Antara News·Indonesia·Saturday, September 12, 2026 at 02:17 AM

Army pledges stronger civilian security following Jayawijaya shooting

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Walda Marison, Yashinta Difa

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Army Chief of Staff General Maruli Simanjuntak pledged a full review of civilian security measures in Papua following the fatal shooting of three local government employees by an armed criminal group in Jayawijaya, Highland Papua.

The victims, all employees of the Jayawijaya Agriculture Office, were killed at approximately 3:45 p.m. local time on Wednesday, Sept. 9, while traveling in a convoy to deliver aid in Muliama district.

An armed group ambushed the convoy in Muliama and shot dead Aprida Rapi, 49, Alfonsius Albinus Meha, 35, and Willi Mbuik, 25.

"This is something we continue to evaluate. Our troops have also begun to deploy to locations we had anticipated," Simanjuntak told journalists in Jakarta on Friday, Sept. 11.

He explained that military personnel have been actively securing the region and pursuing the perpetrators.

High operational intensity, according to Simanjuntak, has increasingly cornered the armed group, driving them to commit indiscriminate acts of violence against civilians.

"It appears they are becoming agitated, so they have started targeting victims indiscriminately," he noted.

Addressing the group's claim that the victims were targeted for acting as government intelligence operatives, Simanjuntak dismissed the allegation as baseless and fabricated, emphasizing that the victims were public servants working to advance local development.

"That is just how those people are, they always look for a pretext. Now they attack civilians, labeling everyone as intelligence agents. They keep repeating that same narrative," he stated.

In response, the Army plans to bolster security operations throughout Jayawijaya by deploying personnel across District (Kodim), Resort (Korem), and Regional (Kodam) Military Commands to safeguard residents and track down the perpetrators.

"Hopefully, security measures will improve in the future," Simanjuntak emphasized.

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