Peace hopes rise again as Colombia suspends raids on FARC rebel camps

Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos ordered a halt to bombing raids against the Marxist-inspired FARC rebels, giving a major boost to stop-start peace talks. It comes just two days after the Colombian government and the FARC resumed talks following months of stagnation at the negotiating table and fighting on the battlefield. The talks designed to end the 50-year conflict – Latin America’s oldest insurgency – have been dragging on since November 2012. “I have issued the order to stop as of today bombing raids against camps where there are members of that group,” Mr Santos said in an address at a military event in the northern city of Cartagena.

We have agreed to de-escalate the conflict. What does that mean? Fewer deaths, less pain, fewer victims

Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos

The latest efforts at speeding up the fragile peace process come after the conflict heated up once more in the spring, with dozens killed on both sides and many Colombians increasingly disillusioned with the pace of talks. Mr Santos similarly suspended the bombing campaign in March but ordered a resumption a month later after the guerrillas allegedly killed 11 soldiers. FARC has been observing a unilateral, one-month ceasefire since Monday, but Mr Santos had initially refused to reciprocate. Despite the re-opening of peace talks, polls show that more Colombians favor a military solution to the conflict than a negotiated settlement.

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