Farouk Arnaz – National Police have dispatched 150 officers, including antiterror police, to Timika, Papua, to support local officers and the military in their hunt for suspects following violent attacks targeting Freeport employees.

The announcement comes despite comments from Papua Police Chief Insp. Gen. Bagus Ekodanto on Thursday, who said that despite the recent attacks, no additional police forces would be sent to the area.

Shots were fired early this week on a security-bus convoy near the Grasberg copper and gold mine in Papua province, the latest in several attacks that have occurred since July.

"Actually, we are already sharing duties in a joint patrol of the area with the military and together we have built a task force named Amole, which is headed by the Papua Police chief," National Police Chief Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri said on Friday, adding that his men must succeed in capturing the attackers, regardless of the rugged terrain in Timika.

"They are armed criminals. Our main concerns are the areas of Tinggi Nambut [Puncak Jaya district] and Timika [Mimika district] now," he said.

The attacks have left four people dead – two Freeport employees and two police officers – and left dozens of others wounded.

Bagus Ekodanto, who is scheduled to be replaced by former antiterror police chief Brig. Gen. Bekto Suprapto, noted that a soldier was shot in the leg when returning from a routine patrol near the 37-mile mark in Kali Kopi, Timika, on Wednesday.

He said he believed the attackers may have been aiming at drawing the world's attention to their existence ahead of Dec. 1, the anniversary of the1961 West Papuan declaration of independence from Dutch colonial rule.

The date has since been taken up by pro-independence activists there as their national day.

Local military leaders initially blamed the attacks on members of the separatist Free Papua Movement (OPM), but police investigations have produced no evidence of their involvement. Rouge elements of the Indonesian Armed Forces are also suspects.

Papua Police, in cooperation with the 17th Regional Military Command, have deployed more than 1,000 personnel to secure the Freeport area. Freeport vehicles now only travel by daylight under heavy security escorts.