Colombia, FARC rebels sign ceasefire deal

After three years of peace talks in Cuba, the Colombian government and leftist FARC rebels signed a historic ceasefire deal Thursday in Havana.

"May this be the last day of the war," said FARC commander Rodrigo Londono, also known as Timochenko. Under the agreement, within 180 days of a final deal, FARC guerrillas will put down their arms and demobilize into 23 temporary zones and eight camps. Their weapons will be given to the United Nations, and the Colombian government will guarantee the safety of former rebels and their political allies. In Bogota, excited Colombians watched on outdoor television screens as the ceasefire was signed, some waving flags and releasing balloons, Reuters reports.

The conflict began as a peasant revolt in the 1960s that turned into war, killing at least 220,000 people and displacing millions. "This means nothing more and nothing less than the end of the FARC as an armed group," Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said. "The children and youth of our country have never known a single day without the violence of the conflict. Neither have the adults."

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