Colombian Defense Minister Thanks Panama

(Panama-Guide) - Panama America - Colombian Defense Minister Rodrigo Rivera, yesterday thanked the Panamanian authorities for "defending their territory" during the bombardment of a FARC camp near the border, which killed at least five rebels, including apparently an important guerrilla leader. The official said in an interview with Caracol Radio that the bombing occurred about 700 meters from the border with Panama, in operations that also included police intelligence operations. "It was pretty close, about 700 meters from the border between Colombia and Panama. I should recognize the cooperation of the Government of Panama, in the simple act of security their territory, of exercising sovereignty in their own territory," he said.

He said the "simple fact" of shielding the border allows Colombian operations to be "highly effective" as those performed in the early hours of Monday against the 57th Front of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). One of the objectives of the attack was the rebel leader Gilberto Torres Muñetón, alias "El Becerro", the Commander of the 57th FARC Front, responsible for drug trafficking and numerous kidnappings in the area. At the camp, according to the police intelligence reports, in addition to "El Becerro", other known Colombian guerrilla leaders were present, known by their aliases "Ignacio", "Silver" and "Nader". "We're talking about the dismantling of the third point of the triangle of logistics funding the FARC," the minister said.

He explained that the first two points were finished with the deaths of the guerrilla leaders known by the aliases of "El Negro Acacio" and "Edgar Tovar." "I have no doubt that those who remain are also going down," said Rivera. In this jungle area of the Colombian department of Chocó, pursuit operations continue against some FARC elements, as well as the evacuation of the bodies of the dead guerrilla leaders, charged with coordinating FARC drug shipments to Central America.

On 23 September another Colombian military bombing killed the military chief of the FARC, alias "Mono Jojoy", whose real name was Victor Julio Suarez Rojas, and nine other guerrillas in a rugged area of the Sierra de La Macarena, in the Southern part of the country. The FARC accused the Government of Panama a few months ago of having a posture of "unjustified hostility" against them. In a statement, the FARC said the Panamanian government has even made offers of rewards for rebel commanders and combatants. (Panama America)

Editor's Comment: As predicted, here it comes. Today the Colombian Defense Minister made statements about how close the FARC camp was to the border, and in Panama the Minister of Public Security Jose Raul Mulino said he knew nothing of the operation. I suspect this camp was actually located within Panamanian territory, simply because it doesn't make any sense whatsoever for the FARC to have a camp near the border but within Colombian territory, while at the same time it makes all the sense in the world for them to have a camp just across the border in Panamanian territory. Whatever. The dead guys are bad guys, so I'm down with that. I'm just saying...

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Original Source:  Panama-Guide
Date Retrieved: October 7,, 2010.