Colombian Defense Minister Gabriel Silva said Friday that the death of nine Ecuadorians in a suspected FARC attack near the Colombia-Ecuador border on Wednesday is evidence that the rebel group lacks allies abroad.
“They are multinational terrorists, and all countries, regardless of whether they are neighbors or remote, suffer the consequences of the FARC’s narco-trafficking and terrorism,” he said.
Ecuador’s President Rafael Correa said earlier Friday that nine Ecuadorians and one Colombian were killed by the FARC in Ecuador, but did not give further details of the attack.
Silva spoke from Popayan, capital of the Cauca department where the FARC has carried out repeated attacks in the past week. Silva is conducting a survey of Cauca police and military forces there this weekend, as part of the government’s initiative to step up security in Cauca after five FARC attacks since last weekend.
