Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia - People's Army

(also REVOLUTIONARY ARMED FORCES OF COLOMBIA - PEOPLE'S ARMY)

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC, after the initials in Spanish) was founded in 1964 as the armed wing of the Communist Party in Colombia. While FARC had some urban presence, it was always an overwhelmingly rural guerrilla organisation. Originally, FARC was guided by its goal of overthrowing the current government in Colombia and replacing it with a leftist, anti-American regime that would force all United States interests out of Colombia and Latin America. FARC activities include bombings, hijackings, assassinations, and the kidnapping of Colombian officials and Westerners. In September 2016, FARC entered into a demobilization process with the Colombian government and signed a Peace Accord which formally brought an end to 52 years of armed conflict. Under the deal certain FARC commanders disarmed, demobilized, and participated in reintegration efforts and key leaders have become political actors within Colombia’s Congress. The Colombian Government has recognized that demobilized FARC members who adhere to the commitments under the 2016 Peace Accord would no longer be labelled as terrorists. In January 2021, the FARC political party changed its name to Comunes and accordingly, Comunes is not captured by this listing. While the vast majority of FARC combatants have demobilized and participate in the peace process, it is important to recognize that certain groups refused to disarm and claim to be the true continuation of FARC. For example, in August 2019, a FARC commander, Iván Márquez, called on his followers to re-take up arms, announcing a “new phase of the armed struggle” and asserting that the guerrilla group carries the same: FARC-EP (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia - People's Army). On June 25, 2021, a helicopter approaching the city of Cucuta with Colombian President Ivan Duque and other officials aboard was hit by bullets. A still-mobilized FARC commander took responsibility for the attack.