National Army of Colombia

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The national army of Colombia is the land force and the largest service of the Colombian armed forces. It has the responsibility for land-based military operations along with the naval infantry to protect Colombia against national or international threats. The national armed force has been active from August 19, 1819 to 2010. The national army of Colombia has 8th divisions that are in charge of specific areas in the country. Now a day they are fighting against the rebel guerrilla.

The places where the guerrilla fights are very inside the forest and the jungle. The tall trees and the bushes make very difficult to see and to fight. The guerrilla fights in this warfare because they can hide, attack and then hide again. To fight against the guerrilla in the Colombian forest and jungles, the army needed a better training to help their soldiers. In the early 60s The Colombian army sent its own officers to Fort Benning in Georgia, USA so they could take the Ranger Course that takes place there and then apply their acquired knowledge in Colombia's specific situation.

The Colombian army doesn’t fight only with the guerrilla but also with the drug dealers. The guerrilla also traffics drugs but they are not alone. Those people create many suffering to the people. All the dealing may cause fights that would leave injured or murdered people because of a lost bullet. Many families are familiar with drug addiction, and this causes many sorrows. To stop that the Colombian armed forces has created special units to stop the drug dealing and the kidnapping. Two of those special units are the Anti narcotic brigade (Brigada Anti-Narcoticos). This unit is used specifically to track and destroy drugs. Also it is the Urban Counter-Terrorism Special Forces Group (Agrupación de Fuerzas Especiales Antiterroristas Urbanas, AFEUR) whose primary mission is to perform counter-terrorist operations and hostage rescues based on stealth, surprise and team work. These two groups have helped to reduce the drug dealing and the kidnapping. They are the best of the best in Colombian army.

The national army of Colombia has been on a fight against the rebel guerrillas for the last four decades. This has caused many fatalities not only to the soldiers and their families but also to farmers, women, and children that had lost an arm or a leg from an antipersonnel mine. Those innocent people can’t work or play anymore because of the coward way of fighting of the guerrilla. Many people have given their life to give peace to this country, to finish with the kidnapping, and the suffering the guerrillas have caused to Colombia. For me the soldiers make that big sacrifice to help my country. They are my heroes.