnel, however, were pulled back to their headquarters.

Syafe'i had made several public appearances, met journalists and gave interviews. The police and the military, however, have never been successful in tracing his whereabouts.

On Saturday, local residents found six bodies in separate locations at the villages of Paya Rauf, Lambaru and Ujung Rimba.

Villagers, with the help of members of human rights groups, the local Red-Cross Organization (PMI) and officials from nearby hospitals, evacuated the bodies who all died from gunshot wounds.

The head of state-run Sigli Hospital, Fuad Arsyad, identified the six bodies as Ramli Salam, 30; Amirudin Asan, 20; M. Adam Mat Jalil, 27; Ismail Usman, 40; Harun Hanafie, 45; and Syafei Gade, 40.

According to Fuad, there were no postmortem examinations performed on the victims as families insisted that the bodies be buried immediately.

Separately, GAM spokesman Abu Razak said that during the security forces' operation in Pidie, police personnel set ablaze two houses belonging to local residents.

"The houses had been abandoned by their owners, and were mistaken as GAM headquarters," Razak said on Sunday.

He also alleged that police were behind the killing of six residents, contending that the six victims were all civilians and not members of the rebel group. (50/emf)