At 12:01 a.m. on Monday morning, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) officially ceased hostilities to honor the terms of a peace accord signed in Havana, Cuba, last week. FARC leader Rodrigo Londono, also called Timochenko, described the ceasefire as permanent. "Never again will parents be burying their sons and daughters killed in the war," he said Sunday from Havana. "All rivalries and grudges will remain in the past." Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos has pledged that starting today, the Colombian military will no longer attack FARC rebels.
Colombians will vote on whether to accept the peace accord in an Oct. 2 referendum, and FARC commanders will meet in September to ratify the peace deal on their end. Polls suggest Colombians will approve the deal, and if they and FARC's leadership do ratify it, the rebels will have six months to turn over their weapons. In return, a post-FARC political faction will be given 10 seats in congress for 10 years, or two terms, after which they will have to win elections to retain their representation. The FARC insurgency is the longest-running armed conflict in the Americas; more than 220,000 people have been killed in the 52-year guerrilla war.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
The Week Unwrapped: Are British rappers the world’s best?Podcast Plus can the Maldives quit smoking? And can whales lead us to immortality?
-
The week’s best photosIn Pictures A leap through the leaves, a typhoon's aftermath, and more
-
Microsoft pursues digital intelligence ‘aligned to human values’ in shift from OpenAIUNDER THE RADAR The iconic tech giant is jumping into the AI game with a bold new initiative designed to place people first in the search for digital intelligence
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstancesSpeed Read
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2Speed Read
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governorSpeed Read
-
Los Angeles city workers stage 1-day walkout over labor conditionsSpeed Read
-
Mega Millions jackpot climbs to an estimated $1.55 billionSpeed Read
-
Bangladesh dealing with worst dengue fever outbreak on recordSpeed Read
-
Glacial outburst flooding in Juneau destroys homesSpeed Read
-
Scotland seeking 'monster hunters' to search for fabled Loch Ness creatureSpeed Read
