Mota'ain – Indonesian troops fired in the air yesterday to halt fighting that broke out among East Timorese refugees and residents at an informal reunion at this border crossing point between East and West Timor, witnesses said.

No one was injured in the shooting, which triggered panic among some 13,000 refugees and residents crowded onto a beach in a neutral zone on the border.

But an AFP photographer said at least four people were hurt by rocks thrown in the 20-minute brawl, which involved people identified as members of the pro-Jakarta militia.

"People were just kind of running in all directions, and during the mayhem some families got split up," said Christopher Lom, press officer of the International Office of Migration (IOM), which arranges the reunions.

"TNI (Indonesian army troops) let off a sustained burst of fire for about 15 seconds," and although they were clearly firing in the air, people dived into the sand at the sound, fearing they were being shot at.

Mr Lom, who was on the Indonesian side of the border when the fighting broke out at 1pm, said he believed the disturbance was premeditated and designed to disrupt the reunion program.

"Our feeling is that it was something orchestrated by militia. It was premeditated. Obviously the militia's intention to disrupt the thing," Mr Lom said. "The last thing they need is reconciliation. I didn't see what actually triggered it, we could see pretty big rocks flying through the air through the gate on the western side."