Gunmen kill 10 traders, hurt 2, in Indonesia’s restive Papua

By ALFIAN KARTONO
Associated Press

JAYAPURA, Indonesia (AP) — Gunmen believed to be separatist rebels in Indonesia’s Papua province have killed 10 traders and wounded two others in an attack. Police say about 20 gunmen stormed a village while a grocer was preparing to open his wares. They shot him and seven other traders who were on an open freight truck, along with four passersby. A police spokesman says the victims were immigrants from other Indonesian islands. Clashes have escalated in country’s the easternmost province since last year, when rebels set fire to several schools and killed two teachers. The rebels have previously warned civilians to leave areas they consider a war zone. Indonesia’s government for decades had a policy of sending Javanese and other Indonesians to settle in Papua, angering locals.