The most notorious armed group in South America and the Caribbean - well, outside of Jamaica at least - Colombia’s rebel FARC army faces a shaky future following the death of its founder-leader, desertions and the loss of Hugo Chávez’s backing.

Chávez, whose revolutionary socialist credentials are second only in the region to Fidel Castro, declared guerilla warfare a thing of the past. From a tense recent stand off with the Colombian government ,who accused Chávez of harbouring Farc training camps, the Venezuelan army is now moving aggressively against them.

Broadcast on national TV, Chávez’s remarks were reportedly devastating for FARC morale.

A Venezuelan patrol had discovered a secret training camp with weapons, huts and tunnels and General Jesús González, head of strategic operations, had come to oversee its destruction. ‘We’ve found uniforms, night-vision equipment, stashes of drugs, the lot,’ he said, tramping over debris. Moments later there was a loud explosion and a spiral of grey smoke; army sappers were blowing up the rest of the camp. ‘Very good,’ said the general. He lit a cigar and grinned.

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Source: The Guardian