Aceh separatist leaders return home after 30 years in exile

An airport official confirmed that the group of nine, including former "prime minister" Malik Mahmud, "foreign minister" Zaini Abdullah and spokesman Bakhtiar Abdullah, had arrived at Banda Aceh's airport.

They were due to be whisked to the former GAM headquarters where a small traditional welcoming ceremony would be staged by ex-GAM members, an official told ElShinta radio earlier in the day.

"Since 1976 we have not yet returned home. Thank God we are now safely here and hopefully we will continue with the journey to Banda Aceh," Bakhtiar Abdullah told reporters at Medan airport earlier in the day during a stopover.