N Korea threatens military action

North Korea has warned of a military response after South Korea joined an anti-proliferation exercise which could allow it to search the North’s ships.

The North said it is no longer bound by the armistice which ended the Korean War in 1953.

A military spokesman quoted by official media said Pyongyang could no longer guarantee the safety of shipping.

Its latest threat comes after an underground nuclear test two days ago and several missile launches.

The United Nations Security Council is working on a strong condemnation of what it says is North Korea’s contravention of its rules.

Meanwhile steam is reported to be coming from North Korea’s main nuclear reprocessing plant at Yongbyon, suggesting it has made good on its threat to restart efforts to make weapons-grade plutonium.

Anti proliferation

South Korea announced on Tuesday that it would not delay any longer in joining the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) – a US-led non-proliferation campaign involving searching ships carrying suspicious cargos and aimed at stopping the trafficking of weapons of mass destruction.

North Korea has repeatedly warned that the South’s participation in the PSI would be tantamount to a declaration of war.

Joining the PSI “is a natural obligation”, South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan said, quoted by South Korea’s Yonhap news agency. “It will help control North Korea’s development of dangerous material.”

North Korea’s response has been firm.

“Any hostile act against our peaceful vessels including search and seizure will be considered an unpardonable infringement on our sovereignty, and we will immediately respond with a powerful military strike,” a spokesman for the North’s army was quoted as saying by the official KCNA news agency.

Reactivated reprocessing?

North Korea has fired five short-range missiles in two days, despite strong censure from the international community, including China and Russia.

NUCLEAR CRISIS Oct 2006 – North Korea conducts an underground nuclear test Feb 2007 – North Korea agrees to close its main nuclear reactor in exchange for fuel aid June 2007 – North Korea shuts its main Yongbyon reactor June 2008 – North Korea makes its long-awaited declaration of nuclear assets Oct 2008 – The US removes North Korea from its list of countries which sponsor terrorism Dec 2008 – Pyongyang slows work to dismantle its nuclear programme after a US decision to suspend energy aid Jan 2009 – The North says it is scrapping all military and political deals with the South, accusing it of “hostile intent” April 2009 – Pyongyang launches a rocket carrying what it says is a communications satellite 25 May 2009 – North Korea conducts a second nuclear test

The North announced last month it was quitting a six-nation nuclear disarmament agreement and would reopen the Yongbyon plant, closed in July 2007 as part of a disarmament deal.

That threat last month was prompted, it said, by the UN Security Council’s censure of North Korea’s 5 April rocket launch.

Washington is calling for a quick and unified response by the international community that will make it clear to North Korea that there are consequences for its actions.

Diplomats from the five permanent Security Council member countries plus Japan and South Korea have been meeting behind closed doors to discuss a new resolution.

“We are thinking through complicated issues that require very careful consideration,” said the US ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice.

US State Department spokesman Ian Kelly also said the door was still open to resume long-running six-party talks and that the US was looking at a “whole range of options”.

It is a sign of the delicate balance required to handle the reclusive country, the BBC’s State Department correspondent Kim Ghattas reports from Washington.

China shares a border with North Korea and worries about pushing Pyongyang too far, so it is unclear what sort of measures might be taken now and how North Korea would respond, our correspondent adds.

This week’s test and missile launches came after North Korea walked away from long-running disarmament talks.

It agreed in February 2007 to abandon its nuclear ambitions in return for aid and diplomatic concessions.

But the negotiations stalled as it accused its negotiating partners – the US, South Korea, Japan, China and Russia – of failing to meet agreed obligations.

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Huge blast rocks Pakistani city

A suicide car bomber has attacked police headquarters in the Pakistani city of Lahore, killing at least 23 people and injuring 200, police say.

The blast destroyed a police emergency response building, gutting vehicles outside, and an office of the ISI intelligence service was also damaged.

It is feared the death toll may rise further as casualties are brought out from beneath the rubble.

Attacks on Pakistan’s second-largest city have been blamed on the Taliban.

Pakistan’s army has been battling the insurgents in their stronghold in the Swat valley, in the north-west, and there have been fears of Taliban retaliation, the BBC’s Barbara Plett reports.

Bulldozers

Rescuers speaking unofficially put the death toll at 35, although this figure is unconfirmed.

Issam Ahmed, a journalist with the Dawn newspaper in Lahore, arrived at the scene about 20 minutes after the blast.

