"It is true that the 11 miners, who fell victim to the massacre, have been evacuated," he informed after presiding over the inauguration of eight resort police chiefs in Jayapura, Papua province, on Saturday.
Providing further details, he told the media that 10 bodies were recovered from four different illegal mines in Yahukimo district, while one body was retrieved from Pegunungan Bintang district.
He said that the bodies found in Yahukimo were taken to a public hospital in Dekai sub-district for identification, adding that only two of them have been identified so far.
The body of the illegal miner killed in Pegunungan Bintang was brought to Boven Digoel district, South Papua province, he informed.
"Once identified, the bodies will be returned to their families for burial," he said.
While the 11 bodies have been recovered, Renwarin informed that the Papua Regional Police have yet to conclude the evacuation operation as they are awaiting confirmation whether the actual number of victims is higher than initially reported.
Earlier, the Defense Ministry firmly denied the armed group's claim of eliminating military intelligence agents disguised as civilians in Highland Papua, affirming that the 11 victims were confirmed to be civilians.
Head of the ministry's Information Bureau, Brig. General Frega Wenas Inkiriwang, emphasized on Thursday that Indonesia remains steadfast in its commitment to prioritizing legal and peaceful means to address separatist movements in the Papua region.
Indonesian military personnel stationed in the region are tasked solely with ensuring security and protecting civilians, he added.
Therefore, Inkiriwang stressed that the group's allegation that the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) were involved in illegal mining activities in Papua is false.
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Translator: Evarukdijati, Tegar Nurfitra
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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