Colombian Rebels Declare 30-Day Unilateral Ceasefire
Colombia's FARC rebels declared a 30-day unilateral ceasefire on Sunday and urged the government to do the same in the wake of a deadly bombing blamed on the guerillas.
The announcement, effective December 15, came in a statement issued in the Cuban capital where the FARC and Bogota are in talks to end their decades-long conflict.
"In a unilateral manner we order all our units ... to cease fire and hostilities for 30 days," said the statement read to reporters by FARC spokesman Pablo Catatumbo.
At the same time, the statement ordered its fighters to "remain alert for any enemy operations" and to respond to these "without delay."
The rebels also said they hoped the government of President Juan Manuel Santos would "respond to this gesture by suspending operations."
The announcement came at the end of the latest round of peace talks in Havana aimed at ending unrest that has left hundreds of thousands of dead and displaced more than 4.5 million people.
It also followed a deadly bombing in the town of Inza Saturday that was immediately blamed on the Sixth Unit of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia.
The government delegation, headed by former vice-president Humberto de la Calle, left the location of the talks without comment. Negotiations are set to resume December 17.
At the start of talks in November 2012, the Marxist rebels unilaterally declared a ceasefire for two months but lifted it after the Santos government refused to reciprocate.
Arguing that agreeing to a ceasefire would give the FARC a strategic advantage, Santos has resisted loosening pressure on the rebels before a peace deal is struck.
As Colombia's largest rebel group, the FARC has 7,000 to 8,000 fighters.
Source: Agence France Presse
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