Troops kill 17 rebels in Aceh

Troops kill 17 rebels in Aceh

INDONESIA: The military said on Saturday soldiers killed 17 rebels in the latest clashes in Aceh province, where security forces are waging an all-out offensive against separatist rebels.

The killings on Friday and Thursday were among the biggest casualties suffered by the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in two days of clashes since the government launched the major offensive to crush the rebels in May 2003.

Soldiers gunned down four GAM rebels in an encounter at Krueng Sabe in Aceh Jaya district on Friday, said military operations spokesman Ari Mulyana Asnawi.

Another three guerrillas were killed in a gunfight in South Aceh district on the same day, Asnawi said.

Ten other guerillas were killed in separate clashes on Thursday, he said.

Another military spokesman, Anang Murtiyoso, said gunmen believed to be GAM rebels shot dead an elementary school principal in South Aceh on Thursday night.

Rebel spokesmen could not be reached for comment. -- AFP