Colombia: Pushing Rebels Across the Border

Archives

November 15, 2005: Fighting continues in the south, with hundreds of Colombian civilians fleeing into Ecuador to escape the violence. The battles between FARC (and drug gang allies) and the military have been going on for months. The rebels are getting the worst of it, largely because the troops are better trained, and have helicopters to move them around and provide fire support.

November 14, 2005: The Venezuelan army has destroyed several drug labs along the Colombian border. Some Colombian drug gangs have been moving their operations into Venezuela, to escape increasingly active Colombian army operations. But some drug operations in Venezuela have been left alone, indicating that some of the leftist rebels and drug gangs have made deals with Venezuela.

November 11, 2005: The courts have approved the new law allowing president Uribe to run for a second term. This is bad news for rebels and drug gangs, for Uribe has been uncorrupt able and tough in fighting both groups.

November 8, 2005: In the north, FARC rebels killed two civilians when they fired on a civilian bus they believed was a military bus.

November 7, 2005: In an other intelligence success, police got information about the movement of a senior FARC leader (Farouk Shaikh Reyes, who is in charge of moving drugs between Colombia and Mexico) and arrested him as he flew in from Mexico.