Raúl Reyes
Encyclopedia
Luis Edgar Devia Silva better known by his nom de guerre Raúl Reyes, was a Secretariat member, spokesperson, and advisor to the Southern Bloc of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
-EP (FARC). He was assassinated
by the Colombian army
1.8 kilometres (1.1 mi) within Ecuador
, sparking the 2008 Andean diplomatic crisis
.
n town of La Plata
, Huila Department
. Devia Silva joined the Colombian Communist Youth (JUCO) when he was 16 years old. He later joined a trade union
movement while working for a Nestlé
milk plant in the department of Caquetá; since that time he would steal and threat other persons in the company. Devia Silva served as councilman for his home town representing the Colombian Communist Party
(PCC), and was also a member of the party's Central Committee.
After becoming a member of the FARC and joining its Secretariat, Reyes became a prominent figure and spokesperson for the FARC.
Reyes was accused by the US Department of State and the Colombian government of expanding FARC's cocaine
trafficking activities and setting related policies, including the production, manufacture, and distribution of hundreds of tons of cocaine to the United States and other countries. He was accused of promoting the "taxation" of the illegal drug trade
in Colombia to raise funds for the FARC, as well as participating in the murder of hundreds of people who violated or interfered with the FARC's cocaine-related policies.
Reyes was also accused of kidnapping and kill hundreds of civilians (including kids) for extortion or political purposes, including nine foreign tourists, involvement in several town massacres, taking kids to the conflict,attacking civilians constantly and some Colombian city bombings.
He had been formally sentenced in absence for the deaths of 13 policemen and 18 soldiers, 18 kidnappings and the deaths of a judge, a physician, three judicial auxiliaries, the ex-minister of Culture Consuelo Araújo, the congressman Diego Turbay and his mother, catholic monsignor Isaías Duarte, Governor of Antioquia Guillermo Gaviria, the Colombian ex-minister Gilberto Echeverri, 11 members of the Valle del Cauca Assembly and at least four other persons. Most of these persons were kidnapped before their deaths. Gaviria, Echeverri and Araújo were killed by shots in the head when Colombian military forces stormed the camps where they were held by guerrilla insurgents. He was also found responsible for bombing Club El Nogal in Bogotá
where 36 people were killed. The Government of Paraguay
had asked for his extradition for his participation in the kidnapping and death of Cecilia Cubas
, daughter of the ex-president of Paraguay, who was kidnapped on September 21, 2004 and whose body was found in an abandoned house in February 2005. Before his death the United States Department of State
was offering a reward of up to US$5 million for information leading to his arrest. He was also included in Interpol
's "red list".
Colombian authorities believed that Raúl Reyes moved through the southern Colombian frontier, especially in Putumayo, along the border with Ecuador
. In late 2006, his possible presence in Ecuadorian territory was denounced by Colombian President Álvaro Uribe
, while Ecuador's authorities rejected the claim, admitting only temporary FARC "infiltrations". Colombian Army General German Galvis repeated this claim in October 2006.
, then chairman of the New York Stock Exchange
. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss investment opportunities for the FARC. The two men were photographed in an embrace which became known as the "Grasso abrazo."
military operation in Granada, Putumayo, on March 1, 2008, against an encampment situated near Santa Rosa de Sucumbíos
, on the Ecuadorian side of the border along the Putumayo River
. The attack started at 00:25. Reyes died after stepping on a FARC land mine while trying to flee the camp.
The Colombian Government acknowledged the killing of Reyes and 16 more guerrillas in a guerrilla camp 1.8 kilometres (1.1 mi) inside Ecuador's border. The dead body was retrieved and transported to Colombian territory after the operation took place. Colombian soldier Carlos Edilson Hernández León was killed in action during the attack. According to a DPA
report, Noticias Uno
claimed that Hernández León died accidentally, due to a falling tree.
According to the Ecuadorian government the attack happened 0.5 kilometre (0.310686368324903 mi) from the border inside Ecuador’s territory, and it was a planned air strike followed by the incursion of Colombian troops transported by helicopters. The attack left a total of 20 guerrilla members dead in Ecuadorian territory, many of them wearing underwear or sleeping clothes. According to Ecuadorean president Rafael Correa
, the war planes entered 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) in Ecuador's territory and struck while flying north, followed by troops who came by helicopters and completed the attack.
The Ecuadorean president announced that a diplomatic note would be sent in protest, claiming that the action was a violation of Ecuador's airspace. Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez
called the attack "a cowardly murder", and reacted by moving troops near the border with Colombia and recalling all personnel from the Venezuelan embassy in Colombia, saying that doing something similar inside Venezuela would be a "cause for war". He also rendered a minute of silence as a tribute in his weekly televised show.
