Reports claim Indonesian anti-terrorist police have torched a remote village in the Papuan highlands amid clashes with guerrilla rebels in the region.
Activists say civilians have fled into the jungle in response to the unrest and there are now grave fears for their safety.
Media is strictly controlled in the region, making reports hard to verify, but it is claimed that Indonesia's Gegana Brimob police unit attacked the village of Wandenggoback, in the Papuan highlands, in response to the shooting deaths of two police officers on December 3.
The two Indonesian police were reportedly killed earlier in the day during an offensive launched by the militant Free Papua Movement (OPM) and the anti-terrorist brigade responded by setting fire to schools, a church and houses in the village.
Reverend Benny Giay from the Papuan Christian Church in the province's capital, Jayapura, says he has spoken to school teachers and young people who are among those who fled Wandenggoback.
"The police mobile brigade burned the church, schools and houses of the people and people have fled to the bush. They've become local refugees," he said.
"It is in response, according to the military and the government sources here, to the two police who were shot." Read the rest on:
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