He told the BBC he could still hear shots in the area, as security forces apparently exchanged gunfire with militants.

A least two arrests were made in the area.

Rescue workers were seen clambering over a pile of concrete which was all that remained of the emergency response headquarters.

They were able to drag out several of the injured. Semi-conscious policemen could be seen being carried out in blood-stained uniforms.

Debris was scattered on the road outside. Officials were seen rushing towards the buildings to cordon off the area.

The blast also destroyed several cars parked or standing on the main Mall road opposite to the police building.

Bulldozers and other heavy lifting equipment were brought in as many people were feared to be trapped under the debris.

Altercations also took place between members of the media and security personnel as the former tried to get in to the site of the blast.

‘Surreal scene’

Zubair, a BBC News website reader in Lahore, described hearing the explosion: “I was sitting in my office on Lawrence Road [about 500m from the site] when a huge explosion rocked our entire building.

“Glass windows shattered to pieces and the ceiling came down on the floor. I ran outside the building to nearby Jinnah Garden. I could hear gunfire which lasted for about 10 minutes and then I saw ambulance and police rushed to the scene.”

Matthias Gattermeier, an Austrian reader also in Lahore, said his office building had been shaken so hard he thought it would collapse.

“We first thought the explosion happened far closer by, but the blast was just so massive,” he said.

“I ran out of the building and saw a surreal huge ring of white smoke rise into air. Within minutes police and military blocked the streets. Disaster units and emergency are going in and out in every minute. The streets are full of people.”

Lahore, Pakistan’s second-largest city, has seen bomb attacks with increasing frequency.

Weeks before a police college was attacked in March, with eight people killed, militants attacked the Sri Lanka cricket team in the city, killing six police guards.

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Suu Kyi ‘composed’ at Burma trial – BBC

Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi appeared “composed” and “crackling with energy” at a trial hearing, a diplomat who attended the session says.

UK ambassador Mark Canning welcomed the decision to let diplomats and journalists observe the trial, but said he had no confidence in the outcome.

The trial, which has drawn widespread international criticism, opened behind closed doors on Monday.

Ms Suu Kyi is charged with breaking the terms of her house arrest.

The pro-democracy leader, who is 63 and has been in frail health, has been in detention without being charged for more than 13 of the past 19 years.

She is detained in an annex of Rangoon’s notorious Insein prison.

Ms Suu Kyi’s latest period of detention was scheduled to expire on 27 May, and many observers see the case as a pretext to ensure she is still in detention during next year’s elections.

‘In charge’

The decision to let a group of journalists and diplomats into Ms Suu Kyi’s trial hearing on Wednesday afternoon was seen as a rare concession by the Burmese regime to international opinion.

During the hearing, which lasted for about an hour, a police officer testified for the prosecution, Mr Canning told the BBC.

I think this is a story where the conclusion is already scripted Mark Canning UK ambassador to Burma Profile: Aung San Suu Kyi Inside Burma’s Insein prison

“She was composed, upright, crackling with energy,” he said. “Very much in charge of her defence team.”

Afterwards, she spoke briefly to diplomats to welcome their presence and say she hoped she would meet them in better times, he said.

She then left for a separate meeting with three foreign officials: the ambassador of Singapore – the longest serving envoy in Burma – and representatives from Russia, which currently chairs the UN Security Council, and Thailand.

Mr Canning said it was not clear whether access to the trial would continue.

“I think this is a story where the conclusion is already scripted,” he said.

“I don’t have any confidence in the outcome. While the access we had today was very welcome, it doesn’t change the fundamental problem.”

Condemnation

Earlier, officials announced that 10 journalists from local and foreign news organisations would be able cover the hearing but that photos and video footage would still be banned.

AUNG SAN SUU KYI 1988: Military junta comes to power after crushing pro-democracy uprising 1989: Martial law declared; opposition NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi put under house arrest 1990: NLD wins elections; result rejected by the ruling junta 1995: Suu Kyi released from house arrest, but movements restricted Sept 2000: Put under house arrest again when she tried to defy travel restrictions May 2002: Released unconditionally May 2003: Detained after clash between NLD and government forces Sept 2003: Allowed home after operation, but under effective house arrest. In the years since, the orders for her detention periodically renewed

Embassies were informed that they could send one official – a change from the situation on Monday, when several European diplomats tried to enter the trial but were denied access.

