Colombia

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Fame Hinders Chance of Freedom
Fame Hinders Chance of Freedom
Jun 7, 2008 12:31 PM CDT

Fame Hinders Chance of Freedom

As international cause, Colombian hostage is valuable to rebels

(Newser) - The daughter of a beauty queen and a diplomat who once enjoyed a charmed existence in fashionable Parisian quarters, Ingrid Betancourt is now a hostage in a Colombian jungle who is sometimes chained by the neck to a tree. The Wall Street Journal profiles the plight of the former Colombian...

Sun Setting on FARC Rebellion
 Sun Setting on FARC Rebellion 
ANALYSIS
May 29, 2008 10:14 PM CDT

Sun Setting on FARC Rebellion

Key link to past now dead, and Colombia's efforts at last paying off against rebels

(Newser) - FARC chief Manuel Marulanda’s death might not be a fatal blow to Colombia's Marxist rebels, but the Economist sees an organization on the way out anyway. In its mid-'90s heyday, FARC boasted a force of 19,000 soldiers that threatened Bogota, the capital; today, the group is fragmented, with...

Quake-Hit Colombians Hunker Down

Rumble killed 11 and wounded 54; 5,000 face damaged buildings

(Newser) - After Saturday’s 5.6-magnitude quake which sparked landslides, hundreds of Colombians gathered in temporary shelters yesterday, reluctant to return home for fear of further shake-ups, Reuters reports. Colombia’s Red Cross reported 11 deaths and 54 injuries, with some 5,000 facing damaged homes and other buildings. President Alvaro...

Colombian Rebels Confirm Leader's Death

Marulanda, 78, died of a heart attack 'in arms of his companion'

(Newser) - A top Colombian rebel confirmed the death of FARC chief Manuel Marulanda in a TV interview today. Marulanda died of a heart attack 2 months ago, at age 78, "in the arms of his companion," he said. With "Sureshot" gone, new rebel leader Alfonso Cano may struggle...

6 Die in 5.7-Mag Colombia Quake
 6 Die in 5.7-Mag
 Colombia Quake 
updated
May 24, 2008 6:29 PM CDT

6 Die in 5.7-Mag Colombia Quake

Bogota shakes, 33 miles from epicenter

(Newser) - At least six people died and eight were injured during an earthquake in Colombia today, Reuters reports. The 5.7-magnitude temblor also razed 10 homes, damaged buildings, and sent people running into the streets of Bogota. Three of the quake's fatalities were trapped in landslides, and three others, including a...

Colombian Rebel Leader Rumored Dead
Colombian Rebel Leader Rumored Dead
May 24, 2008 5:48 PM CDT

Colombian Rebel Leader Rumored Dead

'Sure Shot' founded Marxist FARC more than 40 years ago

(Newser) - Columbian rebel leader Manuel Marulanda Velez is dead, according to an interview with an official in a weekly magazine, AFP reports. The elusive FARC leader, known as “Sure Shot,” helped start the Marxist rebel group in the 1960s to battle Colombia's conservative government. He was rumored to have...

Rebel's Files Show Chávez Aided FARC

Laptops point to arms deals, training accords with Colombian rebels

(Newser) - A cache of computer files found on a dead Colombian guerrilla leader's laptops implicates Hugo Chávez in arms deals with the FARC rebels. The Wall Street Journal reports that Colombian and American intelligence agencies, which came into possession of about 100 files, have no doubt of their authenticity. Both...

Cocaine Moves by Submarine
 Cocaine Moves by Submarine 
May 4, 2008 10:36 AM CDT

Cocaine Moves by Submarine

New method confounds drug enforcement efforts

(Newser) - Cocaine traffickers have embraced a startling new method to transport their product into America, the Economist reports: homemade submersibles. The cartels themselves seem to be producing the small craft, which descend to just below the waterline. They sport large cargo space and fuel tanks that allow them to sail far...

Colombian Volcano Sends 15,000 Fleeing

Spitting hot ash; lava could follow

(Newser) - As many as 15,000 people living near Colombia's Nevado del Huila volcano were evacuated today as the mountain spit hot ash onto the area. Officials report no injuries, but say it's too early to assess the damage or offer a prognosis for the eruption. "Other types of material...

'Lonely Planet' Writer Admits He Made It Up

Writer dealt drugs, took freebies, and oh yeah, never visited Colombia

(Newser) - Lonely Planet guidebook executives are reeling in the wake of memoir confessions by one of their authors that he fabricated or plagiarized parts of the books—and dealt drugs to fund his trips. Thomas Kohnstamm also writes in Do Travel Writers Go to Hell? that he flouted guidebook policy by...

