Tapol warmly welcomes the agreement on the cessation of hostilities signed today in Geneva by the Government of the Republic of Indonesia (GoI) and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM).

Matthew Moore, Jakarta – With as many as 12,000 people killed in Indonesia's Aceh province over the past 26 years, a ceasefire agreement due for signing on Monday is long overdue.

William Nessen, Cot Trieng, Aceh – Inside a 20-kilometre circle of marsh and shoulder-high grass dotted by thick patches of rattan and palm trees, Indonesia's military, the TNI, has aim

Ibnu Mat Noor and Nani Farida, Kuala Simpang/Bireuen – Banda Aceh was largely deserted on Wednesday, with most public transport off the streets, as the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) celebrat

The Indonesian military's (TNI) assault on armed elements of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) is bringing splits in the rebel movement to the fore, with one moderate leader accusing another

John Martinkus – In a swamp in North Aceh usually home only to snakes, leeches, and the large biting iguanas the locals call Biawak, the Indonesian military has deployed roughly 3000 co

Banda Aceh – A number of student activists and several family members identified on Wednesday a body found under Senapit Bridge in the city, as Musliadi, coordinator of the Coalition fo

Jakarta – The 26-year-old coordinator of the Coalition for West Aceh Students Movements (Kagempar) was found dead in the Senapit area in Lembah Seulawah subdistrict, Aceh Besar district

Bireun – Separatists in Indonesia's Aceh province commemorated the 26th anniversary of their fight on Wednesday with at least one military flag-raising ceremony and vows to keep fightin

On November 25, the trials of Australian-based, British-born academic Lesley McCulloch and US nurse Joy-Lee Sadler began in Aceh.

Separatist rebels in Indonesia's Aceh province celebrated the anniversary Wednesday of their 1976 declaration of independence, despite warnings from the central government and the armed

Ibnu Mat Noor, Banda Aceh – Having lived for years in violence, Acehnese are demanding that representatives of Jakarta and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) separatist rebels support all att

Ibnu Mat Noor, Banda Aceh – The commander of the military wing of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in Sabang was arrested and then executed by Indonesian security authorities in Aceh on Mon

Jakarta – At least six people, including two soldiers and a member of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), were killed in the latest violence to hit Aceh, AFP reported.

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen.

A terminally-ill American nurse whose trial on immigration charges resumed here said she fears the process will drag on for weeks.

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – Some 23 countries are planning to hold a meeting in Tokyo on December 3 to discuss possible financial aid for rehabilitation and reconstruction in Aceh, but no

Banda Aceh – A lawyer of two foreign women on trial for visa violations in Indonesia's restive Aceh province said on Wednesday their clients have to face long trials and the prosecution

John Aglionby, Banda Aceh – A British academic and her American colleague have revealed the extent to which they have allegedly been assaulted, intimidated, harassed and forced to witne

For Lesley McCulloch, the story of Aceh is a forgotten tragedy.

Jakarta – Six people including four alleged members of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) have been shot dead in Aceh despite an expected peace deal, AFP reported.

Banda Aceh – The trials of two foreign women accused of associating with separatist rebels in Indonesia's troubled Aceh province began on Monday with prosecutors saying they had violate

Indonesian police say three workers of US oil and gas giant ExxonMobil who had been abducted in Aceh province have been freed.

Jakarta – Unidentified gunmen have abducted three men working for ExxonMobil Oil Indonesia in the country's troubled Aceh province, military and company officials said yesterday.

The Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI) promises to end its offensive against separatist rebels in Aceh province but warns of harsh reprisals if a planned peace agreement fails.

Jakarta – Indonesia's military announced yesterday it has halted attacks on Aceh separatist rebels and a senior minister said the two sides in one of South-east Asia's longest wars are

[There are hopes of an end to hostilities in one of Southeast Asia's longest running wars.

[One of the details of the peace deal, which is yet to be negotiated, is the inclusion of international monitors.

Richel Langit, Jakarta – The news that the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) will soon sign a peace agreement with the Indonesian government came as a pleasant surprise to Indonesians who had lo

Banda Aceh – Indonesia and separatist rebels in Aceh province are expected to sign a landmark peace pact early next month, international mediators said on Tuesday.

Jakarta – Residents reported gun and mortarfire Sunday as the armed forces showed no signs of meeting a unilateral separatist deadline to pull back from their siege of the Free Aceh Mov

Banda Aceh – International mediators yesterday unveiled a peace plan that they hope will end 26 years of fighting between separatists and government troops in Indonesia's Aceh province.

Jakarta – More than 1,000 Indonesian troops have tightened their siege of a separatist rebel group in Aceh and are ready to attack if necessary, AFP reported.

There are concerns two foreign women being held in Aceh will be used by Indonesian authorities to set an example to foreigners wanting to meddle in Indonesia's politics.

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja and Nani Farida, Jakarta/Banda Aceh – Fear of the worst bloodshed is looming in Aceh as the Indonesian Military (TNI) continue their siege on separatist rebels, wh

Stephen Khan – A Scottish woman who has been under arrest in Indonesia since September for allegedly misusing a tourist visa faces being held for a further 20 days without charge.

Jakarta – Police blockaded the Baiturrahman Grand Mosque in Banda Aceh to prevent 5,000 people from attending a mass prayer held by the Aceh Referendum Information Center (SIRA) on Frid

Jakarta – Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen.

Jakarta – Defense Minister Matori Abdul Djalil rejected here on Friday the idea of including foreign observers in a team that would monitor the implementation of a possible peace agreem

The Indonesian military is reported to be engaged in its biggest operation for five months as light tanks and armored personnel carriers pounded a base of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM).

Iggy Kim – On October 24, a debate was held in Britain's House of Commons over the Foreign Office's handling of the detention of Lesley McCulloch in Indonesia.

Nani Farida, Banda Aceh – The mystery behind the Free Aceh Movement (GAM)'s decision to delay signing a peace agreement with the government was partly explained by a respected Acehnese

IV was going to press as news came in of the terrorist bombing in Bali which led to the deaths of almost 200 people.

A long-awaited round of peace talks between the Indonesian government and separatist rebels from Aceh province will get underway on November 2-5 in Switzerland, Aceh Governor Abdullah P

[With the world's media spotlight heavily focused on the Bali bombings, the plight of Australian academic Lesley McCulloch has been largely forgotten.

Banda Aceh – Four people, including a woman, are the latest casualties of decades-long violence between government and separatist rebel forces in Aceh province, residents said on Wednes

Nani Farida, Banda Aceh – Only a couple of days before the peace talks resume between the government and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), an explosion rocked Lhokseumawe on Tuesday, woundi

Nani Farida, Langsa, East Aceh – The Human Rights Forum (PB HAM) deplored on Monday the continued violence against civilians, especially teachers, in war-ravaged Aceh on the eve of the

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – The planned dialog between the Indonesian government and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) separatist group has been postponed, but Jakarta expects a new pea

Nani Farida and Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Banda Aceh/Jakarta – Nearly 2,000 Acehnese gathered and prayed on Sunday for peace, ahead of the next set of talks between the government and the