TNI claims innocence in Papua attack

SORONG, Papua: An Indonesian Military (TNI) team investigating the ambush on employees of PT Freeport Indonesia in Timika said they found no evidence of military involvement in the August incident.

A local military commander Col. MR Saragih told Antara on Sunday a team of 10 officers from TNI legal affairs, military police, inspectorate general, intelligence unit and infantry weaponry concluded that no soldiers were involved in the attack after collecting accounts from witnesses and facts on the field.

The team has reported the result of the investigation to TNI Chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto, according to Saragih, who accompanied the team during their fact-finding mission in Papua.

Saragih said the team discovered the attackers, who killed two Americans and an Indonesian, sprayed bullets which were different from those used in TNI standard-issue weapons.

"Accusations of TNI involvement in the attack are far from the reality; so we found on the ground. Those views have been spread to undermine TNI," Saragih said.

TNI is threatening to file a lawsuit against U.S. daily Washington Post for its report that linked the military with the attack. -- Antara