Rebels surround southern Colombia city

FLORENCIA: While leftist rebels have surrounded this southern departmental capital, leaving the city without power or phone lines, police in the northeastern city of Medellin killed five suspected FARC rebels when searching homes for weapons.
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia suspects were gunned down when elite police units searched homes believed to belong to rebel supporters, police in Colombia's second-largest city announced. In the search, police found firearms, ammunition, and home-made explosives.
They arrested 30 suspects, all believed to be planning attacks or linked to attacks around the region, a Medellin police spokesman told AFP. The FARC is believed to have some 17,000 fighters spread out around the country, and a further 10,000 supporters in large cities, some involved in intelligence gathering.