Soldiers, civilian killed in E. Timor

DILI, East Timor: Assailants killed three soldiers and a civilian in Weberek, near the provincial capital of Dili, Antara reported on Sunday.

A fourth soldier was missing and believed to be dead.

The military blamed pro-independence activists for the stabbings on Friday night.

Also on Friday, masked men shot and killed a soldier in his home in Leorama, west of Dili, the military said. There were no arrests.

Chief of the Wira Dharma Military Resort Col. Suhartono Suratman said two pistols belonging to the Weberek victims were missing. Another soldier who was with them was believed to have been killed but his body has not yet been found, he said.

Citing witness reports, Suratman alleged they were killed by demonstrators who attended a rally organized by the Solidarity Council of Students and Youths, a group that wants a referendum on independence.

Josep Florindo Pareira, a police sergeant, was also killed in Leorama by unidentified people.

He was killed only minutes after returning home after attending a Roman Catholic church service with his wife.

Witnesses said two men shot him in the shoulder and abdomen while he and two other members of the congregation counted donations collected during the service. A total of 10 assailants had surrounded the house of the East Timorese native.