Indonesian authorities said Saturday the New Zealand pilot who’s been held hostage for more than a year in the restive Papua region has been freed by separatist rebels.

New Zealand pilot Phillip Mehrtens has been freed from more than 18 months in captivity in Indonesia’s Papua, the Indonesian police said in a statement on Saturday.

JAKARTA: Jakarta and Wellington denied Monday (Sept 23) a claim by rebels in Indonesia's restive region of Papua that a New Zealand pilot was freed from captivity over the weekend after they received payment from a local leader.