The Washington Post
Sunday, November 30, 2003; Page A23

Colombian Rebels Target U.S. Troops

Associated Press

BOGOTA, Colombia, Nov. 29 -- Colombia's main rebel group warned Saturday that U.S. military personnel aiding government troops will face attack.

Raul Reyes, a commander of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, issued the threat two weeks after a grenade attack on two Bogota bars in which one person was killed and 72 were wounded, including four Americans.

"The invasive foreign troops are a military target for the FARC," Reyes said in an interview posted on the Web site of the News Agency of New Colombia, which carries official rebel statements.

Reyes insisted that he did not know whether the FARC was responsible for the bar attacks. U.S. and Colombian officials have blamed leftist rebels.

The United States has spent about $2.5 billion in mostly military aid since 2000 to help the Colombian government battle the FARC and a smaller leftist rebel group.

Some of the U.S. troops in Colombia are Special Forces who are training Colombian battalions in counterinsurgency tactics.

© 2003