12 soldiers of Indonesia's elite army unit go on trial over deadly prison attack

YOGYAKARTA, Indonesia – Soldiers from Indonesia's elite special forces have gone before a military court charged with storming a prison and killing four detainees on the main Java island.

The 12 soldiers of Kopassus were put on four separate trials Thursday in Yogyakarta province, facing premeditated murder charges that could result in the death penalty.

They are accused of bursting into the prison on March 23 and executing the inmates accused of murdering a fellow soldier. The detainees were shot with automatic weapons. Surveillance cameras were destroyed.

The high-profile case is seen as a test on how far the military has come since Washington resumed some assistance to Kopassus three years ago, after earlier concerns about its human rights record.