'I love you,' scruffy hostage pilot tells family in video after being held captive for a YEAR by jungle rebels with bow and guns
A NEW video of a missing hostage pilot has emerged a year after he was captured by armed jungle rebels.
Philip Mehrtens, 38, then landed a single-engine plane it was seized by rebels and set on fire last February.
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In the video the New ZealandThe born pilot looked scrawny and thin after spending a year in captivity in Papua, Indonesia.
But he appeared to be smiling as he sat in a secret location against a jungle backdrop.
In a message to his wife Maria and six-year-old son, he said: “I am doing well. They treat me well.
“I'm trying to stay positive and I hope you're healthy, doing well and getting support.”
The video was shot on December 22, 2023, but was only released last week.
Mehrtens added that “komandan” – probably referring to Egianus Kogoya, a commander of the National Liberation of West Papua Army (TPN-PB) – has promised to organize a telephone conversation with the pilot's family in the coming days.
“I love and miss you both very much, and I hope to talk to you soon,” he continued.
In a second video released last week, the pilot asked the New Zealand government for supplies to ease his captivity.
He said, 'Can you please help me get one or two Ventolin inhalers so I have them on hand in case I get some? asthma and if possible, can I get an ebook reader like a Kindle with as much English as possible books if possible.
“That would be much appreciated.”
Two months ago, the rebels threatened to kill Mehrtens if their demands were not met.
The separatists are reportedly members of the West Papua National Liberation Armythat fights for independence from Indonesia.
The dispute between Indonesia and the Papuan population dates back to the late 1960s.
Papua came under Indonesian control in 1969 after a controversial UN-sponsored referendum.
The rebels have demanded New Zealand cut ties with Jakarta, which it accuses of genocide of the Papuan population.
Mehrtens lived with his wife and their son in an expat community on the Indonesian island of Bali.
He was a pilot for the Indonesian aviation company Susi Air when he went to pick up fifteen construction workers who were building a plane. health center in Paro.
Who is the West Papua National Liberation Army?
The West Papua National Liberation Army is the armed wing of the Free Papua Organization – an independence movement based in West New Guinea.
The rebels, declared a separatist terrorist group by Indonesia in 2021, often use guerrilla tactics to attack Indonesia-owned industrial buildings.
TPN-PB regularly launches an offensive against Indonesian security forces.
The armed group has been fighting for independence since 1969, when the region came under Indonesian control.
The plane was supposed to return to the city of Timika but was set on fire by the separatists while the pilot was taken hostage.
The shocking images after his capture showed him surrounded by armed rebels with powerful guns and bows.
In the video he said: “The army captured me in their struggle for independence.”
Five Papau passengers who were on the plane were released because they are indigenous, rebel spokesman Sebby Sambom said at the time.
After Mehrtens' kidnapping, the rebels said they would execute the pilot unless Indonesia recognized and liberated Papua from “Indonesian colonialism”.
Sambom told The Telegraph that the group was not willing to talk to the “enemy” in Jakarta, but would negotiate with them for the pilot's release. Australia And New Zealand.
Leader Sebby Sambom assured the captured Kiwi was being well cared for.
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