A separatist armed group in Indonesia’s restive Papua region has claimed responsibility for killing an American pilot and setting fire to a civilian passenger aircraft, according to a report by The Guardian published on Friday.
Sebby Sambom, spokesperson for the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB), identified the pilot as Nicholas F. Gosselin. He claimed that rebels shot the pilot after the aircraft landed in Yahukimo Regency in Highland Papua Province before setting the plane on fire.
The separatist group alleged that the aircraft had been routinely used to transport Indonesian security personnel. According to Sambom, the attack was carried out after previous warnings had been ignored and was intended as a message to both the Indonesian and U.S. governments.
Indonesian authorities have confirmed that an aircraft piloted by an American national was destroyed by fire at an airport in Yahukimo. However, Yusuf Sutejo, spokesperson for the joint police and military task force in Papua, did not immediately confirm either the rebels’ claim of responsibility or the reported death of the pilot.
Officials said the aircraft was carrying seven additional passengers, all of whom were local Papuan residents. Their condition was not immediately disclosed.
Papua, a resource-rich region in eastern Indonesia, has experienced a decades-long separatist insurgency seeking independence from Jakarta. In recent years, clashes between Indonesian security forces and armed separatist groups have intensified, with the increasing use of more sophisticated weaponry contributing to heightened violence.
Source: The Guardian.