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| Terror Networks |
| Colombia is safe haven for terror groups |
| 2002-04-24 |
| The Irish Republican Army as well as terror masterminds from Iran, Cuba and possibly Spain have created a safe haven in rebel-controlled areas of Colombia threatening international security, according to a US congressional report. The conclusion capped a nine-month-long investigation undertaken by the House International Relations Committee, which has been looking into international connections of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), the main Marxist guerrilla group, which boasts about 17,000 fighters. A preview containing the main findings of the probe was made available to reporters late Tuesday. "Colombian authorities assert that not only has the IRA operated in the former safe haven on behalf of the FARC, but also the Iranians, Cubans, and possibly ETA (Basque terrorists), among others," congressional investigators concluded. They argued that "the forces of global terrorism, illicit drugs and organized crime converge upon Colombia to produce new challenges to the international system." Last August, suspected IRA members Martin McCauley, James Monaghan and Niall Connolly were arrested at Bogota International Airport and charged with training FARC rebels in the use of high-powered explosives. Connolly was later identified as a representative in Cuba of Sinn Fein, the political arm of the IRA. Interesting conjunction. The tie, at bottom, isn't religion, but a liking for blowing up people and buildings. |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |