With U.S. Assistance, Colombian Troops Attack and Kill 20 FARC Rebels Inside Ecuador

Tensions are high in the Andes following a Colombian military attack in neighboring Ecuador. A leading commander of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia–FARC–and twenty other fighters were killed Saturday when Colombian troops crossed the Ecuadorian border in a pre-dawn raid. Colombia called the attack a major blow to the FARC rebels. The commander, Raul Reyes, had been viewed as a possible successor to FARC’s 77-year-old leader, Manuel Marulanda.

On Monday both Ecuador and Venezuela rushed troops to their borders with Colombia and said they would cut their diplomatic ties with Bogota. Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro announced the expulsion of Colombia”s ambassador in Caracas.

Colombia said it found evidence in the FARC camp that Venezuela had given the rebels more than three-hundred million dollars. Colombia also accused Ecuador of supporting the rebels. Both Venezuela and Ecuador denounced the charges and accused Colombian President Alvaro Uribe of lying.

Mario Murillo, longtime journalist and author of “Colombia and the United States: War, Terrorism and Destablization.” He is Co-host of Wake-Up Call on the Pacifica radio station WBAI in New York. He joins me from the Hofstra University studio in Long Island, where he teaches media and communications.

Helga Serrano, Ecuadorian activist with the international network for the abolition of foreign military bases, No Bases. Speaking from Quito, Ecuador.

Arlene Tickner, Professor of International Affairs at the University of los Andes in Bogota, where she joins us on the phone.

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