Police in the Indonesian province of Papua say suspected separatist rebels have killed four people including an army officer.
They say the unidentified attackers on Monday blocked a road near the provincial capital Jayapura, opened fire on passing vehicles and then attacked the passengers with machetes.
The Papua provincial police spokesperson, Wachyono, says an army officer and three others were killed, while seven were injured.
He says according to intelligence reports the banned Morning Star flag was found thrust into the ground by the roadside.
The Jayapura police chief Imam Setiawan says authorities had suspected the pre-dawn attack was the work of the rebel Free Papua Movement, or OPM, which has been fighting for independence for decades.
But a Papuan community leader, Forkorus Yaboisembut, told media he believed the police or military were responsible.