"has a relationship and commitments with FARC", and, according to the Colombian National Police Director Oscar Naranjo, Reyes had met Ecuador's minister of internal security to discuss an "interest in making official relations with the FARC".
According to Colombian authorities, the three laptop computers seized were found to hold extensive information about the FARC, their operations and connections. The Colombian government handed over the three PCs and their ancillary devices to a team of Interpol
experts, for a period of two weeks. Interpol's analysis had a limited scope, toward the sole objective of certifying whether the information was or was not altered in any way by the Colombian government, and not to examine the contents of the documents themselves. The Interpol report concluded that the key documents were unharmed and unmodified, but noted that the devices had been operated and accessed without write protection after their seizure. Over 3,500 files had date stamps indicating they had been created or modified in the future and the report concluded that "these files were originally created prior to March 1, 2008 on a device or devices with incorrect system time settings."
The Interpol's list of information recovered from the devices mentions over 30,000 written documents and more than 7,000 e-mail addresses.
On June 15, 2008, Interpol issued a new press release in response to a statement by Ecuador's Foreign Ministry that the international organization considered to be incorrect. The press release stated that "[Ecuador] inaccurately suggests that Interpol had not established whether the eight seized exhibits forensically examined by Interpol's computer forensic experts had been recovered by Colombian authorities on March 1, 2008 from a FARC camp or belonged to Raul Reyes. In fact, based on a review of all the information and material provided by Colombia, including a classified oral briefing, Interpol was able to satisfy itself, and clearly stated in its report, that the seized computer exhibits it was requested to forensically examine were taken from the FARC terrorist camp on March 1, 2008 and belonged to Raul Reyes." Interpol also added "that validating the contents of the computer exhibits were not manipulated after their seizure by Colombian authorities is not in any way, shape or form the same as saying that the contents of the user files are true and accurate. Interpol therefore objects to those who suggest that Interpol's report validates the source and accuracy of any particular document or user file contained therein."
On March 16, 2010 Hugo Chávez
admitted having had a meeting with Reyes at an indeterminate date during Pastrana's government.
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army is a Marxist–Leninist revolutionary guerrilla organization based in Colombia which is involved in the ongoing Colombian armed conflict, currently involved in drug dealing and crimes against the civilians..FARC-EP is a peasant army which...
-EP (FARC). He was assassinated
Targeted killing
Targeted killing is the deliberate, specific targeting and killing, by a government or its agents, of a supposed terrorist or of a supposed "unlawful combatant" who is not in that government's custody...
by the Colombian army
Colombian Army
The National Army of Colombia is the land military force of the government of Colombia and the largest service of the Colombian Armed Forces...
1.8 kilometres (1.1 mi) within Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
, sparking the 2008 Andean diplomatic crisis
2008 Andean diplomatic crisis
The 2008 Andean diplomatic crisis was a diplomatic stand-off between the South American countries of Ecuador, Colombia and Venezuela. It began with an incursion into Ecuadorian territory across the Putumayo River by the Colombian military on March 1, 2008, leading to the deaths of over twenty...
.
Early years
Reyes was born in the ColombiaColombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
n town of La Plata
La Plata, Huila
La Plata is a town and municipality in the Huila Department, Colombia with a population of 55,784 inhabitants including the rural area at an altitude of 1,050 m. It is located 122 km away from Neiva, 147 km from the city of Popayán and 210 km from the town of St...
, Huila Department
Huila Department
Huila is one of the departments of Colombia. It is located in the southwest of the country, and its capital is Neiva.-Geography:The south of the department is located in the Colombian Massif...
. Devia Silva joined the Colombian Communist Youth (JUCO) when he was 16 years old. He later joined a trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
movement while working for a Nestlé
Nestlé
Nestlé S.A. is the world's largest food and nutrition company. Founded and headquartered in Vevey, Switzerland, Nestlé originated in a 1905 merger of the Anglo-Swiss Milk Company, established in 1867 by brothers George Page and Charles Page, and Farine Lactée Henri Nestlé, founded in 1866 by Henri...
milk plant in the department of Caquetá; since that time he would steal and threat other persons in the company. Devia Silva served as councilman for his home town representing the Colombian Communist Party
Colombian Communist Party
The Colombian Communist Party or PCC is the legal communist party of Colombia. It was founded in 1930, as the Colombian section of the Comintern...
(PCC), and was also a member of the party's Central Committee.
After becoming a member of the FARC and joining its Secretariat, Reyes became a prominent figure and spokesperson for the FARC.
