Papuan rebels in Indonesia set plane on fire, take New Zealand pilot hostage

7/2/2023 18:20

        Separatist fighters in Indonesia's Papua region have taken a New Zealand pilot hostage after setting a small commercial plane alight when it landed in
        a remote highland area on Tuesday, a pro-independence group said in a statement.
        
        A police spokesperson in Papua province, Ignatius Benny Adi Prabowo, said authorities were investigating the incident, with police and military personnel sent to the area to locate the pilot and five passengers.
        
        "We cannot send many personnel there because Nduga is a difficult area to reach. We can only go there by plane," he said.
        
        A military spokesperson in Papua, Herman Taryaman, said the pilot had been identified as Captain Philip Merthens and it was unclear if the five accompanying passengers had also been abducted.