Colombia

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Colombian Rescue Deal Collapses
Colombian Rescue Deal Collapses
Jan 1, 2008 4:18 AM CST

Colombian Rescue Deal Collapses

Hostages stuck in jungle; guerrillas, army blame each other

(Newser) - A Venezuela-brokered deal to rescue three hostages from Colombian rebels has fallen apart, Reuters reports. The leftist FARC rebels blamed the deal's failure on stepped-up Colombian army operations in the area and refused to relinquish hostages "due to fear for their safety and the safety of members involved in...

Colombia Hostage Rescue Stalls
Colombia Hostage
Rescue Stalls
Dec 30, 2007 7:00 AM CST

Colombia Hostage Rescue Stalls

Director Oliver Stone joins operation in push for freedom

(Newser) - An expected hostage release negotiated by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez with Colombian leftist rebels failed to materialize yesterday, setting the stage for a more dramatic event today as Latin American politicians and diplomats—and Hollywood film director Oliver Stone—joined rescuers and officials waiting for the rebels' next move, reports...

Mission Begins to Rescue Hostages in Colombia

Chavez sends choppers into jungle

(Newser) - Helicopters sent by Venezuela's Hugo Chavez to rescue hostages from Colombian rebels have landed at the edge of a Colombian wilderness and are awaiting a go-ahead from the rebels, the BBC reports. Guerrillas plan to release two women, seized more than five years ago, and a young boy fathered in...

Italian Syndicate Quietly Rules Europe's Cocaine Trade

US market tumbles as mobsters flourish

(Newser) - Europe is gaining a foothold in the world’s cocaine trade, elbowing out the US as the largest market thanks to the bravado of one Italian crime syndicate. The ‘Ndrangheta mafia, based in the hills of southern Italy, has won prominence by dealing directly with Colombian kingpins and shunning...

Hostages Could Be Free in Hours: Chávez

Ready to get Colombian captives, including boy born in jungle

(Newser) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez said today that three of the hostages being held by the Colombian rebel group FARC could be freed within hours. Chávez has received permission from the Colombian government to enter its airspace and retrieve the captives. The captives who might be freed will not...

Venezuela To Pick Up Hostages in Colombia

Guerrillas will release under Chavez plan

(Newser) - Three hostages held for more than five years by Marxist guerrillas will soon go free after Colombia agreed today to a handover plan engineered by Hugo Chavez, Reuters reports. Venezuelan planes and helicopters will pick up Clara Rojas, a former vice presidential candidate kidnapped in 2002; the young son she...

Yank Hostages Still Alive Years After Kidnap in Colombia

Seized tapes shows Americans & French pol

(Newser) - American hostages and a French-Colombian politician are apparently still alive in South America years after they were kidnapped by Marxist rebels, according to dramatic tapes just released by the Colombian government. Three American security contractors whose plane went down in 2003 are seen looking haggard against a jungle backdrop. Politician...

Chavez Freezes Out Colombia
Chavez Freezes Out Colombia
Nov 26, 2007 4:56 AM CST

Chavez Freezes Out Colombia

Puts brakes on bilateral ties over talks with rebels

(Newser) - Venezuela's volatile President Hugo Chavez says he is freezing ties with neighboring Colombia, insulted by Bogota's decision to ditch Chavez as a negotiator with Marxist guerrillas who have been holding hostages for years. Colombia's President Alvaro Uribe accused Chavez of favoring the rebels and overstepping his authority. Chavez called the...

Chavez Fired as Hostage Mediator
Chavez Fired
as Hostage Mediator
Nov 22, 2007 7:32 PM CST

Chavez Fired as Hostage Mediator

Colombian prez says he overstepped boundaries

(Newser) - Colombia ended Hugo Chavez's try at freeing 45 hostages from Marxist rebels today, Reuters reports. The Venezuelan prez had been brokering their release for weeks when he apparently breached protocol by talking to a Colombian general. "Can you imagine (Russia's president) calling the chairman of the U.S. chiefs...

MTV Banks on Vice Video
MTV Banks
on Vice Video
Nov 19, 2007 3:22 PM CST

MTV Banks on Vice Video

Online VBS.tv sticks with mag’s ‘raw’ aesthetic, is a training ground for TV content

(Newser) - MTV has put its hippest foot forward with VBS.tv, the online video channel run by Vice magazine’s editors. The web presence, originally pitched as “‘60 Minutes’ meets ‘Jackass,’” is a toehold in youth web programming, the Times reports. “Our aesthetic is raw,...

