COLOMBIA: LEFTIST REBELS DECLARE OIL SUBSIDARIES OF U.S. AND OTHER COUNTRIES AS MILITARY TARGETS

Record ID: 344886

  • Title: COLOMBIA: LEFTIST REBELS DECLARE OIL SUBSIDARIES OF U.S. AND OTHER COUNTRIES AS MILITARY TARGETS
  • Date: 12th April 2002
  • Summary: (W1) EASTERN COLOMBIAN MOUNTAINS (APRIL 10, 2002) (REUTERS) 1. SLV FREED HOSTAGES WITH GUERRILLAS; MV FREED HOSTAGE WALKING ALONG WITH A RED CROSS DELEGATE; MV GUERRILLAS WALKING (4 SHOTS) 0.27 2. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) UNIDENTIFIED ELN GUERRILLA COMMANDER SAYING "As a result of evident proof that oil companies OXY, REXOL and ECOPETROL finance the war plan for Arauca, here to forth every interest, property or asset owned by these companies will be a military objective for our organisation and any civilian working for them will do so at his or her own risk." 0.46 3. MV GUERRILLAS IN FORMATION; SCU GUERRILLA FLAG; MV GUERRILLAS SITTING AT TABLE (4 SHOTS) 1.07 4. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) UNIDENTIFIED GUERRILLA COMMANDER SAYING "After the events of September 11 in 2001 in the United States, they pretend to brand as terrorist all liberation movements. Our organisation rejects the adjective of terrorist and we proudly declare that we have nothing to do with drug trafficking." 1.25 5. MV ARCHBISHOP BLESSES FREED KIDNAPPED PEOPLE; MV FREED HOSTAGE WALKING (2 SHOTS) 1.37 6. SLV GUERRILLAS ORGANISE FREED HOSTAGES; MV FREED HOSTAGES AND GUERRILLAS PAN TO FREED HOSTAGES (3 SHOTS) 1.53 7. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) PRIEST LUIS TEODORO GONZALEZ OF ARAUCA, SAYING "Well, it is obvious that this kidnapping, like all kidnappings, is a violation of life and of human rights and of dignity. What do I think about it? That I hope they free so many kidnapped people in our country and to contribute to our country's social rebuilding and to quality of life." 2.14 8. MV GUERRILLA DELIVERS FREED HOSTAGE TO RED CROSS REPRESENTATIVE 2.25 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
  • Embargoed: 27th April 2002 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: EASTERN COLOMBIAN MOUNTAINS, COLOMBIA
  • Country: Colombia
  • Reuters ID: LVA8XXTZGHS9HWFLYPMZPSIDMXKU
  • Story Text: Further threatening US involvement in the Colombian
    conflict, leftist rebels in the South American country have
    declared oil subsidiaries of U.S. and other countries as
    "military targets" .

    The 38-year old Colombian conflict went up a notch on
    Wednesday (April 10, 2002) after leftist guerrillas from the
    National Liberation Army, known as ELN, declared the
    facilities of U.S., Argentina-Spanish and Colombian
    subsidiaries of oil companies "military targets".

    Named in the guerrilla release were U.S.-based oil firm
    Occidental Petroleum, Spanish-Argentine energy group
    Repsol-YPF and Colombia's Ecopetrol. The rebels also said they
    would renew a bombing campaign on an oil pipeline that the
    firms operate.

    "From this moment on, all property or goods of these
    companies will be military targets of our organization and
    whoever works for them is doing so at their own risk," rebel
    commander Pablo told a small group of reporters, reading from
    a communiqué.

    The rebel army, Colombia's second-largest, also condemned
    a slated $98 million in aid included in U.S. President George
    W.

    Bush's 2003 budget proposal, earmarked to train and equip
    Colombian troops to protect the Cano Limon pipeline.

    The 120,000 barrel per day (bpd) Cano Limon is Colombia's
    second-largest oil pipeline, and was bombed a record 170 times
    last year.

    Colombia's largest rebel force, the Marxist-inspired FARC,
    have also been bombing the pipeline.

    Colombia is in the grips of a 38-year-old guerrilla war,
    which has claimed 40,000 lives in the past decade.

    President Bush inherited a plan to provide Colombia with
    over a billion dollars in military aid to the country. That
    aid, critics warn, can drag the United States into a military
    mess in the South American nation, a danger dismissed by the
    Bush administration.

    It was not immediately clear what the reaction of the
    U.S. government would be if the ELN guerrillas were to attack
    the facilities of Occidental Petroleum or any other
    international oil facilities, but observers consider that
    Washington could, in response, step up its involvement in the
    Colombian conflict.

    The U.S. administration considers the Colombian rebel
    groups as "terrorists." With the all-out war on terrorism,
    some think that Washington may try to increase pressure on
    Bogota to root-out the guerrillas around the country.


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