US military aid going to paramilitaries
Two US soldiers have been arrested accused of smuggling arms to the paramilitaries.
A serving Colonel and Sargent of the US army based in Colombia have been arrested. Both men are accused of trafficking in arms and supplying the paramilitaries (AUC) with the arms. The munitiions that were seized are the exact same type of munition that the US supplies to the Colombian armed forces and is the same used in the trainging exercises that both men oversee in the Colombian military base of Tolemaida.
The arrests raise questions over the role of US military aid. Human rights groups have long criticised such aid claiming that it was effectively going to the paramilitaries. This is the first arrest of US soldiers for this type of offence. However, other US personell in Colombia as part of the "War on Drugs" have been arrested for drug trafficking.
None of the accused will stand trial in Colombia due to an immunity agreement signed with the Colombian State.
Comments (2 of 2)
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Colombian police handed the two US soldiers to the US Embassy...a treaty grants immunity from persecutionfor US military operating in Colombia. Meanwhile Colombia extradites Colombian ctiizens to the U.S. for offences commited in Colombia. Go figure?
The two are accused of providing 40,000 rounds of ammunition to right wing death squads
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