Colombians Sue Chiquita for Torture, Murder

Suit charges produce giant helped arm paramilitary 'terrorists'

(Newser) - American produce giant Chiquita Brands is being sued by almost 400 Colombian families charging "torture and murder" of their loved ones on the company's watch, reports CNN. Earlier this year the company pleaded guilty to aiding a Colombian paramilitary group considered a terrorist organization by the US. The $7....

Colombia Mine Collapse Kills 24
Colombia Mine Collapse Kills 24
Oct 14, 2007 8:10 AM CDT

Colombia Mine Collapse Kills 24

(Newser) - At least 24 amateur gold prospectors were killed yesterday when an open pit mine collapsed  in southwest Colombia. A landslide caused by torrential rains triggered the accident, which also injured 18 people and left at least 10 missing, BBC reports. Continuing heavy rains have hindered rescue efforts, as has the...

Bush Vows Free Trade Push
Bush Vows Free Trade Push
Oct 12, 2007 6:20 AM CDT

Bush Vows Free Trade Push

Slams executive compensation as 'unfair'

(Newser) - President Bush believes many Americans have lost confidence that they can compete in the world economy and he plans to champion his free trade agenda in the final months of his presidency, he told the Wall Street Journal. Bush also criticized excessive executive compensation, saying some salaries "send a...

Colombian Rebel Dodges Justice Again

Mistrial declared in US drug-trafficking case against FARC leader

(Newser) - The US Justice Department was unable to gain a conviction against Colombian rebel leader Ricardo Palmera, Reuters reports, with a judge declaring a mistrial yesterday after jurors deadlocked on a drug-trafficking charge. Palmera, captured in Colombia in 2004, was convicted in July in a 2003 kidnapping of American contractors, but...

US Nears Deal to Fight Mexican Drug Cartels

Aid package would signal new level of cooperation

(Newser) - The Bush administration will send hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to Mexico to combat drug cartels in a deal that's on the verge of approval, the Washington Post reports. The package, which would include equipment and training for anti-drug teams, represents a new level of cooperation. "The...

Terrorism Probe Focuses on Chertoff Advice

Chiquita, now under investigation, sought counsel, got nowhere

(Newser) - Chiquita is under investigation for supporting terrorism, but the company lays the blame on Michael Chertoff. In 2003, Chiquita met with Chertoff, then assistant AG, and admitted to paying protection money to a Colombian paramilitary force on the US list of terror groups. Chiquita's lawyers say they sought advice, the...

US Firms Fund Colombian Terror Groups

Multinationals' payoffs to paramilitaries run afoul of antiterror laws

(Newser) - Business as usual for US multinationals in Colombia involves paying off paramilitaries and guerrillas, a practice that offers "insurance" against violence—and violates US law. The LA Times looks at the tension between protecting economic investments and essentially if not directly foiling counterterrorism efforts, a conflict that has the...

US Multinational Faces Human Rights Trial

Mining company accused of playing role in Colombian murders

(Newser) - A landmark trial addressing corporate culpability for human-rights violations committed on foreign soil gets under way this week, testing whether an 18th-century antipiracy law applies to modern business practices. At issue is the 2001 murder of three Colombian mining-union leaders, the Wall Street Journal reports, and under scrutiny is the...

Paraguay Defeats USA 3-1 in Copa America

US on the brink of elimination in pan-American tournament

(Newser) - The United States dropped its second round Group B match to Paraguay at the 2007 Copa America yesterday, with a final score of 1-3. The American side was plagued by an errant defense and poor communication throughout the 90 minutes. The score was even at the half, but an attacking...

Peasants Booted for Biofuel Bucks
Peasants Booted for Biofuel Bucks
Jun 5, 2007 4:40 PM CDT

Peasants Booted for Biofuel Bucks

Green crop brings black days for displaced Colombian farmers

(Newser) - Paramilitary gangs are driving thousands of Colombian farmers from their land to make way for the nation's latest lucrative crop: palm oil to produce biofuel, the Guardian reports. The violent land grabs have helped create some 3 million displaced Colombians. "It's the dark side of biofuel," said a...

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