Separatist rebels release New Zealand pilot after 19 months in Indonesia's Papua region

JAKARTA, Indonesia - The New Zealand pilot who's been held hostage for more than a year in the restive Papua region has been freed by separatist rebels, Indonesian authorities said Saturday.

Philip Mark Mehrtens, the pilot from Christchurch who was working for Indonesian aviation company Susi Air, was handed over early Saturday to the Cartenz Peace Taskforce, the joint security force set up by the Indonesian government to deal with separatist groups in Papua, after separatist rebels let him walk free early Saturday, said the taskforce spokesperson Bayu Suseno.

"We managed to pick him up in good health," Suseno said, adding that Mehrtens was flown to the mining town Timika for further health examination.

Independence fighters led by Egianus Kogoya, a regional commander in the Free Papua Movement, stormed a single-engine plane on a small runway in Paro and abducted Mehrtens on Feb. 7, 2023. Kogoya initially said the rebels would not release Mehrtens unless Indonesia's government allows Papua to become a sovereign country.

However, leaders of the West Papua Liberation Army, the armed wing of the Free Papua Movement known as TPNPB, said they would let Mehrtens go after a year being held by his captors.