The rumours started four years ago. SAS troops in conflict with an Indonesian-backed militia group near Suai on October 6, 1999 had overstepped the rules of battle.

Atambua, E Nusatenggara – At least 319 resettlement units in Belu distrit set up in Indonesia's East Nusatenggara province between 2000 and 2002 for local people and former East Timor r

Sian Powell – A delegation of senior Australian diplomats last week toured an Indonesian region considered by the UN to be more dangerous than Baghdad.

Ian Timberlake, Jakarta – Thousands of former East Timorese refugees have been given homes of their own in Indonesian West Timor after more than four years of living in decrepit refugee

Atambua – Indonesian immigration officers in Mota'ain, a town on the Indonesia-East Timor border, on Friday turned away a group of UN lawyers who intended to visit Atambua because the l

Yemris Fointuna, Kupang – Pessure has been placed on the relevant authorities to investigate alleged irregularities in the use of Rp 53 billion (US$6.3 million) in aid for East Timorese

Kupang – Twenty-six East Timorese who have been seeking asylum in Belu district since last October have sent a petition to President Megawati Soekarnoputri asking for protection and exp

Rachel Kleinman – Yarra's East Timorese asylum-seekers face a miserable Christmas unless their appeals for residency are resolved.

Atambua – The Belu district government said it was treating the 26 East Timorese seeking asylum in Atambua as foreign nationals.

Waingapu – East Timorese President Xanana Gusmao has expressed anger over attitude of the country's citizens seeking asylum in Atambua, Belu district, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), a milita

Kupang – The leaders of two ex-East Timorese refugee organizations have urged the Indonesian government to refrain from deporting 26 East Timorese asylum seekers currently staying in At

A former militia leader, who was sentenced to 10 years for his role in the 1999 East Timor violence, unfurled a giant Indonesian flag yesterday and called on the country to "rekindle" i

Yemris Fointuna, Kupang – East Timor President Xanana Gusmao called on East Timor asylum seekers on Monday in the Indonesia's territory of Atambua here to return to their homeland in Ea

Atambua – The Indonesian military and police have agreed to deport 26 East Timorese who are seeking asylum at Belu police resort in Indonesia's East Nusa Tenggara province.

Yemris Fointuna, Kupang – As many as 48 East Timorese citizens sneaked into East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) province seeking protection from the Indonesia government, claiming they were victim

Yemris Fointuna, Kupang – At least five of 14 regencies in East Nusa Tenggara have refused to give land for resettlement areas for thousands of East Timorese refugees still languishing

Yemris Fointuna, Kupang – Hundreds of students and East Timorese refugees continued their demonstrations on Tuesday at the East Nusa Tenggara legislative council following the reported

Kupang – Former deputy commander of pro-Indonesian fighters in East Timor Eurico Guterres on Thursday denied that he would attack East Timor.

Kupang – The Indonesian government has reiterated the five options offered to former residents of East Timor who have continued to stay in Indonesia's West Timor area despite East Timor

Kupang – About 700 members and civil servants who worked for the Indonesian Defence Forces (TNI) when East Timor was an Indoneisn province are still staying in ex-refugee camps here, a

Joao da Silva Tavares, widely regarded as one of the most feared and hated pro-Jakarta militia leaders of East Timor, is these days enjoying retirement in Indonesia's ancient temple cit

Makassar – Hundreds of East Timorese, currently under the care of the Al Anshar Foundation here, and other refugees and students have refused to go back to East Timor.

Gillian Davey – Immigration minister Philip Ruddock's June 3 decision to grant 379 East Timorese asylum seekers permanent residency in Australia is a decision that all supporters of ref

Two-thirds of East Timorese asylum seekers living in Darwin have been told they can stay in Australia, subject to further checks.

Immigration Minister Philip Ruddock said he would intervene to grant 379 East Timorese asylum seekers permanent residency in Australia.

John Hamilton – Hilton Lay is a nine-year-old kid with a cheeky grin and one passion in life – Essendon. His proudest possession is a Bombers scarf.

Tony Stephens – Teresinha Maia's grandfather, Loloulo, helped Australian commandos fight the Japanese in Timor during World War II.

Yemris Fointuna, Kupang – More than 500 East Timorese people still taking refuge in West Timor held a protest recently in front of the East Nusa Tenggara provincial legislative council,

Megan Saunders – Ami is only six, but she knows her family is at crisis point.

Three and half years after East Timor voted for independence, 1500 East Timorese asylum seekers are still in Australia.

Elcid Li, Kupang – The reunion took place in no-man's-land.

Megan Saunders – Immigration Minister Philip Ruddock has rejected a plea by the East Timor President, Xanana Gusmao, to allow up to 1600 temporary visa holders to remain in Australia be

The Federal Government has been accused of leaving East Timorese asylum seekers to starve by cutting off their welfare payments while they wait to hear if they are allowed to stay in Au

Cynthia Banham – Refugee groups are claiming the Federal Government is close to making a decision on the fate of East Timorese asylum seekers that would prolong their limbo status for t

Kalinga Seneviratne, Sydney – Australia's international profile, already hurt by criticism against its role in the US-led invasion of Iraq, is under fire for is its desire to boot out E

Paul Kelly – Iraq is not the only humanitarian issue facing the Howard Government today.

East Timorese President Xanana Gusmao has urged Canberra to allow 1,600 of his compatriots who fled to Australia about a decade ago, in the bloody years before independence, to stay.

Jakarta (Agencies) – Military authorities in West Timor have arrested six pro-Jakarta militiamen for their alleged involvement in last month's ambush of a passenger bus in East Timor an

A military commander overseeing Indonesian West Timor has ordered his men to shoot on sight any armed militiamen found trying to cross the border with independent East Timor.

Larissa Dubecki – The State Government will give financial aid to about 1600 East Timorese refugees in Australia fighting to gain permanent residency status.

Cynthia Banham – The Howard Government is facing dissent from its backbenches over a decision to deport more than 1000 East Timorese refugees.

Larry Schwartz – The boys have been asking their father why they must leave family and friends in suburban Melbourne and go to another country.

Yemris Fointuna and Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta/Kuala Lumpur – The military commander overseeing the West Timor province promised tighter security along its border with East Timor wh

Dili – East Timorese officials blamed anti-independence militias Tuesday for an attack that killed two people, injured four and heightened security fears in the world's newest nation.

Dili – Anti-independence militias have launched a "terrorist strategy" to undermine Timor Leste's government before the planned United Nations withdrawal from the country next year, a t

Dili – Unidentified gunmen killed one person and seriously injured two pregnant women in an attack Monday on a minibus in East Timor, officials said.

East Timorese asylum seekers have a special case to be allowed to stay in Australia.

Dili – The commander of Australian UN peacekeepers in East Timor has dismissed reports that former anti-independence militiamen have infiltrated from Indonesia and were behind recent at

To East Timor, where a reported militia insurgency has put a spotlight on Australia's peacekeeping efforts in properly securing the border.

Jill Jolliffe, Hatolia – The United Nations is in a quandary after insecure border villagers demanded that it extend a controversial military operation that has resulted in mass arrests