[Marxism] Colombia rebels to hand over 11 bodies

[Greg McDonald]

Colombia rebels to hand over 11 bodies

Published by AP, 6/29/07
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070630/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/ 
colombia_hostages;_ylt=Av.lSPTg8wPWdo5ehnr5j3C3IxIF

By TOBY MUSE, Associated Press Writer
Leftist Colombian rebels said Friday they will hand over the bodies  
of 11 hostages — purportedly killed in a botched rescue attempt —  
only when fighting in the area calms down.

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, said Thursday  
the 11 state lawmakers where killed in a J110une 18 shootout after an  
"unidentified military group" attacked a rebel camp. The lawmakers  
had been held hostage by the guerrillas for more than five years.

"In coordination with the central command, we will do all we can for  
a quick handover of the remains to those grieving," FARC spokesman  
Raul Reyes said in a letter addressed to a widow of one of the  
lawmakers. But, he added, the handover "depends on a letup in the  
fighting in the zone where the events happened."

Reyes gave no more details on the deaths and said that for "security  
reasons" he would not say where the hostages were killed. The letter,  
also addressed to former presidential candidate Alvaro Leyva, was  
sent to Caracol radio.

President Alvaro Uribe, whose father was killed two decades ago in a  
FARC kidnapping attempt, accused the rebels of killing their captives  
in cold blood. He said there were no significant military operations  
on that date in the zone where the hostages are thought to have been  
held.

Uribe also called for an international forensic commission to examine  
the bodies when they are recovered.

The government has been haggling with the FARC over a proposed  
exchange of hostages for jailed rebels. The FARC holds about 50  
prominent hostages, including former presidential candidate Ingrid  
Betancourt and three U.S. defense contractors.

On Friday the president repeated his rejection of a key FARC demand  
for a 310 square mile demilitarized zone in southwest Colombia.

This article was originally published by the sources above and is  
copyrighted by the sources above. We offer it here as an educational  
tool to increase understanding of global economics and social justice  
issues. We believe this is ‘fair use’ of copyrighted materials as  
provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. AMERICAS.ORG is  
a nonprofit web site with the goal of educating and informing.