52yrs of war

Colombia’s rebel deal ends conflict that killed 220,000

as Ivan Marquez said: “I think we have won the most beautiful battle: the peace.”

Thousands of Colombians took to the streets to celebrate the news.

As well those known to have died since the insurgency began in 1964, more than five million have been displaced with thousands more remaining unaccounted for. The agreement, brokered in Havana, Cuba, led to a ceasefire signing in June but still needs to be approved in a referendum.

The Marxist guerrilla force, inspired by the Cuban revolution, originally aimed to redistribute wealth in the tropical South American country.

But in recent years FARC, with its estimated 7,000 soldiers, had become drug-running terrorists earning millions.

It led the US to support a military crackdown which fanned a vicious war.

Fighters will now abandon weapons, leave jungle camps and reincorporate into society, aided by government programmes. FARC chiefs plan to start a political party.