Jakarta – Security forces shot and killed five separatist rebels, while one solider died as clashes persisted in Indonesia's restive Aceh province, the military said Sunday.

Rebels ambushed a security patrol in the Bireun district in northern Aceh, killing one soldier, local military spokesman Maj. Zaenal Mutaquin said.

Troops shot three guerillas in the eastern part of the province and two other rebels were killed in the north, Mutaquin said without giving further detail.

A rebel who spoke on condition of anonymity said only one of the dead was a member of the separatist Free Aceh Movement, while the rest were unarmed civilians, including one woman.

Guerrillas have been fighting since 1976 for the independence of Aceh province on the northern end of Sumatra island, which is rich in oil and natural gas. At least 12,000 people have been killed, including about 500 this year.

Human rights groups say both the guerrillas and Indonesian security forces have carried out abuses, including kidnapping, rape and torture.

Aceh, about 1,200 miles northwest of Indonesia's capital, Jakarta, is one of several regions in sprawling Southeast Asian island nation that are plagued by separatist, racial or religious violence.