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Venezuela Arming FARC Rebels: Stolen Emails

By Drew Nelles,  Newser Staff

Posted Aug 2, 2009 4:45 PM CDT
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(Newser) – Despite frequent denials by President Hugo Chavez, it seems Venezuela is still arming Colombian rebels on the sly, the New York Times reports. Computer files captured from FARC rebels reveal Venezuela's efforts to get them missiles, sniper rifles, radios, and Venezuelan identity cards. This after Chavez froze relations with Colombia last year, fuming over accusations that Venezuela was arming rebels with rocket launchers.

Venezuela's US ambassador shrugged off the evidence, saying, “Colombia’s government is trying to build a case in the media against our country that serves its own political agenda." The emails, obtained by a Colombian raid and handed to Western intelligence agencies, implicate high-ranking Venezuelan officials and may hurt Barack Obama’s efforts to mend ties with Chavez. The US and EU, after all, consider FARC a terrorist group.

Soldiers stand at a camp of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, FARC, after troops faced off with rebels in Puerto Rico, Colombia, Saturday, July 25, 2009.
Soldiers stand at a camp of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, FARC, after troops faced off with rebels in Puerto Rico, Colombia, Saturday, July 25, 2009.   (AP Photo/William Fernando Martinez)
Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez speaks after a signing ceremony with Spain's Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos at the Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas, Wednesday, July 29, 2009.
Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez speaks after a signing ceremony with Spain's Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos at the Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas, Wednesday, July 29, 2009.   (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
In this frame grab from a video found on a computer seized during the arrest of a FARC operative shows the rebel group's number two commander Jorge Briceno aka Mono Jojoy.
In this frame grab from a video found on a computer seized during the arrest of a FARC operative shows the rebel group's number two commander Jorge Briceno aka Mono Jojoy.   (AP Photo/APTN)
A demonstrator holds an image of former leader of the Colombian guerrilla group Revolutionary Armed Forces Manuel Marulanda, during a march marking the first anniversary of his death in Caracas.
A demonstrator holds an image of former leader of the Colombian guerrilla group Revolutionary Armed Forces Manuel Marulanda, during a march marking the first anniversary of his death in Caracas.   (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 5 comments
emptycalm
Aug 3, 2009 4:55 AM CDT
The US has no right to criticize. They do the same thing in the middle east and did that during Reagen in South America.
justme
Aug 3, 2009 4:00 AM CDT
Meddling in the affairs of other countries is not limited to either end of the political spectrum, nor is the US without it's own list of black ops in foreign lands (Let he who is without sin.....?)
freethemall
Aug 2, 2009 11:22 AM CDT
Your ignorant comment is a good object lesson for illustrating the straw man fallacy. To "attack a straw man" is to create the illusion of having refuted a proposition by substituting a superficially similar proposition (the "straw man"), and refuting it, without ever having actually refuted the original position. Obama wants to open a dialog (original proposition), not be best friends (straw man).

 
Venezuela • Colombia • FARC • militant • Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia • Colombian rebels

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