East Timor: militia member killed in clash with UN peacekeepers
26 September -- An armed militia member was killed today by United Nations soldiers in East Timor's Suai district, 8 kilometres from the border with Indonesia.
According to the UN Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET), the incident occurred when three militia members - dressed in Indonesian army fatigues and armed with automatic weapons - approached a peacekeeping post from behind and engaged in a brief firefight.
The UN troops, all from New Zealand, believed the three militia men were part of a 15-strong group they had sighted earlier in the day at the same location, some 4 kilometres east of the town of Tilomar. The first shots were fired by the peacekeepers.
"This is the second time UN peacekeeping force has shot dead members of the militia," UNTAET said in a statement, noting that Australian peacekeepers had exchanged fire with militia on 2 August in Maliana district, along the border with West Timor. Also, on Saturday, Portuguese UN troops exchanged fire with militia in the Alas area in Manufahi district. There were no casualties in that incident, UNTAET said.
Meanwhile in New York, Indonesia's Permanent Representative to the UN, Makarim Wibisono, has informed the Security Council that his Government plans to extend the period of voluntary surrender of weapons by West Timor militia to 27 September, two days beyond the original deadline. According to a letter released today at UN Headquarters, Indonesia's decision was due to "the complexity of the process and to ensure an orderly, peaceful and complete transfer of these arms by the militias."
