REBEL OFFENSIVE LEAVES 130 DEAD IN COLOMBIA

Bogota -- A wave of leftist rebel attacks has killed more than 130 people
in Colombia since Monday, in what apparently is intended to be a show of
strength before President elect Andres Pastrana takes office tomorrow.

Pastrana has said that ending Colombia's internal conflicts will be his top
initial priority.

The country's two main guerrilla groups, the oldest and largest in Latin
America, unleashed a coordinated offensive starting Monday night, and
fighting was still raging in some areas yesterday.

The offensive caught the army and police off guard. It is believed to be
the worst outbreak of political violence in outgoing President Ernesto
Samper's four-year term.

In this week's fighting across the country, at least 106 members of the
security forces, 15 insurgents from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of
Colombia (FARC) and the smaller National Liberation Army (ELN), and nine
civilians have died in more than 40 attacks, military and civilian
authorities said.

One of the bloodiest incidents was in the town of Miraflores in southeast
Guaviare province. A

500-member rebel force killed at least 30 police and soldiers in a raid on
an anti-drug base, police said.

Residents told local media that the guerrillas pounded the base with
rockets and mortar bombs for more than 24 hours, leaving just a smoldering
ruin.

More than 100 security force members are reported missing at Miraflores,
and military sources fear they may have been killed or taken prisoner.

Elsewhere, the army reported intense fighting near the town of La Uribe, in
eastern Meta province, close to a traditional FARC stronghold in the
foothills of the Andes mountains.

La Uribe Mayor Nestor Rodriguez said 38 soldiers and eight FARC fighters
were killed.

The municipality is one of five - which cover a total area about twice the
size of El Salvador - that Pastrana has agreed to demilitarize in order to
make way for peace talks with the FARC during his first 90 days in office.

Both rebel groups have said they are prepared to negotiate an end to the
uprising. But in the light of their latest offensive, military leaders have
questioned the rebels' real desire for peace.