Authorities in Indonesia say at least 20 people, including one soldier, have been killed and 60 injured in protests in Papua province.

In the town of Wamena, protesters torched government offices and shops. Many of the victims were trapped inside the burning buildings.

A rumor on social media reportedly sparked the unrest. It said a local teacher who isn't from the province called an indigenous Papuan student a "monkey."

Police say at least one soldier and three civilians also died in a separate protest in the provincial capital of Jayapura.

Indonesia's Papua is home to a long-simmering separatist movement, fuelled partly by ethnic and racial tension.

Monday's violence comes weeks after a similar incident in East Java.

Security forces clashed with civilians resulting in several deaths.

nhk