UN official sees uncertainty in peace process with Colombia's ELN

UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- Head of the UN Verification Mission in Colombia said Wednesday that prospects of peace with the rebel National Liberation Army (ELN) remains uncertain as a temporary cease-fire has expired and the ELN leadership has not shown enough political will.

"The ELN has voiced very strong reservations on the implementation of the temporary cease-fire and the humanitarian commitments attached to it. And while the ELN leadership has proposed the negotiation of a stronger cease-fire, they have remained silent on their posture after the end of the temporary cease-fire yesterday," Jean Arnault told the UN Security Council.

As hardly 24 hours have elapsed since the government and ELN delegations have resumed their talks in Quito, Ecuador, it is therefore too early to venture a sense of what the future holds in terms of the situation on the ground and at the negotiating table, said Arnault, who was briefing the Security Council on the mission's work in the first 90 days.

Attacks against oil pipelines by the ELN have just resumed, he noted.

The UN Verification Mission in Colombia, mandated by the Security Council, began operations on Sept. 26, 2017. The mission, which succeeds a UN mission of unarmed observers to monitor and verify a cease-fire between the Colombian government and the larger rebel group of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), is tasked to verify the reintegration of FARC fighters and also to watch the temporary cease-fire with the ELN. Enditem