The BBC’s South East Asia correspondent Jonathan Head says that holding the hearings in secret, inside the country’s top-security prison, has provoked particular condemnation.

On Tuesday South East Asian leaders expressed “grave concern” about the trial.

The statement from the Asean group warned that the “honour and credibility” of Burma’s government were at stake.

Ms Suu Kyi, along with two female assistants, is accused of violating the terms of her house arrest after a US man, John Yettaw, swam to her lakeside home earlier this month.

Mr Yettaw is also facing charges.

The government plans to call 22 witnesses to support its case.

Some have already testified that Mr Yettaw swam across the lake that backs onto Ms Suu Kyi’s home, and was arrested as he left, after being allowed to stay two nights.

Ms Suu Kyi’s lawyer has argued that he was uninvited, and was only allowed to stay after pleading exhaustion from his midnight swim.

Ms Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) party won democratic elections in 1990, but the military never allowed the party to govern.

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Meeting Cuba’s youngest politician – BBC

As Cuba prepares to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Fidel Castro’s revolution on 1 January, most of those in power are the same people who fought alongside him half a century ago.

Fidel’s brother Raul Castro, 77, is now president and he chose 78-year-old Machado Ventura as his number two.

But there is a new generation of communists waiting in the wings.

The majority of deputies elected to the national assembly, or parliament, earlier this year were born after the revolution.

The youngest, Liaena Hernandez, is just 18 years old. A petite young woman with long black hair and an engaging smile, she has been a political activist since her early teens.

We first met during a coffee break at the last national assembly meeting.

“Having young Cubans in parliament shows that the revolution continues. It isn’t just something from our history,” she told me. Ms Hernandez comes from Guantanamo province at the eastern end of the island.

Her father is in the army and she has just completed her voluntary military service as a border guard in an all-female unit along the controversial US naval base at Guantanamo Bay.

She was born just as Cuba’s main benefactor, the Soviet Union, collapsed.

What followed was called the special period, a time of hunger and hardship. The United States also tightened the trade embargo believing it would hasten the collapse of communism.

This is the Cuba that Ms Hernandez grew up in.

Kissing babies

“I was born with the revolution. I’ve never known capitalism,” she said. “My earliest memories are of socialism, the special period and the US blockade.

“As a family we couldn’t have all the things we would have liked. For years I had to wear the same pair of shoes to school, we just had to keep mending them.

“But at least I had free health care and education. And as a nation, everyone was willing to work together to get by and move forward.”

Ms Hernandez invited the BBC to visit her on a constituency visit.

She represents Manuel Tames, a small rural community nestled in the foothills of the Guantanamo’s Sierra Cristal mountains.

There is little traffic on its dusty streets apart from horses and the occasional tractor.

At the heart of the town is an ageing sugar mill with its giant smokestack chimney. There is also a recently renovated health centre with nurses and beds to spare.

But solving constituency needs is not the primary role of Cuban deputies.

“Our most important mission is to explain to the people the politics of the state so that they understand what going on,” she explained as we arrived.

History has taught us that the Communist Party is the road that Cuba needs to follow Liaena Hernandez

Some two dozen constituents had gathered to greet us outside of the municipal offices.

Like all good politicians, Ms Hernandez moved comfortably amongst them, kissing babies, joking and chatting with young and old.

Better roads and housing are amongst their concerns, but food appears the number one priority.

Raul Castro has started to hand over unproductive state owned land to private farmers and co-operatives in a bid to boost production and cut food imports.

Farmers in Tames are waiting expectantly for the scheme to take off.

“Today is a different period from that of the revolution. There were some things which were needed then which are not so good now, because the context has changes,” she said.

“We need to keep perfecting our economic system, that’s where the country is going.”

‘Perfeccionamento’

The government’s priority is to try and make the state-run system work more efficiently, rather than opening up to a free market, like the Chinese have done.

You hear the word “perfeccionamento” – perfecting the system – used a lot by officials.

There are also no signs of any political reforms. Opposition parties are not allowed.

The national assembly only meets twice a year, a few days of committee sessions followed by a single day’s sitting. Critics call it a rubber stamp parliament. The next session is scheduled for 27 December.

Candidates are also selected in advance. In the elections in January there were 614 people standing for the same number of seats.

You do not have to be a member of the Communist Party to stand, but it does help.

Ms Hernandez, though, believes that the system has served Cuba well.

“History has taught us that the Communist Party is the road that Cuba needs to follow.

