Jakarta – Hundreds of separatist rebels are still holding an airfield after attacking the town of Ilaga in the rugged central highlands of Irian Jaya and torching several buildings, Indonesia's military and police said Monday.

"Based on the report I have received, the ... members are controlling the airfield. But we will continue efforts to recapture the airfield from them," said Major-General Mahidin Simbolon, military command chief in Indonesia's easternmost province.

Simbolon, quoted by the state Antara news agency, said the armed wing of the self-styled Free Papua Movement was concentrating its strength in a village near the airfield at Ilaga.

Antara said the group, numbering about 400 to 500, including local supporters, had seized four firearms from military and police officers. Lieutenant Colonel Djamaluddin, head of the Timika military command, said three helicopters carrying troops had been sent to the area to try to retake the airfield.

The military and police spokesmen in Irian Jaya could not be reached to confirm whether the airfield was still in the rebels' hands as of late Monday.

Provincial police spokesman Senior Commissioner A.R. Zulkifli earlier told AFP the clashes began when rebels ambushed soldiers returning to their post from Friday prayers at a mosque in Ilaga. Hand-to-hand fighting broke out and one of the attackers was shot dead. Two soldiers were seriously wounded during the clashes.

After dusk on Saturday, he said, a rebel-led group of some 400 tribesmen armed with guns and traditional weapons attacked the Ilaga police post. It was empty as the policemen had already left for the local military post.

The crowd torched the post and later also set fire to several buildings, including shops, a market, a bank, the post office and several houses of officials.

The rioters then attacked an army post but were driven off by gunfire. The Free Papua Movement has been fighting for an independent state of West Papua in Irian Jaya since the 1960s.