Soldier's body arrives

Antara/Zarqoni

JAKARTA (JP): The body of Pvt. Wahyudi, a member of the Army's Special Command (Kopasssus), who was killed in a guerrilla ambush on Wednesday in Aceh, arrived here on Thursday to a full military reception.

Spokesman for the military operations chief in Aceh, Lt. Col. CHB Firdaus, said in Lhokseumawe on Thursday that Wahyudi was killed in action when separatist rebels from the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) ambushed a military patrol of about 30 soldiers early on Wednesday.

The ambush occurred in Padang Sielumueng-Laguen, about 138- kilometers west from the provincial capital of Banda Aceh.

Firdaus claimed that the soldiers were attacked without provocation.

"They had not conducted any searches ... The soldiers that were hit were still in the car," he said.

Antara reported that three other soldiers were injured in the attack. There was no immediate information about casualties on the rebels' side.

The body of Pvt. Wahyudi, a member of Group I of the Serang Kopassus command, arrived at Soekarno-Hatta airport at noon on Thursday. (06)