Columbia: FARC spoils President’s party

A mortar attack on a military building five blocks away from the Presidential palace in Bogota during the taking of office of new President Alvaro Uribe, killed 12.

Just as Alvaro Uribe was delivering his taking of office speech, declaring that there would be a new offensive against the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia (FARC), he was given a taste of what to expect in the years to come as a FARC cell managed to slip through the tightest security operations the Columbian capital has seen in years and fire 4 mortars at an army training barracks, killing 12 passers-by and injuring 20. The incident took place at 0.00 hours, MSK.

After three years of truce, fighting broke out between FARC and government troops earlier this year after the Columbian armed forces systematically violated ceasefire agreements and fascist paramilitary groups (AUC) attacked FARC controlled areas. FARC controls rural areas outside the capital.

Timothy BANCROFT-HINCHEY PRAVDA.Ru Lisbon and JUAN BLANCO Bogota Columbia