U.S. presence grows

Bogotá

President Bush has sent 150 more U.S. soldiers to Colombia to help search for three Americans captured by leftist guerrillas. If the Special Forces troops mount a rescue effort, it will mark the first military confrontation between the U.S. and the rebel group FARC. The rebels warned this week that there was only one way to ensure “the life and physical integrity of the three gringo officials”: for Colombia’s military to withdraw from the FARC stronghold in the country’s southern jungle. The captives were aboard a U.S. plane that crashed in rebel territory while on an anti-drug intelligence mission. Another American and a Colombian were shot and killed near the wreckage. “We are dealing with coldblooded killers,” Bush said.

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