Indonesian army chief furious at 'mass grave' claims

Indonesia’s army chief of staff responded angrily today to claims that a mass grave had been found in restive Aceh province.

General Ryamizard Ryacudu said he would “knock their heads off” if the report by the National Commission on Human Rights proved to be unfounded.

The grave, reportedly containing dozens of bodies, is said to be near the scene of some of the fiercest recent fighting between the military and separatist rebels.

Rights commission spokesman MM Billah said his staff had heard about the grave in the northern district of Biruen, but had not seen it themselves.

He said they would send a team to Aceh next week to investigate it. The commission receives funding from the Jakarta government but is considered independent of government control.

Ryacudu, currently inspecting military operations against the Free Aceh Movement rebels, said of the commission and its claims: “Ask them to come here. I will knock their heads off if they are just talking.”

Last month, the military launched a major offensive against the rebels after a five-month peace deal broke down.

More than 180 people – most of them suspected rebels – have been killed in daily clashes since then.

On Tuesday, seven Indonesian troops were killed and seven were injured in Biruen in the worst fighting since the offensive began on May 19.

Ryacudu is a fierce nationalist who often responds angrily to claims of abuses by the notoriously corrupt and brutal Indonesian military.

He provoked further criticism on Tuesday when he said two German tourists who were shot by his troops in Aceh were “stupid” for taking a holiday in a war zone.

Lothar Heinrich Albert Engels, 54, was killed and his 49-year-old wife Elisabeth was injured. They were camping on a beach when the military said they were shot by soldiers investigating a suspicious light.

“People who go picnicking in (conflict) zones are dumb and stupid,” Ryacudu said on Tuesday. “If you want to go on vacation, go to Bali.”