Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos criticized recent FARC attacks on Monday and said the rebels will not be given any opportunities to expand their military advantage.
“All of the terrorist attacks we have seen in the latest months, what they seek to do is make the people desperate, but they do not have a military advantage, no explication and therefore we must condemn them firmly and convincingly,” said Santos in a press release.
Santos has been sharply criticized by his predecessor, Alvaro Uribe, for allegedly letting his guard down in the struggle against left-wing rebels.
The president’s comments came as Colombian energy statistics showed a decrease in oil production of 0,2% in June compared to May, a decrease largely attributed an increase of FARC and ELN attacks against the oil industry. In the first six months of 2012 there were a total of 67 attacks against oil installments, which was considered more than a 300% increase over the same period in 2011.
Earlier in June, press agency Reuters wrote FARC attacks against military and police had increased by 66% in the first six months in 2012 compared to the same period in 2011.
Meanwhile, a report from the Sergio Arboleda University in Bogota released in early July indicated FARC rebels had returned to 50 municipalities in 2012 were they had previously not been active for years.