Pelosi, Dems Hijack Colombia Free-Trade Deal

They change House rules to avoid a vote, angering Bush

(Newser) - Congressional Democrats thumbed their noses today at Bush's renewed efforts to pass a free-trade pact with Colombia. Bush sent the bill over Monday, mandating Congress to vote yea or nay within 90 days. Or so he thought. Nancy Pelosi is changing the House rules and won't allow a vote until...

France Bails on Hostage Rescue Mission

Colombian rebels block medical help for Betancourt

(Newser) - A French humanitarian team is leaving Colombia after being frustrated in its mission to aid failing hostage Ingrid Betancourt, reports the BBC. The leadership of the FARC rebels, who have held the French-Colombian presidential candidate hostage for six years, refused to allow the team to provide Betancourt with emergency medical...

Bush to Give Congress Colombia Bill

But Dems will likely kill trade pact over human rights

(Newser) - President Bush said today he is handing Congress a much-disputed Colombia free trade pact, the Washington Post reports. But with both Democratic presidential candidates and many lawmakers opposing it, the bill has little chance of passing. Democrats have long blasted Colombia for failing to protect labor advocates and curb violence....

Colombia Fires Clinton Aide Over Remark
Colombia Fires Clinton Aide Over Remark
updated
Apr 5, 2008 2:25 PM CDT

Colombia Fires Clinton Aide Over Remark

Says apology for trade meeting showed 'lack of respect'

(Newser) - Colombia fired a Washington lobbying firm today after its CEO, a top Hillary Clinton strategist, apologized for meeting with the country's US envoy, Politico reports. Mark Penn called the trade meeting an “error in judgment” that “will not be repeated,” but the remark ruffled feathers in Colombia....

Clinton Aide Met With Colombians on Trade Deal

Penn, in job as lobbyist, hired to promote accord candidate opposes

(Newser) - Hillary Clinton’s chief strategist met with Colombia’s ambassador to the US this week on a trade deal the Democratic candidate opposes—in his capacity as a lobbying executive, the Wall Street Journal reports. Mark Penn's firm, Burson-Marsteller, was paid $300,000 to fight for the bilateral accord, which...

Sarko: Betancourt Near Death
 Sarko: Betancourt Near Death 
Apr 1, 2008 3:20 PM CDT

Sarko: Betancourt Near Death

French president renews call for FARC ro release hostage

(Newser) - Nicolas Sarkozy today reiterated his call for FARC to free hostage Ingrid Betancourt, saying the Colombian-French politician is "in danger of imminent death," Reuters reports. After 6 years in the rebel guerrillas' custody, Betancourt reportedly began a hunger strike Feb. 23. "Free Ingrid Betancourt and the weakest...

Venezuela Tried to Arm FARC, Colombia Says

Unverified docs reveal activities of Colombian rebels

(Newser) - Colombian officials claim to have computer files captured from its FARC rebels that indicate Venezuela sold arms to the terrorist group, the New York Times reports. If Interpol verifies the files, they would also suggest links between FARC and Ecuador’s government and provide insight into the rebel organization. Colombia...

Colombia Offers Swap: Hostages for Prisoners

FARC must release ailing Betancourt for deal to go through

(Newser) - After more than 6 years in captivity, Colombian hostage Ingrid Betancourt will go free if FARC agrees to a deal Alvaro Uribe signed off on last night, the Guardian reports. The Colombian president issued a decree saying the country will release imprisoned rebel fighters in exchange for Betancourt, a onetime...

Cocaine on the Upswing in Peru
 Cocaine on the Upswing in Peru 
Mar 23, 2008 3:48 PM CDT

Cocaine on the Upswing in Peru

US attempts to quell trafficking stagnate in coca-based economy

(Newser) - Peru's cocaine business is growing again, sparking a spate of killings, threats, and US-funded attempts to stop it, the Los Angeles Times reports. Coca bush plots have increased by a third since 1999 to feed markets in Europe, East Asia, and Brazil—but growers are hard to collar because they...

Colombia to Pay Ex-Rebel $2.5M for Slaying

He shot his FARC boss, cut off his hand as proof

(Newser) - Colombia will pay the former FARC rebel who killed his commander last week part of a $2.5 million reward—a move critics say amounts to payment for murder, the BBC reports. Guerrilla Pedro Pablo Montoya shot his boss, then cut off his hand as proof. He will share the...

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