The Indonesian military says it is continuing to launch raids against separatist rebels in tsunami-devastated Aceh, despite having earlier called a ceasefire to help aid efforts.
"Our security operations continue, the only difference is that it may be less in scale and intensity," Lieutenant Colonel Nachrowi, of the military headquarters' general information department, told AFP.
"The principle is that all our forces in Aceh are basically continuing their duty under the security operation. But they also have to accord a large portion of their time for the humanitarian relief efforts.
"We continue to launch raids into suspected GAM [Free Aceh Movement] areas and our vigilance remains high." Nachrowi's comments come despite Indonesian military chief General Endriartono Sutarto calling for an unprecedented temporary ceasefire on Monday with the rebels so focus could be shifted onto rebuilding the remote province.
"All my soldiers will be used to help overcome this natural disaster and I hope that GAM will also do the same, not using the opportunity for something else because this is really something to do with humanitarian problems," he said.
Much of the western coast of Aceh, including the capital of Banda Aceh, was demolished in Sunday's massive tsunamis that were triggered by a 9.0-magnitude earthquake in the ocean 150 kilometres from the province.
The Indonesian death toll from the tsunamis is nearly 80,000 people, with most of the fatalities in Aceh, and the figure is expected to climb further as rescue workers reach remote towns and villages.
The inability to quickly rebuild infrastructure in Aceh is being partly attributed to the decades-old insurgency that has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people and led to less development in the province.
The Free Aceh Movement has been fighting for independence since 1976, and the government stepped up its military suppression efforts with a massive operation that began in May 2003.
Amid the apparent calls for a ceasefire, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono urged GAM rebels on Thursday to lay down their weapons and join efforts to rebuild Aceh.
"I call on those who are still raising arms, to come out... let us use this historic momentum to join and be united again," Yudhoyono told a press conference here. "I call on them all, let us together build an Aceh in line with the special autonomy and according to what we can do together."
The exiled Free Aceh Movement leadership announced on Tuesday that it had imposed its own unilateral ceasefire, but said there had been no evidence of the army having laid down its arms. "We declared a unilateral ceasefire, but some of our people have been killed in ambushes," GAM spokesman Bakhtir Abdullah told AFP in Sweden. "At this crucial time, there is a natural catastrophe and yet the military troops are still hunting GAM people," he said.