"part of the Northwestern Bloc: Northwestern Bloc of the FARC-EP The Northwestern Bloc of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, also known as the Iván Ríos Bloc has historically been a strong influence in the Medellín and Antioquia regions, and still is today. It has been among the blocs most seriously targeted by former president Álvaro Uribe's defense plan and the Colombian Army's offensive. Due to this, the bloc has been forced to retreat to more remote areas of the countryside and has lost the dominance it once had in the area. The specific divisions of the group are arguable."
"in other parts of South America. In Peru, the Shining Path movement launched a Maoist guerrilla campaign from the countryside, starting a war which has still not entirely concluded today, with a significant loss of life. In Colombia, the 1960s Communist guerrilla organization the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army, or FARC, enjoyed a resurgence in the 1980s with the advent of drugs money. The war between the Colombian armed forces and FARC is ongoing; according to the Colombian government, as of 2008, FARC had an estimated 6,000-10,000 members, down from 16,000 in 2001, having lost about half"
"History of FARC The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC–EP) is a Marxist–Leninist revolutionary guerrilla organization based in Colombia, which is involved in the ongoing Colombian armed conflict. FARC–EP is a peasant army which has proclaimed itself as a revolutionary agrarian, anti-imperialist Marxist–Leninist organization of Bolivarian inspiration. It claims to represent the rural poor in a struggle against Colombia's wealthier classes, and opposes United States influence in Colombia (e.g. Plan Colombia), neo-imperialism, monopolization of natural resources by multinational corporations, and paramilitary/government violence. Following the murder of populist politician Jorge Eliécer Gaitán, in 1948, large-scale violence broke out in what became"
"almost 10,000 combatants that fought at almost 30 different locations. More than a decade later, in 1999, the FARC grew to almost 15,000 combatants at nearly 60 fronts. The FARC was active across Colombia, in nearly 40 percent of all the municipalities. The conflict didn't stay in Colombia itself, but became a cross-border conflict. One of the biggest 'enemies' outside of Colombia for the FARC were the United States. Latest peace negotiations (2012–present) In 2012 the president of Colombia, Juan Manuel Santos, and the leader of the FARC, Timoleon Jimenez (also called Timochencko) started peace negotiations in Havana. On the"
"FARC rebel group in eastern Colombia. Libertadores del Vichada Libertadores del Vichada (English: The Liberators of Vichada), was a Colombian drug trafficking neo-paramilitary group involved in the Colombian armed conflict. It is considered to be one of the most important drug trafficking organizations in eastern Colombia. The group is led by Martín Farfán Díaz González, alias 'Pijarbey,' a former leader of the neo-paramilitary group ERPAC. According to Colombia's prosecutor general, Díaz González is responsible for several homicides and acts of terrorism against the civilian population. The last leader of the criminal group was captured September 22, 2017, in Villavicencio (Meta)."
"Southern Bloc of the FARC-EP The Southern Bloc of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia was the first bloc to exist and is where the roots of the guerrilla movement lie. The bloc has been held responsible for several notorious attacks, including the infamous ""donkey-bomb"", numerous attacks against military bases, as well as Íngrid Betancourt´s kidnapping. It was also blamed by government investigators and prosecutors for the bombing of the El Nogal club. FARC itself denied that any of its members were responsible for the attack. The bloc operates in much of the area that borders with Ecuador and Peru,"
"the primary location for many FARC dissidents. Other dissidents hide in the mountains north of Medellín. Despite claiming to still follow the Leftist ideology of FARC, many dissidents are more motivated in their continuing struggle against the government by their inability to reintegrate into civilian society, a desire to protect themselves from other paramilitary or crime groups, and criminal connections. Dissident groups would become part of the rivalries between the different drug cartels, allying with some and fighting against others. On 15 July 2018, the Colombian and Peruvian governments launched a joint military effort known as Operation Armageddon to combat"
"left-wing terrorism in Latin America during the 1970s and 1980s. These organizations opposed the United States government and drew local support, as well as receiving support from the Soviet Union and Cuba. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) is a Marxist–Leninist organization in Colombia which has engaged in vehicle bombings, gas cylinder bombs, killings, landmines, kidnapping, extortion, hijacking, as well as guerilla and conventional military. The United States Department of State includes the FARC-EP on its list of foreign terrorist organizations, as does the European Union. It funds itself primarily through extortion, kidnapping and their participation in the illegal"
