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Colombia Farc ceasefire starts after deadly attack | |
(about 4 hours later) | |
Colombia's Farc rebels have begun an indefinite, unilateral ceasefire. | |
The group unexpectedly announced on Wednesday that it would begin a truce for an unlimited time from Saturday. | |
The move has been welcomed by the UN and the European Union. However, Colombia's government said it would not join the rebels in the truce. | |
Hours ahead of the ceasefire, the army said Farc had killed five soldiers in an ambush. The rebels attacked a patrol in a rural area of western Colombia. | |
President Juan Manuel Santos described Farc's ceasefire declaration as a "gift... full of thorns". | President Juan Manuel Santos described Farc's ceasefire declaration as a "gift... full of thorns". |
He has rejected rebel calls for a bilateral truce, warning that this would give them the chance to re-arm. | |
He also condemned the ambush, saying the soldiers had died "defending the security of their fellow Colombians". | |
Representatives of Colombia's government and the Farc have been holding talks in the Cuban capital, Havana, for more than two years. | Representatives of Colombia's government and the Farc have been holding talks in the Cuban capital, Havana, for more than two years. |
The talks were almost derailed in November after the Farc captured a Colombian general, Ruben Dario Alzate, prompting President Santos to suspend the negotiations. | The talks were almost derailed in November after the Farc captured a Colombian general, Ruben Dario Alzate, prompting President Santos to suspend the negotiations. |
The rebels released the general unharmed in an effort to revive the talks. | The rebels released the general unharmed in an effort to revive the talks. |
Earlier this week, they announced that they would observe a truce starting at midnight local time (0500 GMT) on Saturday. It should become a formal armistice and would only end if they were attacked, they said. | |
The Farc have declared ceasefires in the past, but these have been temporary. It has also staged similar attacks to the one on Friday, just before the commencing its ceasefires. | The Farc have declared ceasefires in the past, but these have been temporary. It has also staged similar attacks to the one on Friday, just before the commencing its ceasefires. |