Three Fretilin rebels found dead

DILI (JP): The military said yesterday three Fretilin separatist rebels were found dead in a river in Viqueque, about 300 kilometers east of here.

East Timor military chief Col. Salamat Sidabutar said the "security disturbers", as the army calls separatists, were from those involved in a shootout with soldiers in Viqueque on Feb. 5. Two soldiers were wounded in the incident.

Sidabutar identified the three dead rebels as Luis da Costa Amaral, 30, Manuel Amaral, 32, and a woman believed to be a member of the gang.

"They could have drowned in Dilor river while fleeing the gunfight," he told reporters.

Sidabutar said about 15 armed separatists attacked a group of soldiers patrolling the Lacluta subdistrict, Viqueque, on Feb. 5.

He said one of the bodies was dressed in an Army-like uniform, a backpack and an SP-1 type assault rifle with one fully loaded magazine and 120 bullets.

The bodies were found in three separate locations along the river, he said.

The rebels were discovered on residents' tip off, he said.

He said East Timor was stable despite the accessional rebels' disturbance. (33)