Colombia uncovers assassination plot to kill former president

Colombian intelligence claims to have discovered a rebel plot to kill the former president, Alvaro Uribe.

The politician, who is standing for the Senate in next year’s election, is an outspoken critic of the current peace process between the rebels and the government.

During Uribe's two terms in office, from 2002 to 2010, the Colombian army inflicted heavy defeats on the rebels.

Uribe has been warned of the plot and security stepped up

Defence Minister Juan Carlos Pinzon said the assassination was due to be carried out by a rebel column operating in central Colombia. Uribe's father was killed by the same group of rebels in 1983 in a failed kidnapping attempt.

The peace talks were launched a year ago in the Cuban capital, Havana.

They are aimed at ending five decades of bloody conflict, with the left-wing rebels agreeing to give up their armed struggle and join the legal political process.

Agreement has been reached so far on land reform and political participation - two of the six issues being discussed.

The other four items on the peace agenda are disarmament, illicit drugs, rights of the victims and peace deal implementation.

But fighting has carried on despite the talks. President Juan Manuel Santos's government has refused to agree to a ceasefire, as requested by the rebels, saying it would only help them regroup and rearm.