The West Papua Liberation Army is claiming responsibility for the killings of at least 24 Indonesian construction workers in Papua.

Photo: Supplied

The claims confirmed initial blame placed on the separatist group by Indonesian authorities, and marked a deadly escalation of conflict in the restive region unseen in recent years.

Indonesian media reported on Tuesday that around 150 Indonesian armed forces were in pursuit of the gunmen, after President Joko Widodo ordered military and police chiefs to check in on the situation.

Witness reports described to RNZ Pacific by officials painted a grim picture of a civilian massacre which took place atop a hilltop in Tolikara regency on Sunday.

On Saturday, as members of the Liberation Army held a ceremony in neighbouring Nduga to commemorate Papua's independence from Dutch colonial rule on December 1st, 1961, a construction worker nearby snapped a photo of the scene.

The employees of the state-owned company Istaka Karya were building bridges and roads in Papua, where Jakarta has been undertaking an infrastructure drive.

But the Liberation Army, which claimed responsibility for the attack on Tuesday, described the workers as armed members of Indonesia's military, or TNI, disguised as civilians.

The presence of a camera prompted a violent reaction from the group of around 50 Liberation Army fighters, who rounded up dozens of workers, bound their hands and marched them North, to Lanny Jaya regency, said TNI spokesperson Mohammed Aidi.

On Sunday morning, the workers were taken to the top of a hill and forced to march in formation, while they were shot at by Liberation Army soldiers, who killed at least 19 people.

Eleven employees managed to survive the massacre by pretending they were dead, said Mr Aidi. But when they ran, the group was pursued by the Liberation Army and 5 more were killed with bow and arrows and spears.

Survivors took refuge at a TNI outpost, where soldiers returned fire at the Liberation Army. One soldier died in the shootout.

Four workers were evacuated by police and military on Tuesday, along with eight local health centre staff and teachers employed by TNI, said Mr Aidi. Three workers have been hospitalised with gunshot wounds, while another two who escaped remained missing.

President Widodo said on Tuesday he would visit Papua once more information on the incident became available.

Photo: AFP

"We realize that even though the development in Papua is indeed very difficult to carry out and can still be hindered by incidents such as the reported one, the development in Papua should continue," he said.

In February, the Liberation Army made a fresh declaration of war against the TNI, which it called "the invaders".

Since then, the group has been involved in a spate of skirmishes in Papua, including a series of deadly gunfire exchanges in the Highlands regencies of Puncak Jaya, Nduga, Timika and Lanny Jaya.

Two Liberation Army members were killed by TNI in November when they exchanged gunfire in Lanny Jaya.

Five others were killed in Puncak Jaya in October by the Indonesian military, it said.

In late October, Indonesian media reported that a group of 15 school teachers and medical workers were held hostages by the Liberation Army in Nduga for two weeks, and that one teacher was raped. </s> At least 20 people, including pregnant women and children, have been killed in an ambush and retaliatory massacre by villagers in Papua New Guinea, according to news reports and a police spokesman in the South Pacific island nation.

The fighting began when six people were set upon and killed while returning from a ceremony Saturday in the country's central highlands, Teddy Augwi, chief police inspector for Hela province, told the Post-Courier, a newspaper in Papua New Guinea.

Relatives of the dead then retaliated, Augwi was quoted as saying.

There were conflicting accounts on the total number of victims, who were from rival communities.

A police spokesman, Dominic Kakas, told the New York Times that 16 women and children, including two pregnant women, were killed in the revenge attack.

Eight children and eight women died in the massacre, Philip Pimua, a community health worker who was in the village of Karida when the slaughter occurred, said in a telephone interview with the Times. Another police spokesman, Thomas Levongo, speaking to Radio New Zealand, gave a slightly lower death toll, saying 10 women and five children had been killed.

It was also unclear when the revenge attack occurred. Augwi said it happened Sunday morning, while Pimua said it was Monday.

Philip Undialu, governor of Hela province, said the attacks had "escalated into the massacre of innocent women and kids," according to the Australian Broadcasting Corp.

Police Commissioner Francis Okura called the revenge attack "an unbelievable, unthinkable and atrocious criminal act that must be dealt with swiftly and severely." He added that a military and police team was searching for the killers.

Augwi said the massacre represented a new turn in communal violence.

"This is not a tribal fight where opposing villages face each other on field," he said. "This is a fight in guerrilla warfare, meaning they play hide and seek and ambush their enemies."

Violence between the communities has been documented for decades in Papua New Guinea, but it has surged in recent years in the region where the latest attacks occurred, amid tensions over politics and developing gas fields. </s> More than 20 people have been killed in tribal violence in Papua New Guinea, with most of the victims pregnant women and children.

The killings in the highland province of Hela were probably retaliation for an earlier attack that left around seven dead, Governor Philip Undialu said.

He told the ABC that he latest violence was on Monday when 16 people including women and children died at the village of Karida.

'This has escalated into the massacre of innocent women and kids,' Undialu said.

The Post-Courier, based in the South Pacific island nation's capital Port Moresby, reported that as many as 24 people have been killed in the villages of Karida and Peta since Saturday.

Six people had been ambushed and killed near Peta on Saturday, Hela Police Chief Inspector Teddy Augwi told the newspaper.

The victims' relatives retaliated with rifles the next day, killing between 16 and 18 people at Karida, including pregnant women, he said.

'This is not a tribal fight where the opposing villagers face each other on field,' Augwi told the newspaper. 'This is a fight in guerrilla warfare, meaning they play hide-and-seek and ambush their enemies.'

Many villagers had fled the violence, Hela Administrator William Bando told the newspaper.

It was not immediately clear if any suspects had been arrested. Papua New Guinea Police spokesman Superintendent Dominic Kakas did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

Tribal violence is common in Papua New Guinea's interior, where villagers avenge relatives in retaliation known as payback.

Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape said those responsible for the fatal attacks could face the death penalty, ABC reported. </s> More than 20 reportedly killed in Papua New Guinea violence

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — More than 20 people including pregnant women and children have been killed in recent tribal violence in Papua New Guinea, media reported on Wednesday.

The death toll and dates of the violence in the remote highland province of Hela varied in reports by Australian Broadcasting Corp. and the Post-Courier newspaper.

Hela Gov. Philip Undialu told ABC the latest violence was on Monday when 16 people including women and children died at the village of Karida.

The killings were probably retaliation for an earlier attack that left around seven dead, Undialu said.

"This has escalated into the massacre of innocent women and kids," Undialu said.

The Post-Courier, based in the South Pacific island nation's capital Port Moresby, reported as many as 24 people were killed in the villages of Karida and Peta since Saturday.

Six people had been ambushed and killed near Peta on Saturday, Hela Police Chief Inspector Teddy Augwi told the newspaper.

The victims' relatives retaliated with rifles the next day, killing between 16 and 18 people at Karida, including pregnant women, he said.

"This is not a tribal fight where the opposing villagers face each other on field," Augwi told the newspaper. "This is a fight in guerrilla warfare, meaning they play hide-and-seek and ambush their enemies."

Many villagers had fled the violence, Hela Administrator William Bando told the newspaper.

It was not immediately clear if any suspects had been arrested. Papua New Guinea Police spokesman Superintendent Dominic Kakas did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

Tribal violence is common in Papua New Guinea's interior, where villagers avenge relatives in retaliation known as payback.

Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape said those responsible for the fatal attacks could face the death penalty, ABC reported.

The prime minister's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.
At least 19 people are killed as armed group linked to West Papua Liberation Organization attacks construction workers at Trans Papua road project in Nduga Regency, Papua, Indonesia.