Jakarta (VNA) - Indonesia has shut its border with East Timor, which had priorily asked for the closure to prevent armed rebels moving out of its territory.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono ordered border crossings to be shut late Feb. 25 at the request of East Timorese Prime Minister Jose Ramos-Horta. The order was part of "bilateral cooperation in the security and stability along the border between the two countries", President Yudhoyono was quoted by Indonesia’s Antara news agency as saying.

PM Ramos-Horta had recommended the border closure to prevent armed militias led by rebel leader Alfredo Reinhado, infiltrating into Indonesia, the Indonesian President’s spokesman Dino Patti Djalal said.

The militias recently attacked a security outpost near the border, taking away 17 firearms, PM Ramos-Horta said.

East Timor is scheduled to hold a presidential election on April 9 and there is a growing concern that security could deteriorate as the poll approaches.- Enditem