Ceasefire in Colombia’s war ends

Published on 21/01/2013 00:00

A UNILATERAL ceasefire declared by the Marxist Farc rebels at the start of peace talks with the Colombian government ended yesterday after the government refused to join the truce, the group said.

“With pain in my heart, we have to admit that we return to the stage of war that nobody in this country wants,” Farc lead negotiator Ivan Marquez told reporters in the Cuban capital Havana before going into the latest session of the talks aimed at ending Colombia’s long, bloody conflict.

The Farc, or Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, declared the ceasefire when the talks began on 19 November.

Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos rejected the ceasefire from the beginning, saying the government would maintain the military pressure.