Forces ambushed in Hela

The National Main Stories

TWO soldiers engaged in the state of emergency exercise in Hela were injured and their vehicles damaged in an ambush by a group at the Wage local level government.
The soldiers were on their way back after escorting police to retrieve a vehicle from Keme Ward.
According to a source, police and the soldiers were acting on a complaint lodged at the police station to retrieve a vehicle that was at Takipa village, beyond the Keme Ward in Hela.
The complaint was lodged by IPWENZ, a construction company.
The source said because police lacked manpower, they asked the soldiers to help escort them to act on the complaint because the place was not safe for only a few policemen to attend such complaints.
After retrieving the vehicle, they drove back to Takipa village and were ambushed.
Armed men had dug out a culvert that made it hard for police and soldiers to cross to the other side to return to camp, the source said.
He said it took them four-and-a-half hours to fix the road.
During that period some locals on higher ground threw stones and used spears to attack the security personnel.
“When they smashed our vehicle glass, we did not bother to fight back because our aim was to bring the vehicle that we retrieved.
“While we were trying to escape, one of the soldiers was speared in the neck. Luckily, he was wearing a neck warmer that stopped the spear from going further into his neck.”
When they arrived at their base, security personnel received word that two people were shot dead and a few injured where they were attacked.
Attempts to get comment from the Hela police commander on the deaths and the injured were unsuccessful.

11 comments

  • Always HELA people on the news.
    What is really wrong with this group?

    Please have some sense.

  • I,m not from Hela but as PNGan I’m really ashamed,what will the International community describe us. PNG P.S.

  • GOVERNMENT..can you consider giving them AUTONOMY because much needed development grants are diverted to SOE in many highlands provinces year in year out. In every government there has to be a Sate of Emergency. What is wrong with PNG???

  • I’m a Christian but I believe people like these attackers should be hammered with the full force of the LAW. Please PNG government, impose death penalty..Thats the only solution.

  • This kind of attacks are happening in Hela and other parts of PNG.
    This brings to the attention of our MPs to amend the laws of the country and toughen it up to deal with these kind of law breakers. People are smart so deal with them by tightening our laws.

  • If our people in Hela have respect to themselves they will respect our own country men but this barbaric actions shows that they are not like us which police and soldiers have to shoot to kill anyone going against them. They did so much to hurt our loyal police/defense personals sent up there.
    SHOOT TO KILL!!!

  • Animalistic behaviour- can leaders representative come down whats going in your back yard,

  • Oh..please…whats really wrong with helas. Government please can you remove any single govnt services…. Like Airport,Roards,health,police dept etc.. then they will live by their own laws regulations. If hela province remove from Government list/record then that would be much better. We can say that those are animistic behaving people.
    Police and army should not be there for any mediation/peace making. Let them sort it out by their own primitive ways

  • Once Hela people were under the Southern Highlands provincial Government, they were peace loving and humble people. It was under the leadership of Governor Anderson Agiru.
    Once they broke away from SHP. People start to kill each others and even killing policemen and defense force soldiers and not fear for the laws.Leaders have to check themselves and question them the way they lead their people.

  • This is really a sad story to hear Police and Army officers encountering ambush and attack attending to their duties. These are people who can’t respect themselves. If you you respect your self and you CAN do all these rubbish to innocent people. Generally majority Hela’s are law abiding citizens of this nation and only few are doing that so please Hela ADMINISTARTION and National Government do something about it quickly. Also let me warn all Papua New Guineans that today, law and order is gradually breaking apart because of the increase in our people believing in satan, his demons and the evil forces. The devil and his associates have not one single contribution in human kind creation and our people today are really busy and becoming the devils friend. People you have the will power so please try to say NO to ALL THE BAD THINGS AND TOMORROW IS BRIGHT FOR YOU.

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