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TNI searches for missing soldiers after Papua rebel attack
The missing troops were part of the search for Phillip Mark Mehrtens, a pilot with Susi Air, who was taken in February by armed separatists at Nduga airport in Papua.
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Indonesian Military (TNI) Chief Admiral Yudo Margono (front right) speaks to journalists during a press conference in Timika, Papua on April 18, 2023. (AFP/STR)
S
ecurity forces on Tuesday were searching for four soldiers who went missing last week after a deadly rebel ambush in Papua, Indonesian Military (TNI) chief said.
The missing troops were part of the search for Phillip Mark Mehrtens, a pilot with Susi Air, who was taken in February by armed separatists at Nduga airport in Papua.
They were on their way to the pilot's location in the hilly Nduga region on Saturday when rebels started shooting at them, TNI chief Admiral Yudo Margono said.
"We had received information on the whereabouts of the kidnapped pilot. We hoped that, together with local people... we could establish communication and negotiate for the pilot's release," Yudo told reporters in the Papuan city of Timika.
"That's what we hoped (for), but rebels shot at us when we were trying to reach the location."
One soldier was killed in the ambush, and the military was searching for the four troops still missing, he added.
The military has not identified the rebel group responsible for the ambush, but the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) -- the militant wing of Papua's main separatist group -- has claimed it.
