Troop escorts for aid workers
 |  An Indonesian navy ship visits Sumatra's western coast. |
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|  VIDEO |
 A look at how Banda Aceh was before the tsunami and how it is now
 Tsunami survivors return to some aspects of normal routines.
 CNN's John King has a look at some refugees living in camps in Banda Aceh.
 Forensic officials are exhuming bodies to take DNA samples
 Tawqua Yunos is on a mission to find the tsunami dead
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BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (CNN) -- The Indonesian military has ordered troops to escort aid workers into the country's tsunami-stricken Aceh province because of alleged rebel activity, according to The Associated Press.
But the army has said soldiers for such an exercise may be unavailable due to a lack of troop numbers.
The statement is the latest in a series of security demands by Jakarta, which is attempting to exert more control over aid operations in Aceh.
Jakarta has also told aid workers and reporters to keep the military informed about their locations and travel plans in the region, especially if venturing outside Banda Aceh or Meulobah.
The warnings come despite both the rebels and Jakarta declaring a cease-fire after the tsunami.
Indonesian vice president Yusuf Kalla also suggested all foreign troops providing aid in Aceh should plan to be out of the area by March 31.
"It's not clear whether this is simply a coordination mechanism, or whether it represents an attempt by the Indonesian military -- which has been involved in a guerilla war with the separatists -- to impose tighter control over relief operations," CNN's Mike Chinoy said from Banda Aceh.
"There's no question the Indonesian authorities have been made very anxious by the huge influx of foreigners into Aceh, an area that was essentially closed to both aid workers and journalists before the tsunamis hit," he said.
Jakarta's wish to impose travel restrictions to aid workers is a worrying factor for the World Health Organization, which says that many victims of the tsunamis in remote areas of Aceh have not yet been given outside assistance.
"Anecdotal reports from groups which have made contact with people in these (outlying) areas indicate that in some places the death toll from the tsunami was as high as 50 per cent of the local population," a WHO report said Wednesday.
"Many are also still living without regular access to their basic needs, of clean water, food and shelter," it said.
"Sporadic relief has reached some of these people, but their basic needs have not been taken care of in a systematic way."
Meanwhile, the world's wealthiest nations have agreed to a moratorium on debt repayment by Indonesia and Sri Lanka, the two countries hardest hit by last month's tsunamis.
The Paris Club of 19 creditor nations, said it was willing to freeze payments until the end of 2005, depending on assessments from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, which would monitor the countries to make sure that the money was being used for tsunami relief. (Full story)
The chairman of the club Jean-Pierre Jouyet said that so far, only Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Seychelles had declared an interest in the moratorium, and none had actually applied for the suspension.
A small group of protesters demonstrated outside the meeting, demanding that the Paris Club cancel the debt of tsunami affected countries rather than just suspend repayments.
The worldwide death toll from the tsunamis, compiled from CNN sources, from the December 26 disaster is at least 149,540 and is expected to go much higher. (Country by country)
In Indonesia alone, which has reported 104,550 deaths, the Health Ministry says 77,000 people remain missing.
The overall death toll for Sri Lanka stands at 29,814. There are 5,671 people missing and another 200,000 families have been displaced.
The Paris Club comprises Austria, Australia, Belgium, Britain, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States.
Finance ministers from the wealthy G7 nations have already agreed to a debt freeze for all tsunami nations. (Full story)
As for more immediate needs, the United Nations says it has $717 million -- more than 70 percent of the $977 million it requested -- to use immediately for tsunami relief. (Full story)
Copyright 2005 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
