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Colombian attack on rebels in Ecuador justified, US says

Other News Materials 18 March 2008 00:18 (UTC +04:00)

( dpa ) - Colombia's military strike against FARC rebels in Ecuador on March 1 was justified, US Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte said Monday.

"We believe they were acting in a justifiable way," Negroponte told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa at a meeting of the Organization of American States (OAS) in Washington.

"We certainly understand why they carried out" the attack, he said.

OAS Foreign Ministers held a meeting aimed at resolving the dispute between Colombia and Ecuador over the strike, which the latter believes violated its territorial integrity.

The airstrike killed Raul Reyes, the second-in-command of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia who had sought refuge in a camp in Ecuador's border region near Colombia.

The assault that killed about 20 people ruptured relations between Colombia and Ecuador and sparked concerns of a possible war. Venezuela, which believes FARC should be recognized as a political entity, sided with Ecuador and both countries mobilized troops along the border with Colombia.

The United States lists FARC as a terrorist organization and backs Colombia's effort to eradicate the group that has waged a bloody civil war for decades. The Colombian government says it seized evidence after the raid showing that FARC has received support from Ecuador and Venezuela.

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