http://jakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/indonesian-hostages-released-papua-new-guinea/
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Two Indonesians held hostage by an armed group in Papua New Guinea have been released in to the custody of local officials.
The two hostages were handed over to security forces in PNG, where they had been held since being taken from the Indonesian side of the border since Sept. 9, late on Thursday night said Papua police chief Insp. Gen. Paulus Waterpauw.
The identity of the group remains unknown but Indonesian security forces allege it is part of the separatist Free Papua Organization (OPM).
He said the two men —ÂÂ identified as loggers Badar, 29, and Ladiri, 28ÂÂ — were expected to be handed to Indonesian consular officials in the PNG border city of Vanimo on Friday afternoon after a debriefing, before being sent back to Papua.
Papua Governor Lukas Enembe confirmed the men’s release, but neither he nor the provincial police or military chiefs wouldÂÂ comment on how the release had been secured.
Australia’s ABC quoted a PNG Defense Force official as saying troops had rescued the men after negotiations with the captors broke down.
“We were expecting them to be released on [Thursday] about midday but that did not eventuate,” Brig. Gen. Gilbert Toropo, of the PNGDF, told the broadcaster.
“So the orders were issued for the PNGDF to move in closer to secure the two captives’ release forcefully.
“As a result, when our troops moved in to recapture the two captives everyone fled into the bush.”
Toropo said the captors later sent out a group of women to hand over the hostages, ABC reported.
“We were still following clues and some of the females, realizing the danger that their men and their people were going to be in, brought in the captives freely,” he said.
He told ABC that one person was arrested and “not one shot was fired” in the operation.