Banda Aceh – Indonesian troops hunting separatist rebels in the restive province of Aceh mistakenly shot dead a teenager and wounded his younger brother, the victims' mother said yesterday.

Mrs Darwati, from Leubu Lapehan in Bireuen district, said her oldest son Muntasir, 17, was shot dead by troops on Wednesday and a younger son, Harmadi, 14, was wounded.

Jakarta – Separatist rebels in war-torn Aceh province said Wednesday they were willing to release 80 captives including a television cameraman in return for a two-day ceasefire.

"That's a condition that we have put forth," said the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) commander for East Aceh district, Ishak Dawood.

Pulo Aceh – Social Affairs Minister Bachtiar Chamsyah said the people of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam (NAD) province should be brave and act against separatist rebels in order to restore security.

John Roberts – For more than seven months, the Indonesian armed forces (TNI) have been waging a war of repression in the province of Aceh, aimed at crushing the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) and intimidating the population as a whole.

Separatist rebels and the military in Indonesia's Aceh province have accused each other of responsibility for a bombing which killed 11 people at a New Year's Eve concert in the province.

Woro Swasti, Jakarta – The death of RCTI Television journalist Ersa Siregar remains a puzzle to this day. In order that there can be an independent investigation, international institutions are urged to be involved in the investigation of the case.

A'an Suryana, Meulaboh – Even during the most desperate hour of need, there are those who still think only of themselves.

"Poltak" alit from a government ambulance loaded with medicines and food aid from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).

Jakarta – Indonesia said Saturday it will withdraw controversial British-made Scorpion light tanks from Aceh province and replace them with a locally-produced model.

Jakarta – Aceh rebels used a kidnapped television reporter as a human shield during a gunfight with Indonesian soldiers that led to his death early this week, the military claimed on Wednesday.

Luhur Hertanto, Jakarta – The problem of security is not the only stumbling block to holding the 2004 general elections in Aceh. Public apathy is also expected to be a major problem.

International and local journalist groups have called for an independent investigation into the killing by Indonesian troops of a television reporter in Aceh province, six months after he was kidnapped by separatist rebels.

Banda Aceh – Rebels in Indonesia's Aceh accused the military on Tuesday of executing a local television reporter who was found shot dead in the troubled province following a clash between separatists and marines.

Nani Farida, Banda Aceh – A local reporter working for SCTV private television station, Muhammad Nasier, filed a complaint on Friday with the Aceh Military Operation Command in Lhokseumawe, North Aceh, after a soldier slapped him across the face the previous day.

Robert Go, Jakarta – The Indonesian military (TNI) has escalated its security crackdown on rebels of the Free Aceh Movement with the dispatch on Christmas of three battalions of the newly-formed elite Raiders Unit to the troubled province.

Kanis Dursin, Jakarta – Foreign Affairs Minister Hassan Wirayuda unleashed the first-ever scathing criticism by any Indonesian official on the invasion and occupation of Iraq in early December, almost nine months after allied forces, led by the world's lone superpower, the United States, dropped their first bombs at selected targets across Iraq in March.

Banda Aceh – The Indonesian military on Friday accused separatist rebels in Aceh province of kidnapping eight civilians, including three village chiefs.

Free Aceh Movement (GAM) members seized the three chiefs at Pante Bidari in East Aceh on Thursday, said provincial military spokesman Ahmad Yani Basuki.

Jakarta/Lhokseumawe/Medan – Indonesian media have failed to help resolve the Aceh conflict, as their coverage of the impact of martial law in the war-torn province has been inconsistent, a watchdog says.

The Information Flow Study Institute (ISAI) said the media here has no clear agenda on the Aceh issue, let alone helping to find a settlement to the war.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – The government has eased its restrictions against foreigners in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam by allowing five international organizations to resume their humanitarian activities in the war-ravaged province.

Banda Aceh – Indonesia's military said yesterday it had killed 128 Aceh separatist rebels in the month since martial law over the province was controversially extended.

The Free Aceh Movement (GAM) members were killed between November 20 and December 21, said provincial military spokesman Ahmad Yani Basuki.

Indonesian troops have killed six separatist rebels and captured nine including three young women in Aceh province, the military and police said.

Jakarta – Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda said on Wednesday the Swedish government will send a team of prosecutors and police officers to Indonesia to interview a number of separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) figures.

"They haven't set the exact date," Wirayuda said after a meeting with President Megawati Soekarnoputri at the State Palace.

Banda Aceh – Four suspected separatist guerrillas and one civilian became the latest casualties of fighting between rebels and government forces in the Indonesian province of Aceh, the military said yesterday.

Troops clashed with rebels in Pasi Raja, South Aceh, Friday and shot dead two rebels, Lieutenant Colonel Ahmad Yani Basuki said.

Jakarta – Indonesia has described as baseless a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report alleging gross abuses by troops fighting separatist rebels in Aceh province.

Banda Aceh – Three armed Aceh rebels were killed in gunfights with government troops in North Aceh and East Aceh districts on Wednesday, a military spokesman said Thursday.

Banda Aceh – The involvement of civil society in efforts to fight the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) are becoming increasingly enthusiastic in a number of regencies in Aceh.

Urip Hudiono and Nani Farida, Jakarta/Banda Aceh – Indonesia risks losing its international credibility if it fails to stop abuses by the military against civilians in Aceh and ensure that perpetrators of the human rights violations are brought to justice, an international rights group warns.

