Colombia's army said on Monday it had killed nine Marxist rebels in an early morning raid on a guerrilla camp in the southern part of the Andean nation, according to Reuters. Colombia has received billions of dollars in U.S. aid to help fight the decades-old insurgency and has seen a dramatic fall in guerrilla violence since President Alvaro Uribe took power in 2002 although attacks still occur. "Military forces struck a new and overwhelming blow this morning to the FARC, killing in combat nine members of the southern block," the army said in a statement. It said the attack took place about 19 miles (30 km) from Cartagena del Chaira in Caqueta state. During the weekend, Colombian forces killed 12 leftist rebels from a unit assigned to protect the FARC's leader, and another 14 people died in separate fighting. The FARC uses the areas it controls to produce the cocaine that funds its operations.
