NationStates

ACEH, Federation of New Nusantara, Pan-Asiatic States—The armed secessionist organization, the Free Aceh Movement (Indonesian: Gerakan Aceh Merdeka or simply GAM, Acehnese: Geurakan Acèh Meurdèka, also: Gěrakan Aceh Měrdeka), previously branded by the People's Federation of Pan-Asiatic States as a Medium Threat terrorist organization, has made a volatile resurgence in Southern Nusantara after a detachment of Acehnese militants overpowered Pan-Asiatic forces and seized multiple minor villages and municipalities within the West Aceh Prefecture, on the road to the key city of Calang.

The Free Aceh Movement is a separatist group seeking independence for the Aceh region of Sumatra from the Pan-Asiatic States. Their military leaders have been linked to several other notorious terrorist organizations operating in the Pan-Asiatic States advocating for secessionism and/or Anti-Communism, such as the Neo-Kuomintang Revolutionary Army (NKRA) in China and the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in the Tagalog Soviet Socialist Republic. The GAM fought against the Imperial Japanese government during the Aceh insurgency from 1976 to 1991, and then against the Pan-Asiatic States government from 1991 until the present during which over 38,000 lives within the region are believed to have been lost.

The GAM have also been investigated to have established connections with the American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and declassified documents by the Pan-Asiatic States' Ministry of State and Public Security (MSPS) have unveiled in previous years that several contracts between the American government and the Aceh insurgents have perpetuated the guerilla war through illegal transactions of arms and ammunition. The American government has refuted and denied these claims.

Peace talks with the leaders of the insurgency were attempted in 2005, where the Pan-Asiatic government even offered amnesty for participants of the conflict, but were ultimately, and vehemently turned-down. The GAM have fought a guerilla war since then, but despite this, the Ministry of Defense reported their numbers to be merely around 1,000 to 1,500, and their strength in military technology to be below-average. These were both justified by the exponentially increasing number of defectors between 1991 and 2005, and the fact that the GAM still equips their militants with dated Second Pacific War-era small arms.

Between 2005 and 2019, an unsettling and tranquil lack of aggression from both sides existed, and raids against civilian and military targets confirmed to be of Acehnese origin in the region were averaged at only around 4 to 5 times per six months. Usually, these attacks were selective, only targeted against deliveries of food and clean water. The Pan-Asiatic States Armed Forces (PASAF), on the other hand, found much trouble in rooting-out the insurgency, as the mountainous terrain proved difficult and atrocious even for the most experienced of special forces units.

This tranquility was shattered this morning, when a battalion of Acehnese militants stormed the region with overwhelming manpower, equipped with the latest technology, and through modern infiltration tactics. Despite the fact that the Western and Southeastern Aceh Prefectures were quarantined high-conflict sites by the Pan-Asiatic States Armed Forces, Acehnese forces were able to catch the 33rd and 41st Pan-Asiatic Frontier Infantry Divisions off-guard. In response to this, the 9th Core Type 99a Armored Infiltration Regiment was deployed along with a Task Force of Armored Sentinels.

While the advance was halted, especially with the introduction of the 3rd Fighter Wing operating from and around Banda Aceh, the GAM's retreat preserved their forces, and continue to hold the city of Calang hostage. With an estimate of around 5,000 Acehnese rebels entrenched around the forests and mountains of Calang's outskirts, the city is cut-off from much-needed medical supplies and necessities, which have been attempted to be airlifted via the People's Air Force. While attempts in the afternoon were successful, the People's Air Force remains wary of handheld rocket-launchers and flak cannons hidden by the Acehnese military.

"This isn't Israel nor Skyhooked. Their deployment isn't really as massive as most enemies which have had engagements against the People's Army," cited Daimyō-Heneral Mã Sơn Lâm of the Forward Infantry Corps, Commander-in-Chief of Operation Sandbox, the operation to repel the terror-attacks of the Acehnese threat, during an interview with the Neo-Manila Post. "It's the terrain that burdens [our] troops ... We suspect that they are operating around the mountainous peripheral of Meulaboh. They have fortresses underground all the way from Calang to there... Our conventional army is not trained for mountainous warfare. The enemy is heavily fortified and we must exercise the utmost caution to protect civilian life and deter wasting the lives of our troops."

Muddy terrain caused by an influx of storms in the region have also slowed the approach of Sentinel units, although mechanized infantry have made their way through easily via Armored Personnel Carriers (APCs). Despite this, garrisons in the region remain critically unprepared for mounting an offensive, and the Daimyō-Heneral believes that a strong, underplanned offensive on the area may cause a severe casualty rate.

"I would not waste the life of a Pan-Asiatic hero for ten Acehnese soldiers. One death is one too many.", remarked the Commander-in-Chief.