4 killed in clash between Colombian army, rebels

A Colombian army soldier and at least three rebels of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) were killed in a combat in rural area of central Colombian, authorities said Sunday.

The combat took placed in Meta department, where rebels were conducting extortion to local inhabitants.

"A fight against members of the FARC's 27th Front, that were conducting extortions, left three guerrillas rebels killed and one captured. Unfortunately, a soldier was killed," Commander of the army's Omega Task Force Luis Fernando Navarro said in a statement.

He said the killed insurgents had been appointed for extortion in the Meta cities of San Juan de Arama, Vista Hermosa and Mesetas.

FARC leaders had announced last December a unilateral ceasefire amid ongoing peace process with the Colombian government.

The Colombian government ordered on March 10 suspension for a month of bombings on FARC rebel camps to decelerate the five-decade-long armed conflict in the country.

So far, the two sides have signed three of the five items on the agenda in the peace negotiations that started in 2012 in Havana, Cuba. Endi