Seven GAM members killed in gun battle

EAST ACEH, Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam: Seven members of the rebel Free Aceh Movement (GAM) and two Indonesian soldiers were killed on Friday after an armed clash on Tateh mountain in East Aceh regency. The two dead soldiers are First Pvt. Heroik and First Pvt. Hartono, both from the Army's Special Forces (Kopassus).

"Another soldier was injured in the incident -- First Sgt. Solikhin," said Lt. Col. Asep Sapari, a spokesman for the Indonesian military's (TNI) Aceh operation command.

The remains of the two soldiers were removed to command headquarters in Lhokseumawe, the capital of North Aceh regency. Heroik had been shot in the chest, while Hartono had been hit in the leg. From Lhokseumawe, their remains were taken to Medan, the capital of North Sumatra, before being transported back to their respective hometowns for burial.

The incident began when a group of 20 soldiers from Kopassus patrolling on the mountain came across a group of 10 GAM members.

A gun battle immediately erupted and continued for an hour, leaving the two Kopassus soldiers and seven GAM members dead. The remaining GAM members fled the scene. The TNI says the soldiers managed to recover six rifles and 12 magazines.

The Kopassus patrol was part of the current massive military operation underway in the troubled province of Aceh, where martial law has been imposed by the government since May last year. -- JP