Rebel Attacks Kill 23 In Colombia

Leftist rebels killed at least 23 police and soldiers in a new round of attacks Friday, and blew up a section of Colombia’s largest oil pipeline.

Following up on an offensive that killed more than 100 people last weekend, rebels from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia attacked a military base in southern Guaviare state, killing 19 soldiers and injuring 13 others, said an army spokesman, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Four police and two rebels died in another clash 30 miles north of Bogota, police said.

The rebel violence is the worst in decades. Authorities say rebels involved in drug trafficking are retaliating against a U.S.-backed government program to wipe out fields of coca, the plant used to make cocaine.