“We don’t need to copy other countries’ systems. We are satisfied with our own and we are going to keep perfecting it.”

Sanctions imposed on Somalia head – BBC

The East African regional grouping Igad has decided to impose sanctions on Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed and his associates.

In a communique after a meeting of foreign ministers in Ethiopia it backed Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein, whom the president tried to dismiss.

The grouping also discussed ways to replace Ethiopian troops when they pull out of Somalia in the next few weeks.

African Union commission head Jean Ping said Nigeria was ready to send troops.

Torn by internal conflict, Somalia has been without an effective central government for more than 15 years.

Infighting

The BBC’s Elizabeth Blunt in Addis Ababa says there was no doubt whose side this meeting of the Inter-governmental Authority on Development (Igad) was on.

In a place of honour on the platform was Ahmed Mohammed Goala, the Somali prime minister’s newly appointed foreign minister, not his predecessor, who had been associated with President Abdullahi, our correspondent says.

At the end of the meeting, the foreign ministers of the six member states expressed their support for Mr Nur and his newly appointed cabinet, and said they regretted the attempt by the president to replace him last Sunday.

Mr Abdullahi said the government had been “paralysed by corruption, inefficiency and treason” and failed to bring peace.

However, Somalia’s parliament declared the sacking illegal and passed a vote of confidence in Mr Nur by a huge majority on Monday.

In the communique issued at the end of the meeting, Igad gave its strong backing to Mr Nur and his government.

“[Igad] regrets the attempts by President Abdullahi Yusuf to unconstitutionally appoint a new prime minister that Igad does not recognise, and decides to impose sanctions on him and his associates immediately,” it said.

It also called on other countries to take similar measures.

Our correspondent says that in addition to the infighting in the Somali government, the imminent departure of Ethiopian troops from the country overshadowed the meeting.

Ethiopian Foreign Minister Seyoum Mesfin said his country’s decision to pull out over the coming weeks was “irrevocable”.

Igad formally thanked the Ethiopians for the sacrifices they had made to advance the cause of peace in Somalia, but made no appeal to them to change their mind and stay.

The issue of peacekeeping will be considered further at a meeting of the African Union’s Peace and Security Council on Monday.

Ministers now have the task of trying to beef up the AU’s mission in Somalia, which will no longer have the comfort of knowing it can call for Ethiopian back-up when needed, our correspondent adds.

At the Igad meeting, the president of the African Union Commission said Nigeria had promised to send a battalion of about 850 soldiers to Somalia next month, and that Burundi and Uganda would each send an additional battalion.

Astrology holds sway over Sri Lanka – BBC

People in many countries believe in astrology, but horoscopes have a particularly enthusiastic following in Sri Lanka.

Many consult astrologers when choosing marriage partners, on when to start new jobs, or even to find out the auspicious time to leave their house in the morning.

And politicians are said to be heavily influenced by the stars too.

At a wedding hall in Colombo, a bride and groom are sitting on a stage brightly decorated with paintings of Hindu gods.

At their feet, several Hindu priests are breaking coconuts and lighting oil lamps, performing rituals to invoke blessings on the couple.

The invitation was very precise, the ceremony would take place at what was described as the auspicious time of 1109 local time, as set by astrologers.

It was an arranged marriage, and astrology had been a key factor in deciding whether Vijayaruban and Umaranjini should wed.

Their horoscopes had been examined to see if they were compatible.

“It matched 85% or something,” said Vijayaruban. “So it is a good thing. Both sets of parents are happy and we are happy.”

If the horoscopes had not been so attuned, he added, the family would have tried to find another girl for him to marry.

Astrological passport

Astrologers play a significant role in the lives of Sri Lankan people from the Tamil and Sinhala communities.

Eshwaran Kurukkal is the sixth generation in his family to perform the task, which is combined with priestly duties such as officiating at weddings.

He is a member of the Brahmin caste.

Every day, but especially on auspicious days, people come to visit him in his consulting rooms in his suburban Colombo house.

The astrologer wears traditional dress – a white sarong with a purple and gold border. He is bare-chested, with gold necklaces and diamond stud earrings.

His long hair is pulled back, and his wrists, elbows, shoulders and forehead have three white stripes, marked with powder.

Mr Eshwaran is examining a client’s horoscope, a printed book about the size of a passport.

Inside there are sections for name, names of parents, and the positions of the stars and planets at the date and precise time of birth.

