Santos suspends air strikes on FARC camps following rebel truce
Santos suspends air strikes on FARC camps following rebel truce
Posted by The Associated Press on Jul 26, 2015
Colombia’s government said Saturday it is suspending aerial bombings of guerrilla camps in a bid to de-escalate fighting and breathe new life into struggling peace talks.
President Juan Manuel Santos made the announcement Saturday night at a military ceremony in Cartagena, saying the confidence-building move was in response to the decision by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia to declare a unilateral cease fire.
FARC leaders said on July 20 that they were resuming a unilateral truce the rebels had suspended two months earlier following an army bombing of one of their camps that left 26 people dead. That raid in turn followed a series of deadly attacks by the FARC, including a nighttime attack on an army platoon that killed 10 soldiers while they were asleep.
In March, Santos made a similar gamble, banning one of the military’s most-successful tactics in its fight against the rebels in recognition of progress the being made at the peace table.
More:
http://colombiareports.com/santos-suspends-air-strikes-on-farc-camps-following-rebel-truce/