"alias Julián Chollo. The FARC dissidents have been responsible for several attacks on the Colombian armed forces. These fighters are believed to be heavily involved in the production and sale of cocaine. Dissidents of FARC’s 1st Front are located in the eastern plains of Colombia. Jhon 40 and their dissident 43rd Front moved into the Amazonas state of western Venezuela. Venezuela has served as the primary location for many FARC dissidents. On 15 July 2018, the Colombian and Peruvian governments launched a joint military effort known as Operation Armageddon to combat FARC dissidents. Peru issued a 60-day state of emergency"
"of Western nations"". On 23 June 2016 a ceasefire accord was signed between the FARC Guerilla Army and the Colombian Government, in Havana, Cuba. Leaders of several Latin American countries which contributed to the deal, including Cuba and Venezuela, were present. A final peace accord will required a referendum to be approved. Under the accord, the Colombian government will support massive investment for rural development and facilitate the FARC's reincarnation as a legal political party. FARC promised to help eradicate illegal drug crops, remove landmines in the areas of conflict, and offer reparations to victims. FARC leaders can avoid prosecution"
"around 100 different ethnicities. The Colombian Constitutional Court has warned that 35 of those groups are in danger of dying out. The Permanent Assembly for the Defense of Life and Territorial Control has stated that the armed conflict ""is not only part of one or two areas, it is a problem of all the indigenous people."" FARC–EP was the largest and oldest insurgent group in the Americas. According to the Colombian government, FARC–EP had an estimated 6,000–8,000 members in 2008, down from 16,000 in 2001, and lost much of its fighting force since President Álvaro Uribe took office in 2002."
"Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia—People's Army (, FARC–EP and FARC) was a guerrilla movement involved in the continuing Colombian armed conflict from 1964 to 2017. It was known to employ a variety of military tactics in addition to more unconventional methods, including terrorism. The FARC–EP was formed during the Cold War period as a Marxist–Leninist peasant force promoting a political line of agrarianism and anti-imperialism. The operations of the FARC–EP were funded by kidnap and ransom; illegal mining; extortion or taxation of various forms of economic activity and the taxation, production and distribution of"
"CIA activities in Colombia The Central Intelligence Agency focuses on fighting two major conflicts of the cultivation and trafficking of cocaine and the local extremist groups in Colombia. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, otherwise known as the FARC, is one of the main extremist groups in Colombia. The FARC has resulted in the killings of innocent civilians making them a top priority for the CIA. The CIA activities revolve heavily around stopping the production of cocaine and the FARC. As part of transnational counterdrug activity, the CIA financed a military intelligence network in Colombia in 1991. Speaking on behalf"
"They used a bomber aircraft with Napalm in order to destroy the threat. Many of the armed inhabitants of the enclaves escaped and two years later part of this group formed the FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia). The FARC became the oldest and largest revolutionary guerilla movement in the Western Hemisphere. Stokes and other critics believed that the U.S. government focused on the destruction of the FARC and other left-wing guerrilla movements, ignoring and even supporting other destabilizing elements in Colombian society. As La Violencia was ending a ""U.S. Special Survey Team"" composed of worldwide counterinsurgency experts arrived in"
"This group established in reaction to the claimed fraud that happened during the presidential elections in 1970. Armed peace period (1982-1985) In 1984 the former president of Colombia Belisario Betancur signed a ceasefire with the FARC and M-19. This ceasefire only lasted for a year, even though the armed forces of the Colombian government tried to make it last longer. The FARC and M-19 ended the ceasefire in a different way, on different dates. FARC getting stronger (1986-1999) The FARC grew bigger and stronger and eventually became the biggest and best organised guerrilla movement of Latin-America. In 1986 there were"
"largely remained in a non-combatant role, providing real time intelligence, training, and military equipment. As the Colombian military (with U.S. support) continues to crack down on the FARC during the mid-2000s, the insurgency was sapped of much of their military might. Traditionally, the FARC has operated with a centralized, hierarchical command structure and a governing body called the Secretariat. With the deaths in 2008 of main leader Manuel Marulanda and second-in-command Raúl Reyes, followed by the killing of top tacticians Mono Jojoy and Alfonso Cano in 2010 and 2011, the group became increasingly disjointed. In 2001, for example, the FARC"
"guerrilla groups, such as the Tupamaros in Uruguay and the Montoneros in Argentina. By mid-1985, when the number of active members was estimated at between 1,500 and 2,000 (including a more noticeable urban presence), the M-19 was the second largest guerrilla group in Colombia after the FARC. On 27 June 2017, FARC ceased to be an armed group, disarming itself and handing over its weapons to the United Nations. The M-19's history may be divided into two parts: the first was a failed armed revolutionary struggle during the early to mid-1980s, while the second was a relatively constructive reincorporation into"
