Colombia seeking peace talks with Farc rebels

Colombia's president has said his government will seek peace negotiations with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, the country's largest guerrilla group, to end five decades of war.

In a televised address from the presidential palace on Monday, Juan Manuel Santos said his government would learn from the mistakes of so many previous leaders who tried but failed to clinch a lasting ceasefire with the armed group, which is known by is acronym, FARC.

In his address on state TV, Santos said he was fulfilling his "duty to seek peace". Media reports say a deal on further talks was reached in Cuba.

The president said the second biggest group, the ELN, had also indicated a readiness to talk.

The Farc has been fighting the Colombian government since 1964.

According to the regional media network Telesur negotiators from the two sides signed a preliminary agreement in the Cuban capital, Havana, on Monday.

Telesur said the first round of peace talks would be held in the Norwegian capital, Oslo, on 5 October. Negotiators would then continue holding talks in Havana, it added.

Meanwhile, government troops will continue operations, Santos said.

A successful peace agreement with the rebels would secure Santos a place in history as the leader who ended a conflict that has killed tens of thousands over the years and left the Andean nation's reputation in tatters.

As part of the deal to hold talks, the government agreed that leaders of FARC would not be extradited to other countries to stand trial, a Colombian intelligence source said.

The FARC, which calls itself "the people's army" and claims to defend peasant rights, has battled about a dozen administrations since appearing in 1964, when its founder Manuel Marulanda and 48 rebels fought off thousands of troops in jungle hideouts.

The group has been dealt defeats in recent years, as US-trained special forces use sophisticated technology and spy networks to track the leaders.

The FARC's string of defeats began in 2008 with a cross-border military raid into Ecuador that killed Raul Reyes, its second in command.

Marulanda died of a heart attack weeks later and was replaced by Alfonso Cano, who was later killed too.

The drug-funded group is led by Timoleon Jimenez, known by his war alias "Timochenko".