Indonesia says 23,000 Acehnese flee, rebel toll at 58

BANDA ACEH, Indonesia - Indonesia said today that 58 separatist rebels in Aceh province have been killed, and 23,000 civilians have fled their homes, since the military began its biggest offensive in years.

An Indonesian military document, seen by reporters, listed 58 Free Aceh Movement (GAM) rebels killed, up from a figure of 38 given earlier.

A rebel statement said 12 separatist fighters had been killed in the offensive, along with 43 soliders and police, and that 53 civilians had lost their lives.

The various numbers could not be independently verified. The Indonesian military has denied causing any civilian deaths.

Aceh deputy governor Aswar Abubakar said that since Monday when the campaign began thousands of civilians had fled their homes in Indonesia's westernmost province. The military said the rebels have melted into the civilian population

"There have been 23,000 refugees. Some of them are in North Aceh, Bireun, West Aceh and a few in other places. They won't be evacuated to Banda Aceh," Abubakar told reporters.

"Some fear their areas will become operation areas."

Aceh's military commander visited an island off the north Aceh coast on Friday to deliver humanitarian aid to an isolated community that has seen several clashes in recent days with entrenched GAM forces.

The military has pounded the island, a half-hour by boat from the provincial capital Banda Aceh, with rocket fire from helicopters and machinegun and cannon fire from patrol boats.

"We are trying to eliminate the rebels from the air, land and sea. We are trying to prevent them from escaping," Major General Endang Suwarya told reporters.

Island resident Leila, who like many Indonesians uses one name, told Reuters the military campaign was frightening. "We are scared. Our economic life is very bad and we need aid."

Jakarta declared martial law in Aceh and the military launched its biggest offensive since the 1975 invasion of East Timor following the collapse of last-ditch talks in Tokyo last Sunday aimed at saving a five-month-old peace pact.

GAM has held out for independence instead of the special autonomy Jakarta is offering for Aceh, whose four million people practise a stricter kind of Islam than in the rest of Indonesia. The province is rich in oil and gas.

The United States, Japan and Europe have all urged a resumption of negotiations.

Battlefield claims could not be easily verified, but there were reports of disrupted transportation, hundreds of burned schools, and growing numbers of refugees and civilian casualties.

The fighting was interfering with transport in the province.

"The roads are not closed, but many vehicles are burned and passengers are afraid to go," driver Raja Tinayungan told Reuters at Banda Aceh's bus terminal.

As the cost for Aceh's war-weary people from the offensive rises, Indonesia's health ministry is sending 740 doctors and about 5000 nurses to help the displaced, reports said.

Indonesian military spokesman Firdaus Komarno said clashes had been sporadic.

"Indeed, we will face difficulties because they're blending with people, but we have expected this," he said. "We won't be emotional and wipe them out in a hurry. We will hold back whenever they use people as human shields."

Indonesia's army has been accused of human rights abuses during its earlier battles with GAM, charges it has generally denied. The military and other observers have accused the separatists of committing rights violations themselves.

The military has said anyone found guilty of offences against civilians would be severely punished. It has accused GAM of burning of hundreds of schools since the offensive began.

Government commanders hope the campaign can be completed in six months. Jakarta has 45,000 troops and police in Aceh against about 5000 GAM fighters, but the rebels have historically taken full advantage of the rugged, jungle-clad terrain.

- REUTERS