Indonesia military says 18 separatists killed in operation in Papua region
Indonesia military says 18 separatists killed in operation in Papua region
JAKARTA - Indonesia's military has killed 18 Papuan separatists during an operation in its easternmost region of Papua, an official said on Thursday.
The military seized dozens of munitions, including an assault rifle, bows and arrows and an unspecified homemade weapon during Wednesday's operation, military spokesperson Kristomei Sianturi said in a statement.
It said the Indonesian military sustained no casualties.
A spokesperson for the Papua separatists did not immediately respond to request for comments.
Rebels have fought a low-level campaign for independence in the resource-rich Papua region bordering Papua New Guinea ever since the area was controversially brought under Indonesian control following Dutch rule in a vote overseen by the United Nations in 1969.
The rebels have previously taken foreigners hostage, including a group of 26 wildlife researchers in 1996 and a New Zealand pilot who was released last year after being held for 19 months.
Last month, the rebels said they had killed more than 17 people, saying they were soldiers disguised as gold miners.
The Indonesian military has deployed some personnel in the area of Wednesday's operation to "anticipate movements" from the remaining rebels, the statement said. REUTERS
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
26 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Northern Irish rioters attack police for second night
People walk near official vehicles as flames rise during a second night of riots, in Ballymena, Northern Ireland, June 10, 2025. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne Official vehicles are parked as flames rise and a water cannon is used during a second night of riots, in Ballymena, Northern Ireland, June 10, 2025. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne BALLYMENA, Northern Ireland - Rioters threw petrol bombs and other missiles at police in the Northern Irish town of Ballymena in the second successive night of disorder that followed a protest over an alleged sexual assault in the town, police and local media said on Tuesday. Police said they were dealing with "serious disorder" in a part of the town, which is about 45 km (30 miles) from the capital Belfast, and urged people to avoid the area. Officers responded by using water cannon against the rioters, a video posted on social media by a journalist from the Belfast Telegraph showed. Separate protests also blocked off some roads in Belfast, a Reuters witness said. Fifteen police officers were injured, with some requiring hospital treatment, after they came under sustained attack for a number of hours on Monday when masked people broke from the protest to build barricades and attack properties. Four houses were damaged by fire and windows and doors were smashed in other homes and businesses, in what police said they are investigating as racially-motivated hate attacks. Hundreds of protesters gathered in Ballymena on Monday in response to a case involving two teenage boys who appeared in court earlier in the day, accused of sexually assaulting a teenage girl in the County Antrim town. Local media reported that the charges were read to the teenagers via an interpreter. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
41 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Sean ‘Diddy' Combs' ex accuses him of abuse but testifies she still loves him
Sean "Diddy" Combs watches, in an artist's sketch from June 10, as defence lawyer Teny Geragos cross-examines "Jane" at his sex-trafficking trial in New York City. PHOTO: REUTERS Sean 'Diddy' Combs' ex accuses him of abuse but testifies she still loves him NEW YORK - An ex-girlfriend of Sean "Diddy" Combs who accuses him of kicking, punching and dragging her testified at his sex trafficking trial on June 10 that she still loves the hip-hop mogul. "He was my baby," said the woman, who is testifying under the pseudonym Jane to protect her privacy. Asked under cross-examination by defence lawyer Teny Geragos if she currently loves Combs, Jane said, "I do." The woman said she enjoyed taking care of Combs, bathing him and falling asleep with him while watching television after 'hotel nights', their phrase for drug-fuelled encounters in which she would have sex with male entertainers while Combs watched. The questioning was part of Combs' strategy to portray Jane as a willing participant in the sexual encounters with him, not a victim of sex trafficking as prosecutors allege. Combs, 55, and the founder of Bad Boy Records, has pleaded not guilty. Prosecutors say Combs used force and threats of cutting off financial support to coerce women into taking part in the encounters, sometimes known as 'freak offs'. Over three days under questioning by prosecutors in Manhattan federal court, Jane said that she agreed to have sex with a male escort in front of Combs early in their relationship but that he later dismissed her requests to stop and threatened to stop paying her rent. On June 9, Jane said Combs kicked, punched and dragged her during an altercation at her Los Angeles home last June. Later that night, he told her to perform oral sex on a male entertainer even though she said she did not want to, Jane said. Under questioning by Ms Geragos on June 10, Jane said she researched the terms "cuck" and "cuckold" during her relationship with Combs to try to understand his desires. The words refer to men who enjoy watching female partners with other men, Jane said. "I just wanted to know why my partner wanted so many of these nights and what was driving him," Jane said. Combs' defence lawyers are expected to cross-examine Jane until June 12. Testimony is in its fifth week. Combs could face life in prison if convicted on all counts. Also known throughout his career as Puff Daddy and P. Diddy, Combs turned artists like Notorious B.I.G. and Usher into stars, elevating hip-hop in American culture and becoming a billionaire in the process. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
42 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Argentina's top court upholds guilty verdict against Kirchner that bans her from office
Supporters of Argentina's former President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner chant outside the Partido Justicialista (Justicialista Party) national building, ahead of a decision by Argentina's Supreme Court on her guilty verdict for defrauding the state, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, June 10, 2025. REUTERS/Tomas Cuesta People stand outside the Justice Palace after Argentina's Supreme Court upheld former President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner's guilty verdict for defrauding the state, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, June 10, 2025. REUTERS/Pedro Lazaro Fernandez People walk near the Justice Palace after Argentina's Supreme Court upheld former President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner's guilty verdict for defrauding the state, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, June 10, 2025. REUTERS/Pedro Lazaro Fernandez Argentina's former President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner leaves her apartment for a meeting with lawmakers, ahead of a decision by Argentina's Supreme Court on her guilty verdict for defrauding the state, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, June 10, 2025. REUTERS/Tomas Cuesta Argentina's top court upholds guilty verdict against Kirchner that bans her from office BUENOS AIRES - Argentina's Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld a guilty verdict that sentenced powerful two-term former President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner to six years in prison for defrauding the state and banned her from public office. Kirchner, 72, a polarizing figure and leftist who served as president from 2007 to 2015, was convicted by a trial court in 2022 for a fraud scheme that steered public road work projects in the Patagonia to a close ally while she was president. Kirchner, Argentina's most starry politician in recent decades who has rockstar status among her supporters, has denied wrongdoing and claims she is a victim of political persecution. The Supreme Court's three judges left in effect an appellate court decision that had previously upheld the guilty verdict. A lower court will decide whether to grant Kirchner house arrest due to her age. The verdict is a blow for Kirchner, the Peronist's political grandee, though could galvanize the fragmented opposition movement ahead of midterm elections later this year where it will look to challenge libertarian President Javier Milei. Kirchner had announced this month plans to run in legislative elections scheduled for September. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