"15 July 2018, the Colombian and Peruvian governments launched a joint military effort known as Operation Armageddon to combat FARC dissidents. Peru issued a 60-day state of emergency in the Putumayo Province, an area bordering both Colombia and Ecuador. On the first day alone, more than 50 individuals were arrested in the operation, with the majority being Colombian nationals, while four cocaine labs were dismantled. Relations between the FARC-EP and local populations vary greatly depending on the history and specific characteristics of each region. In rural areas where the guerrillas have maintained a continuous presence for several decades, there are"
"the territories under the control of the national government. FARC was formed in 1964 by Manuel Marulanda Vélez and other PCC members, after a military attack on the community of Marquetalia. 16,000 Colombian troops, backed by the U.S., attacked the village of 1,000 inhabitants, only 48 of whom were armed. Marulanda and 47 others fought against government forces at Marquetalia, and then escaped into the mountains along with the other fighters. These 48 men formed the core of FARC, which quickly grew in size to hundreds of fighters. In 1982, FARC–EP held its Seventh Guerrilla Conference, which called for a"
"figure recorded since 1998. The NGO has stated that while most of these incidents remain defensive in nature and were not like the large offensives from years past, FARC actions grew since 2005, and the rebel group was carrying out intense operations against small and medium-sized Colombian military units in vulnerable areas. Colombian troops killed FARC leader Alfonso Cano in a firefight on 4 November 2011. The 6th Front of the FARC, which was in charge of Cano's security at the time of his death, retaliated by killing two policemen in Suarez and Jambaló some 24 hours after the death"
"belonging to Colombia's largest rebel group. One of the laptops is believed to have belonged to its military leader, Mono Jojoy, who was killed in the attack. Its screen was reportedly shattered by bullets, but its hard drive was still intact. The computers were examined by 40 experts from the police criminal investigation unit in the capital, Bogota. About 10,000 extra police officers were deployed to Colombia's main cities to prevent retaliatory attacks by the Farc. In the FARC's first public statement since the death of military leader ""Mono Jojoy,"" the guerrilla group says it is ""calling for a chance"
"hiding in rural areas of Colombia and finding save-havens in non-monitored areas of bordering states. The FARC numbers have significantly diminished in the last decade to an estimated 5,000-7,000. And while joint-military collaboration has steadily increased with the bordering countries of Brazil, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela, there have been tensions between Colombia and Ecuador regarding the issue. In 2002, the Ecuadorian government closed its main border crossing with Colombia, restricting its hours of operation. Ecuador continues to voice its concerns over an influx of émigré stemming from guerilla activity at its borders. Evidence has since emerged however, suggesting that a"
"under Bolívar's Greater Colombia. Roughly from 1949 to 1964, during the ""La Violencia"" period of Colombian history, the FARC's precursor was a small Communist guerrilla band which usually engaged in ""hit and run"" warfare against their enemies and members of local Colombian security forces, when not implementing necessary activities for its self-defense from rival irregular groups. The group answered only to representatives of the Colombian Communist Party, which provided political cadres, recruits and small donations as support. Because of the period's political turmoil, the Colombian government initially was unaware of the activities of this group of rebels. Towards the end"
"signed a revised peace deal on November 24 and sent it to Congress for ratification instead of conducting a second referendum. Both houses of Congress ratified the revised peace agreement on November 29–30, 2016, thus marking an end to the conflict. The Colombian armed conflict is the oldest ongoing armed conflict in the Americas, beginning - by some measures - in 1964 with the creation of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (""Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia""), the largest of left-wing guerrillas groups which have operated in the country. In 1990 and 1991, peace negotiations with several smaller guerrilla movements"
"resources to the Colombian government to combat the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias Colombianas (FARC) insurgency in Colombia. The FARC was identified as a key component in the Heroine supply chain. Instead of deploying forces to Colombia to conduct counterinsurgency operations, the United States maintained a minimal presence. Instead, the United States focused on providing resources and training to the Colombian military and police force to conduct their own Counterinsurgency operations. By 2011, the FARC had been marginalized and Columbia had established a strong central government. The United States has maintained a presence in Africa in order to decrease the risk of"