Many people keep the documents throughout their lives.

“We think if we didn’t write a horoscope for a child when the child was born, it would be a very big sin,” says Mr Eshwaran. “That is important, more important than a birth certificate.”

Political star gazers

Belief in the stars is widespread in Sri Lanka where people routinely sit down to start work on the first day of a new job at auspicious times set by astrologers.

Even many politicians follow astrology, right up to heads of state.

“[Former president Ranasinghe] Premadasa was very much aware of astrological predictions for him, and would very often make his actions commensurate with that,” says Bradman Weerakoon, who served as secretary or advisor to nine Sri Lankan leaders.

Mr Weerakoon says he is sure that Sri Lanka’s first woman prime minister, Sirimavo Bandaranaike, was astrologically inclined and that current President Mahinda Rajapaksa is also “perhaps moved that way”.

“I am sure elections, dates of elections and so on are very often set on politicians getting their horoscopes read and finding out what is the best time for them.”

Of the leaders he has encountered, Mr Weerakoon says only opposition leader Ranil Wickremesinghe does not seem to be inclined towards astrology.

‘Hero king’

It is to astrologer Sumanadasa Abeygunawardene that many politicians have turned.

He says he even advised President Rajapaksa on the auspicious time to leave his house in the deep south to vote in the 2005 elections in which he became Sri Lanka’s leader.

“Twenty-five years back, I said there would be a hero king from Ruhuna, Matara, now he’s the one, we believe, President Mahinda Rajapaksa,” said Mr Abeygunawardene.

“So President Rajapaksa’s horoscope is a powerful one. He is the one who will bring development to the country. He will defeat the enemies and terrorists.”

Mr Abeygunawardene said he had seen the horoscope of Velupillai Prabhakaran, the leader of the Tamil Tigers.

He said the rebel’s horoscope was more powerful than those of previous Sri Lankan presidents, but Mahinda Rajapaksa’s was stronger still.

Back in the wedding hall, Vijayaruban and Umaranjini were just hoping their marriage would be successful.

Even though they did not know each other very well, they were confident they will have a happy life together.

It was, after all, written in the stars.

Mugabe a threat to unity, says US – BBC

The United States says the power-sharing deal in Zimbabwe will not work with Robert Mugabe as president.

The US would not reverse sanctions policy while Mr Mugabe remained in power as he had “lost touch with reality”, said its top envoy to Africa.

As well as suffering economic collapse, Zimbabwe is suffering from a cholera epidemic charities say is critical.

Talks on a power-sharing deal with the opposition following disputed elections in March have been stalled.

Progress has also stalled over who should control key ministries.

The opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party accuses Mr Mugabe of breaking the deal to form a coalition government and of abducting its members.

The US had supported the deal that was signed in September and promised to lift sanctions if it was implemented.

But US Assistant Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Jendayi Frazer said it could no longer fulfil either of those pledges, and that Mr Mugabe had “reneged on the principle of power sharing”.

“We have lost confidence in the power-sharing deal being a success with Mugabe in power. He has lost touch with reality,” she said during a visit to South Africa.

“We were prepared to use the American influence to negotiate with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to clear the $1.2bn Zimbabwe debt, but now we are no longer prepared to do that.”

Mugabe’s time is over, says Jendayi Frazer

Ms Frazer also called on African leaders to unite against Mr Mugabe, saying that if they were to “go to Mugabe and tell him to go, I do think he would go”.

But neighbouring South Africa has again insisted that a power-sharing deal is the only option for Zimbabwe.

“We believe in that agreement as the way for Zimbabwe to deal with its problems,” said Thabo Masebe, a spokesman for South African President Kgalema Motlanthe.

Cholera fears

Mr Mugabe has said he is not to blame for Zimbabwe’s situation and has rejected calls from African and Western leaders to stand down.

On Friday, he told delegates of his ruling Zanu-PF at their annual conference that he would “never, never, never surrender”.

“Zimbabwe is mine, I am a Zimbabwean. Zimbabwe for Zimbabweans,” he said.

Mr Mugabe has said that the cholera crisis is over and was being used by the West as an excuse to invade Zimbabwe.

However, aid agencies have warned that the disease, which has already claimed 1,123 lives, could infect more than 60,000 unless its spread is halted.

Manuel Lopez, head of Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF), said the epidemic remained at a critical level and would not subside until the rains end in March next year.

