PAPUA — A 16-year-old Junior High School student named Victor Bahabol was reported to have died inside the inland forest of Korowai, Boven Digoel Regency, amidst a wave of displacement due to armed conflict. The sorrowful event occurred in the border region between Yahukimo Regency and Pegunungan Bintang Regency. The victim fled together with hundreds of other civilian residents to avoid the escalation of conflict between the West Papua National Liberation Army and the Indonesian military.
The armed conflict that broke out in civilian residential areas was the impact of security operations that took place from July 19 to July 30, 2026. The series of operations were previously also reported to have claimed the lives of three other civilians in the region. Victor Bahabol breathed his last breath on Wednesday, July 29, 2026 at 20.27 local time. The victim's body was then buried as an emergency in the middle of the forest on the following day, Thursday, July 30, 2026 at 18.20 by relatives as well as refugees.
The flow of displacement from the Korowai region toward the forest region of the Yahukimo and Pegunungan Bintang border now leaves behind a severe humanitarian crisis. The refugees survive in emergency camps without being touched by logistic assistance from domestic humanitarian institutions. The Indonesian Red Cross as well as various domestic social organizations have not yet provided a helping hand at the displacement locations. This situation pushes TPNPB to issue an open appeal to the International Committee of the Red Cross and international human rights institutions.
Emergency assistance is considered very urgent for the survival of the refugees in Korowai, considering a similar crisis is also experienced by more than 125,931 civilian residents spread across various displacement regions in the Land of Papua due to military operations. TPNPB urges the United Nations to immediately provide a mandate to the UN Security Council and the UN Human Rights Council. Independent investigation steps as well as the distribution of humanitarian assistance are viewed as the main priority at this time.
Medical assistance, food supplies, and decent clothing are very much needed by vulnerable groups at emergency posts which encompass pregnant women, toddlers, children, adult ages, up to the elderly. TPNPB asserts that the state of Indonesia is not capable of overcoming the internal refugee crisis in Papua, so global intervention through the UN becomes an absolute necessity. (One Papua)