FARC

25 May 2008 -- Leaders of Colombia's most powerful rebel group have confirmed the death of longtime guerrilla leader Manuel Marulanda.

A top official for the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia appeared in a video aired on Venezuelan television Sunday, confirming the death of the 78-year-old leader. He said the group's maximum leader had suffered a heart attack in March, saying he died "in the arms of his partner." He said Alfonso Cano would take over the top spot from Marulanda.

Colombia's military had called on rebels late Saturday to confirm or deny intelligence reports suggesting that Marulanda was dead.    » read more »

04 March 2008 -- President Bush is backing Colombian President Alvaro Uribe in his stand-off with Venezuela and Ecuador. Venezuela and Ecuador cut diplomatic ties with Colombia after its forces attacked Colombian rebels inside Ecuador on Saturday.

President Bush says he telephoned President Uribe and told him that America will continue to stand with Colombia as it confronts violence, terror, and drug traffickers.    » read more »

04 March 2008 -- Former Cuban President Fidel Castro has accused the United States of complicity in the Colombian government's attack on FARC rebels inside Ecuador last Saturday.

In an essay published in the Cuban Communist Party newspaper, Granma, Mr. Castro said "a monstrous crime" was committed in Ecuador. He accused the United States of providing the weapons and the technology for Colombia to stage the attack on the rebels.    » read more »

March 03, 2008 -- "The Colombian people have suffered for more than four decades at the hands of a brutal terrorist insurgency, and the Colombian government has every right to defend itself against the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

The recent targeted killing of a senior FARC leader must not be used as a pretense to ratchet up tensions or to threaten the stability of the region.    » read more »

19 December 2007 -- Colombian officials say they remain cautious after leftist rebels said they will release three hostages to Venezuela's government. Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez said this was a vindication of his role in the peace process, which Colombia ended last month.

Colombia's Peace Commissioner Luis Carlos Restrepo welcomed the announcement by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC. But he called for caution among relatives of the hostages, noting that the leftist group has failed to fulfill its word in the past.    » read more »