Opposition threat

Mr Mugabe signed a power-sharing deal with his rival, Morgan Tsvangirai, in September, under which Mr Tsvangirai would have become prime minister and headed a new council of ministers.

But the two leaders have been unable to agree on the distribution of key ministries.

Mr Tsvangirai has said that more than 40 members of his MDC party have since gone missing, presumed abducted.

He has threatened to suspend all contact with Zanu-PF unless there is an end to the abductions, saying there can be no meaningful talks while a campaign of terror is being waged.

Brazil and EU leaders hold summit – BBC

Leaders from the European Union and Brazil are expected to focus on the financial crisis and climate change at a two-day summit in Rio de Janeiro.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy will attend, as well as European Commission head Jose Manuel Barroso.

On Tuesday, Mr Sarkozy and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva are expected to sign a range of agreements.

They may include one that would help build South America’s first nuclear propelled submarine.

In an interview just ahead of his arrival, Mr Sarkozy – who currently holds the EU’s rotating presidency – was keen to stress the growing importance of Brazil’s role in the world, words that will undoubtedly please his hosts.

He told the newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo that no-one could imagine resolving problems today “without involving China, India and, of course, Brazil”.

His emphasis on the need for a new system of world governance, and one that would be more open to developing countries, will also be welcome here.

It was not an option, he said, but a necessity which should be dealt with urgently.

Defence policy

As well as the financial crisis, the issue of climate change is likely to figure prominently in discussions with the European leaders.

Mr Sarkozy will also have separate meetings with President Lula on Tuesday at which the two leaders are expected to sign a range of agreements, most notably relating to defence.

Mr Sarkozy’s wife, Carla Bruni, is likely to attract huge media interest

Last week, Brazil unveiled a new strategy to upgrade the country’s defence policy, and the government is keen to forge partnerships with nations that are willing to share technology.

According to reports in the Brazilian media, the two presidents will sign an agreement that will help build South America’s first nuclear propelled submarine.

With Brazil making extensive oil finds off its coast, the government here is becoming increasingly preoccupied with defending the country’s coastal waters.

Another potential agreement is said to include the transfer of French technology to help build four conventional submarines.

The meetings will take place in Rio de Janeiro’s famous Copacabana Palace hotel, and there is expected to be huge media interest in the activities of the French president’s wife, Carla Bruni, as she carries out a range of functions in the city.

Headless bodies found in Mexico – BBC

Police in Mexico have found nine decapitated bodies close to a highway in the southern state of Guerrero.

A local official said some of the victims were soldiers. Thousands of troops have been deployed across Mexico in anti-drug smuggling operations.

Nine heads were found earlier in plastic bags close to a supermarket, reportedly with a note warning of more decapitations to follow.

Nearly 5,400 people have been murdered in drugs-related violence this year.

Local media have reported that nine soldiers were abducted on Saturday as they left a nearby military base, close to the city of Chilpancingo.

President Felipe Calderon has deployed about 40,000 troops and police since December 2006 against the drugs cartels.

But Mexico’s top prosecutor has said that the violence is likely to worsen in 2009 as drug gangs split and fight for turf.

Officials say the increasingly gruesome nature of the violence shows that the drugs gangs are being squeezed, intensifying their internal squabbles.

Farc ‘will release six hostages’ – BBC

Colombia’s Farc rebels have said they are going to release six people being held as hostages in jungle camps in the next few days, local media say.

The two politicians and four security officers have been held by the leftist group for several years.

A Farc statement said the captives would be handed over to a left-wing Colombian senator, reported Reuters.

The Farc is still holding hundreds of hostages, either for ransom or to exchange for government-held rebels.

The statement gave no date for the release but said it would be “soon”, the Associated Press news agency reported.

The text said the release was a gesture aimed at initiating a prisoner exchange with the government.

Three police officers and a soldier would be freed first, followed by an ex-governor and a former congressman, the statement said.

Protests

In October, ex-Congressman Oscar Tulio Lizcano managed to escape after eight years in captivity.

And in July, 15 hostages, including former Colombian presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt, were freed in a military operation.

Ten of thousands of Colombians have taken part in protests demanding the release of those still held by the Farc (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia).

The group has fought to overthrow the Colombian government and install a Marxist government since the 1960s.

In the 1990s it turned to the drug trade to raise money for its struggle and has suffered a series of defeats in recent years, including a number of defections and the Betancourt rescue.