"FARC and the second-largest guerrilla group in Colombia, ELN, announced that they would be working together to find a ""political solution to the social and armed conflict."" The details of this partnership, however, were far from clear; Washington Office on Latin America's Adam Isacson explains that two issues central to peace accords with ELN—resource policy and kidnapping—are currently off the table in the talks in Havana with FARC, and the addition of these topics may complicate and slow down an already sluggish process. On 6 November 2013 the Colombian government and FARC announced that they had come to an agreement"
"Human Rights has been present in Colombia since 1997. Since 2006 though, there has been another international movement turning its attention to Colombia; namely the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ). The works of both of these institutions have led to a few semi-official national committees to oversee truth seeking missions in the hopes of eventually achieving reparation. In 2012, the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) began their fourth attempt to negotiate an end to the fighting. Peace talks between the Colombian government of Juan Manuel Santos and the FARC, the main guerrilla force in"
"between the head of the Colombian Army and the rightist paramilitary group known as United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC), a US-designated foreign terrorist organization. Its major opponents, also on the US list of terrorist organizations, are the leftist FARC and ELN. Hostages held by FARC, including possible CIA contractors, are rescued by the Colombian Army on July 2, 2008. CIA activities in Colombia The Central Intelligence Agency focuses on fighting two major conflicts of the cultivation and trafficking of cocaine and the local extremist groups in Colombia. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, otherwise known as the FARC, is"
"Joaquín Gómez Milton de Jesús Toncel Redondo a.k.a. Joaquín Gómez, a.k.a. Usuriaga (born March 18, 1947 in Barrancas, La Guajira), is a former Colombian guerrilla Block Commander, member of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) commanding the Southern Bloc of the FARC-EP. According to the US Department of State Toncel has participated in setting and implementing the FARC’s cocaine policies directing and controlling the production, manufacture, and distribution of hundreds of tons of cocaine to the United States and the world; the ""taxation"" of the drug trade in Colombia to raise funds for the FARC; and the murder of"
"1964, officially renamed ""Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia"" (FARC) in 1966, which became the official military arm of the Communist Party. One of the communist leaders of the enclave, known as Jacobo Arenas, later wrote a book called ""Diario de la resistencia de Marquetalia"" (""Marquetalia Diary""). The book includes a chronicle of the events of the fight between the guerrilla fighters and the soldiers of the Colombian army. In October 1959, the United States sent a ""Special Survey Team"" composed of counterinsurgency experts to investigate Colombia's internal security situation. Among other policy recommendations the US team advised that ""in order"
"spent as much as $32 million on infrastructure, education, agricultural development and governance by 2014. According to the International Crisis Group, the plan ""appears to be having a positive impact, especially in marginalized communities with little or no state presence"". Two major guerrilla organizations, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia—FARC) and the National Liberation Army (Ejército de Liberación Nacional—ELN), plus a smaller Popular Liberation Army (Ejército Popular de Liberación or EPL) group continue to be active. In 1996–98 the FARC and ELN extended their presence in the national territory and scored some strategic gains against"
"Operacion Fenix Operación Fénix (English: Operation Phoenix), was an attack by the Colombian military against a camp of the guerrilla group the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) over the border in Sucumbíos Province, Ecuador on March 1, 2008. The raid succeeded in killing Raúl Reyes, second-in-command of FARC, as well as some two dozen individuals present in the encampment, including an Ecuadorian citizen and four Mexicans, allegedly research students invited to the camp after attending a Bolivarian congress in Quito. In the aftermath of the attack, a diplomatic crisis emerged between Ecuador, Colombia, and Venezuela. In the week before"
"the ""Bloque Sur"" (Southern Bloc) guerrilla group on 27 May 1964, a precursor to the official foundation of the FARC in 1966. Marulanda and Jacobo Arenas soon established themselves as the main leaders of the new guerrilla group. Marulanda died of a heart attack on March 26, 2008. The news was first brought by Colombian magazine ""Revista Semana"" on May 24, 2008, that cited Defense Minister Juan Manuel Santos saying Marulanda died. The minister claimed he had learned this from a reliable informant within FARC. He also told the magazine that three bombing raids had targeted the rebel chief around"