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Colombia president announces extension of ceasefire with FARC

Colombia

President Juan Manuel Santos of Colombia has announced that the ceasefire regime with the revolutionary armed forces of FARC guerilla group was being extended until December 31.

After a peace deal was narrowly rejected in a referendum, Santos extended the armistice until the end of the year to allow time to renegotiate an agreement.

“This is not an ultimatum, nor is it a deadline, but I hope that this whole process to produce a new agreement end long before this,“Juan Manuel Santos, Colombian President.

While other rebel groups seemed willing to enter into peace negotiations, the country’s second largest guerilla organisation, the ELN, was responsible for an attack on two Colombian officials.

The group had said it would join talks to secure peace and released a hostage as a sign of good will, but Thursday’s attack shows that bloodshed is still far from over.

Many are still campaigning for peace in Colombia. Santos, who won the Nobel Peace prize for his role in reaching an agreement with the Farc, said that student protesters had inspired him to extend the ceasefire deadline.

He said there are young people hoping they don’t have to fire another shot.

The half-century war between the FARC and the government has claimed the lives of a quarter of a million people.

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