Banda Aceh – Two Indonesian soldiers of the Army Strategic and Reserve Command (Kostrad) were killed by rebels in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam province on Tuesday, it was reported here on Wednesday.

Nani Farida and Teuku Agam Muzakkir, Banda Aceh/Lhokseumawe – In a bid to ensure that the Acehnese can exercise their right to vote in the upcoming elections, rights campaigner Todung Mulya Lubis has called for a delay in the elections pending the lifting of martial law there.

Dan Eaton, Jakarta – Indonesia's military is waging an extensive campaign of extra-judicial killings, kidnapping and torture in Aceh province, mostly targeting young men and forcing thousands to flee their homes, a human rights group said.

The Indonesian military in Aceh is pursuing a campaign of killings, "disappearances" and beatings of civilians, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Acehnese refugees interviewed in Malaysia revealed widespread abuses in the Indonesian province, which has been effectively closed to observers since martial law was imposed in May.

Banda Aceh – Three rebels and three civilians have been killed in Aceh province over the past two days as an offensive against separatist guerrillas continues, the military said on Tuesday.

The news filtered through as legislators in Jakarta urged the government to give soldiers and police serving in the province a hefty increase in allowances.

Tiarma Siboro and Nani Farida, Jakarta/Banda Aceh – Amid mounting criticism over restrictions on the press and independent groups in the war-torn province of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam, the Indonesian Military (TNI) said on Monday that the presence of foreign teams monitoring next year's elections in the province was not necessarily needed.

Banda Aceh – The troubled province of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam still needs 20,000 more teachers for elementary schools, junior high schools and senior high schools in 20 districts and municipalities.

"Aceh still needs 20,000 more teachers to teach at different schools," spokesman for the Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam Provincial Education Office Bustamam Aly said on Sunday.

Jakarta – The international community through the Consultative Group on Indonesia (CGI) has asked to prioritize a peaceful solution of the conflict in Nangroe Aceh Darussalam (NAD) province.

Nani Farida and Teuku Agam Muzakir, Banda Aceh/Lhokseumawe – Pressure on the press in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam has claimed another victim after the Indonesian Military (TNI) allegedly forced a local biweekly tabloid to stop publishing in the war-torn province.

Indonesian troops said they had uncovered an arms cache and a weapons factory in Aceh province, where soldiers and police have been battling separatist rebels since May.

Soldiers found weapons including a home-made grenade launcher, guns, rifles and ammunition at Nisam in North Aceh, provincial military spokesman Ahmad Yani Basuki said yesterday.

Jakarta – Acehnese rebels celebrated the 27th anniversary of their independence struggle yesterday with the sporadic raising of flags and a rare battlefield success, killing four soldiers and injuring two in clashes across the restive province.

Nani Farida and Teuku Agam Muzakkir, Banda Aceh/Lhokseumawe – Celebrations marking the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) anniversary proceeded in the province on Thursday despite the heavy military presence there to prevent the observance.

Tiarma Siboro and Teuku Agam Muzakkir, Jakarta/Lhokseumawe – Despite warnings and threats of attacks by the Indonesian Military (TNI), the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) plans on celebrating its 27th anniversary, which falls on December 4.

An international rights group called for the immediate and unconditional lifting of press restrictions in Indonesia's Aceh province, where a major military campaign to crush separatist rebels is in its seventh month.

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja and Nani Farida, Jakarta/Banda – Aceh Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda said the government has not dropped the option of having the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) included on the United Nations' list of terrorist organizations.

Banda Aceh – Indonesia's military said Friday it has killed four more rebels in Aceh province, where troops are in the seventh month of an offensive to crush separatist guerrillas.

Matthew Moore, Banda Aceh – Six months after more than 600 of Aceh's schools were destroyed by fire, virtually none have been rebuilt and thousands of students can't go to school.

And some temporary schools built after the fires are in such poor condition that enough rainwater leaks through holes in the roof to allow grass to grow on the dirt floor.

Jakarta – The Coordinating Minister for Politics and Security, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has asked the regional military commander Major General Endang Suwarya to improve the quality of the integrated operation in Aceh.

The Indonesian government's war against separatist rebels in Aceh has today entered its seventh month, with no end in sight to the bloodshed. Already some 16,000 have been killed in what has been described as Jakarta's biggest military operation in 25-years.

Matthew Moore, Lhokseumawe – Pro-military groups critical of human rights activists are emerging in Indonesia's conflict-ridden Aceh province, raising fears of a resurgence of East Timor-style militias.

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – The government has backed down on its plan to have the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) listed as a terrorist organization by the United Nations to avoid turning Aceh into an international issue.

Jakarta – At least 16 suspected Acehnese rebels were killed and nine arrested during a military offensive in Aceh from Thursday to Saturday, the Indonesian Military (TNI) said on Sunday.

A press release issued by the TNI said four civilians were also killed in the operation.

Lesley McCulloch – It is too easy for the world to forget Aceh, an embattled, silent and closed province in the northwest of Indonesia. The reason is simple: international journalists are prevented from entering legally and the local media are either embedded in the military or attacked – even kidnapped – when attempting to work independently.

Indonesian troops have killed nine more separatist rebels in Aceh province, the military said.