"Kidnapped New Zealand Pilot's Heartbreaking Messages and Proof-of-Life Video Released by West Papua Captors"

New Zealand pilot Philip Mehrtens, kidnapped by the West Papua Liberation Army in February 2023, appeared gaunt and disheveled in a proof-of-life video released by his captors. The rebel group has threatened to execute him unless West Papua is granted independence from Indonesia. In the video, Mehrtens reassured his family that he was being treated well and expressed his love for them. The 38-year-old pilot also appealed to the New Zealand government for inhalers and an e-book reader. West Papua has been the center of an independence movement, with separatist fighters launching attacks in recent years.