Reyes was accused by the US Department of State and the Colombian government of expanding FARC's cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
trafficking activities and setting related policies, including the production, manufacture, and distribution of hundreds of tons of cocaine to the United States and other countries. He was accused of promoting the "taxation" of the illegal drug trade
Illegal drug trade
The illegal drug trade is a global black market, dedicated to cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of those substances which are subject to drug prohibition laws. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs by drug prohibition laws.A UN report said the...
in Colombia to raise funds for the FARC, as well as participating in the murder of hundreds of people who violated or interfered with the FARC's cocaine-related policies.
Reyes was also accused of kidnapping and kill hundreds of civilians (including kids) for extortion or political purposes, including nine foreign tourists, involvement in several town massacres, taking kids to the conflict,attacking civilians constantly and some Colombian city bombings.
He had been formally sentenced in absence for the deaths of 13 policemen and 18 soldiers, 18 kidnappings and the deaths of a judge, a physician, three judicial auxiliaries, the ex-minister of Culture Consuelo Araújo, the congressman Diego Turbay and his mother, catholic monsignor Isaías Duarte, Governor of Antioquia Guillermo Gaviria, the Colombian ex-minister Gilberto Echeverri, 11 members of the Valle del Cauca Assembly and at least four other persons. Most of these persons were kidnapped before their deaths. Gaviria, Echeverri and Araújo were killed by shots in the head when Colombian military forces stormed the camps where they were held by guerrilla insurgents. He was also found responsible for bombing Club El Nogal in Bogotá
Bogotá
Bogotá, Distrito Capital , from 1991 to 2000 called Santa Fé de Bogotá, is the capital, and largest city, of Colombia. It is also designated by the national constitution as the capital of the department of Cundinamarca, even though the city of Bogotá now comprises an independent Capital district...
where 36 people were killed. The Government of Paraguay
Paraguay
Paraguay , officially the Republic of Paraguay , is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. Paraguay lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, which runs through the center of the...
had asked for his extradition for his participation in the kidnapping and death of Cecilia Cubas
Cecilia Cubas
Cecilia Cubas, the daughter of former Paraguayan President Raúl Cubas, was found dead on February 16, 2005, underneath a house near Asunción, nearly five months after she was kidnapped....
, daughter of the ex-president of Paraguay, who was kidnapped on September 21, 2004 and whose body was found in an abandoned house in February 2005. Before his death the United States Department of State
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
was offering a reward of up to US$5 million for information leading to his arrest. He was also included in Interpol
Interpol
Interpol, whose full name is the International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL, is an organization facilitating international police cooperation...
's "red list".
Colombian authorities believed that Raúl Reyes moved through the southern Colombian frontier, especially in Putumayo, along the border with Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
. In late 2006, his possible presence in Ecuadorian territory was denounced by Colombian President Álvaro Uribe
Álvaro Uribe
Alvaro Uribe Vélez was the 58th President of Colombia, from 2002 to 2010. In August 2010 he was appointed Vice-chairman of the UN panel investigating the Gaza flotilla raid....
, while Ecuador's authorities rejected the claim, admitting only temporary FARC "infiltrations". Colombian Army General German Galvis repeated this claim in October 2006.
Negotiations with Wall Street
In June 1999, during peace negotiations with the government of Andrés Pastrana, Reyes met in the Colombian savannah with Richard GrassoRichard Grasso
Richard A. "Dick" Grasso was chairman and chief executive of the New York Stock Exchange from 1995 to 2003, the culmination of a career that began in 1968 when Grasso was hired by the Exchange as a floor clerk...
, then chairman of the New York Stock Exchange
New York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located at 11 Wall Street in Lower Manhattan, New York City, USA. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed companies at 13.39 trillion as of Dec 2010...
. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss investment opportunities for the FARC. The two men were photographed in an embrace which became known as the "Grasso abrazo."
Targeted killing
Reyes was killed during a Colombian targeted killingTargeted killing
Targeted killing is the deliberate, specific targeting and killing, by a government or its agents, of a supposed terrorist or of a supposed "unlawful combatant" who is not in that government's custody...
military operation in Granada, Putumayo, on March 1, 2008, against an encampment situated near Santa Rosa de Sucumbíos
Santa Rosa de Sucumbíos
Santa Rosa de Sucumbios is an Ecuadorian town in the province of Sucumbíos. It is also known as Santa Rosa de Yanamaru and can even have some other names....
, on the Ecuadorian side of the border along the Putumayo River
Putumayo River
The Içá or Putumayo River is one of the tributaries of the Amazon River, west of and parallel to the Yapura. It forms part of Colombia's border with Ecuador, as well as most of the frontier with Peru...
. The attack started at 00:25. Reyes died after stepping on a FARC land mine while trying to flee the camp.
