Weekly News Update on the Americas Issue #493 | July 11 1999 Nicaragua Solidarity Network of Greater New York CSN Home | WNU Home | This Month's News

1. COLOMBIA: TALKS POSTPONED, REBELS LAUNCH OFFENSIVE

On July 6, the Colombian government and the country's largest leftist rebel group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), announced that they were postponing the start of peace negotiations until July 20, citing "technical and logistical problems." The talks had been scheduled to begin on July 7. [Clarin (Buenos Aires) 7/11/99; El Diario-La Prensa (NY) 7/7/99 from EFE; Reuters 7/10/99]

On July 8, some 600 FARC troops launched a major attack against a 500-troop army mobile brigade unit camped near the town of Gutierrez, 50 kilometers south of the capital, Bogota. After a 12-hour battle, the army post was destroyed and 36 soldiers were killed; 38 FARC troops were also reportedly killed. [La Republica (Lima, Peru) 7/10/99 from EFE; Miami Herald 7/10/99] On July 10, the FARC continued its offensive, attacking police stations and other government buildings in two departmental capitals and 13 other municipalities. At least six civilians and three police agents were killed. Interior Minister Nestor Humberto Martinez said clashes were "extremely serious" around the jungle towns of Puerto Lleras and Puerto Rico, in eastern Meta province, where all contact had been lost with police and army units and no casualty figures were available. The government responded to the offensive by declaring a dusk-to-dawn curfew across more than 30% of the country, charging that the rebels were preparing to storm regional capitals and could even try to attack Bogota. The curfew applies to all travel in the departments of Arauca, Casanare, Caqueta, Cundinamarca, Guaviare, Meta, Putumayo, Tolima, Vaupes and Vichada, as well as in 10 municipalities on the southern and eastern edge of Bogota. [Reuters 7/10/99; El Nuevo Herald (Miami) 7/11/99 from AP]