Two alleged GAM leaders shot dead in firefight
Two alleged GAM leaders shot dead in firefight
Nani Farida, The Jakarta Post, Banda Aceh, Aceh
The security forces killed two alleged top officers of the rebel
Free Aceh Movement (GAM) early on Sunday and seized two firearms
and hundreds of rounds of ammunition from them, police said.
Abdul Wahab, 30, and M. Amin alias Gam Kong, 30, were shot
dead in an exchange of fire with soldiers and police Mobile
Brigade (Brimob) troopers.
Wahab was GAM's police chief for Aceh Besar regency, while
Amin served as the group's military commander overseeing the
subdistricts of Darul Imarah and Darus Kamal.
Sr. Comr. Edi Madianto, deputy chief of the Aceh Besar Brimob
detachment, said the clash erupted at Pagar Air village, Ingin
Jaya subdistrict, some 20 kilometers northeast of the provincial
capital Banda Aceh.
The two bodies were directly handed over by the Banda Aceh
branch of the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) to their respective
families for burial, he added.
He said a member of the Brimob unit, Second Brig. Purwanto,
was wounded in the clash that also killed at least four head of
cattle in the shed where the two rebels were hiding.
GAM leaders could not be reached to confirm the deaths of
Wahab and Amin.
Madianto said the joint military and police team had been led
to the scene by a tip-off from local residents.
"We moved in at 2 a.m. and launched the attack at 6 a.m.," he
told The Jakarta Post.
The firing forced local villagers to stay in their homes, he
added.
Aceh Besar Military Commander Lt. Col. Joko Warsito claimed
that the Acehnese people were now more willing to provide
information to the security forces on separatist rebel hideouts.
He estimated the number of GAM members in the regency at
around 200, with only 100 of them actually being armed.
National Police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar said on Saturday that
the massive military operation, which was launched on May 19, had
severely weakened GAM.
"The situation in Aceh is quite conducive. There are still GAM
members but their number is now small. So, there is no need to
worry," he said confidently in Banda Aceh.
Da'i said the security authorities were waiting for the "right
time" to arrest other GAM leaders.
He visited Aceh to confer tokens of appreciation on 161 police
officers for their "successes" in helping enforce the law in the
war-torn province. The police chief made no mention, however, of
the widespread reports of civilian casualties, abductions and
extrajudicial killings in the province.
The awarded officers were also given fast-track promotions.
In the three months that the operation has been underway, more
than 700 alleged rebels have been killed and over 1,500 have been
arrested or have surrendered. At least 13 police officers and 45
soldiers have also been killed.
Human rights activists and other groups allege that the
military's count of rebel deaths also include civilians.
Also in Aceh Besar, the Air Force said its personnel arrested
at least 31 suspected rebels and their supporters in Indrapuri
subdistrict on Saturday.
They are being questioned intensively at the Iskandar Muda air
base, Aceh, said Lt. Andi, an Air Force officer.
He said the arrests of the Acehnese, including a GAM female
fighter, Erlianti, 21, were based on information supplied by a
GAM member, Amir, who was detained a week ago.
"No weapons or documents were found. But we are still
questioning them," Andi said.