The Colombian Government acknowledged the killing of Reyes and 16 more guerrillas in a guerrilla camp 1.8 kilometres (1.1 mi) inside Ecuador's border. The dead body was retrieved and transported to Colombian territory after the operation took place. Colombian soldier Carlos Edilson Hernández León was killed in action during the attack. According to a DPA
Deutsche Presse-Agentur
Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH is a news agency founded in 1949 in Germany. Based in Hamburg, it has grown to be a major worldwide operation serving print media, radio, television, online, mobile phones, and national news agencies. News is available in German, English, Spanish, and Arabic.The DPA...
report, Noticias Uno
Noticias Uno
Noticias Uno is a nightly Colombian newscast produced by NTC Televisión and aired weekends and holidays on state-owned privately-run Canal Uno....
claimed that Hernández León died accidentally, due to a falling tree.
According to the Ecuadorian government the attack happened 0.5 kilometre (0.310686368324903 mi) from the border inside Ecuador’s territory, and it was a planned air strike followed by the incursion of Colombian troops transported by helicopters. The attack left a total of 20 guerrilla members dead in Ecuadorian territory, many of them wearing underwear or sleeping clothes. According to Ecuadorean president Rafael Correa
Rafael Correa
Rafael Vicente Correa Delgado born is the President of the Republic of Ecuador and was the president pro tempore of the Union of South American Nations. An economist educated in Ecuador, Belgium and the United States, he was elected President in late 2006 and took office in January 2007...
, the war planes entered 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) in Ecuador's territory and struck while flying north, followed by troops who came by helicopters and completed the attack.
The Ecuadorean president announced that a diplomatic note would be sent in protest, claiming that the action was a violation of Ecuador's airspace. Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez
Hugo Chávez
Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías is the 56th and current President of Venezuela, having held that position since 1999. He was formerly the leader of the Fifth Republic Movement political party from its foundation in 1997 until 2007, when he became the leader of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela...
called the attack "a cowardly murder", and reacted by moving troops near the border with Colombia and recalling all personnel from the Venezuelan embassy in Colombia, saying that doing something similar inside Venezuela would be a "cause for war". He also rendered a minute of silence as a tribute in his weekly televised show.
Aftermath
Colombian government officials have seized documents that, according to a spokesman for EX Colombian President Álvaro Uribe, show Ecuadorian President Rafael CorreaRafael Correa
Rafael Vicente Correa Delgado born is the President of the Republic of Ecuador and was the president pro tempore of the Union of South American Nations. An economist educated in Ecuador, Belgium and the United States, he was elected President in late 2006 and took office in January 2007...
"has a relationship and commitments with FARC", and, according to the Colombian National Police Director Oscar Naranjo, Reyes had met Ecuador's minister of internal security to discuss an "interest in making official relations with the FARC".
According to Colombian authorities, the three laptop computers seized were found to hold extensive information about the FARC, their operations and connections. The Colombian government handed over the three PCs and their ancillary devices to a team of Interpol
Interpol
Interpol, whose full name is the International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL, is an organization facilitating international police cooperation...
experts, for a period of two weeks. Interpol's analysis had a limited scope, toward the sole objective of certifying whether the information was or was not altered in any way by the Colombian government, and not to examine the contents of the documents themselves. The Interpol report concluded that the key documents were unharmed and unmodified, but noted that the devices had been operated and accessed without write protection after their seizure. Over 3,500 files had date stamps indicating they had been created or modified in the future and the report concluded that "these files were originally created prior to March 1, 2008 on a device or devices with incorrect system time settings."
The Interpol's list of information recovered from the devices mentions over 30,000 written documents and more than 7,000 e-mail addresses.
On June 15, 2008, Interpol issued a new press release in response to a statement by Ecuador's Foreign Ministry that the international organization considered to be incorrect. The press release stated that "[Ecuador] inaccurately suggests that Interpol had not established whether the eight seized exhibits forensically examined by Interpol's computer forensic experts had been recovered by Colombian authorities on March 1, 2008 from a FARC camp or belonged to Raul Reyes. In fact, based on a review of all the information and material provided by Colombia, including a classified oral briefing, Interpol was able to satisfy itself, and clearly stated in its report, that the seized computer exhibits it was requested to forensically examine were taken from the FARC terrorist camp on March 1, 2008 and belonged to Raul Reyes." Interpol also added "that validating the contents of the computer exhibits were not manipulated after their seizure by Colombian authorities is not in any way, shape or form the same as saying that the contents of the user files are true and accurate. Interpol therefore objects to those who suggest that Interpol's report validates the source and accuracy of any particular document or user file contained therein."
On March 16, 2010 Hugo Chávez
Hugo Chávez
Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías is the 56th and current President of Venezuela, having held that position since 1999. He was formerly the leader of the Fifth Republic Movement political party from its foundation in 1997 until 2007, when he became the leader of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela...
admitted having had a meeting with Reyes at an indeterminate date during Pastrana's government.