Dili – Four people have been killed and five wounded in separate incidents in the East Timor districts of Maubara and Balibo, a top East Timorese resistance official told Lusa Tuesday.

Manuel Carrascalao is a member of the National Political Commission of the Timorese National Resistance Council (CNRT). He said that in Maubara, west of the capital Dili, three persons died and five were wounded in confrontations between local residents and a paramilitary group.

A different militia killed a village chief named Mendes in Balibo Tuesday, Carrascalao said. Mendes had reportedly refused to attend a meeting organized by the group.

Armed civilian militias favoring integration into Indonesia have become increasingly active in East Timor since January, when Jakarta announced it would withdraw from the territory if the East Timorese reject a proposal for enhanced autonomy within Indonesia.