Garry Leech is a British born American independent journalist and editor of the online publication Colombia Journal, which analyzes U.S. foreign policy in Colombia. He also teaches international politics at Cape Breton University in Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada.

Map of Colombia Timeline of Events Introduction 1: The Roots of the FARC 2: The FARC's Political Front 3: The FARC's Social Project 4: The FARC and the Drug Trade 5: From 'Narco-Guerrillas' to 'Narco-Terrorists' 6: The FARC and Human Rights 7: The Future of the FARC

To many -- the Colombian, U.S. and the EU governments among them -- the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) is no more than a terrorist organization. Moreover, they claim that the FARC is only engaged in criminal activities and no longer maintains an ideology. But does this tell the whole story? Or can terrorism be a strategy for furthering ideological objectives -- irrespective of how the terrorist actions may appear to contradict stated political and ideological beliefs? As the UN's special envoy to Colombia noted in 2003, it would be "a mistake to think that the FARC members are only drug traffickers and terrorists."Part of Zed's groundbreaking "Rebels "series, Garry Leech has written the definitive introduction to the FARC, examining the group's origins, aims and ideology, and looking at its organizational and operational structures. The book also investigates the FARC's impact on local, regional and global politics and explores its future direction. As someone who reported from the frontline in Colombia for many years and was himself kidnapped by the FARC, Leech offers an unparalled insight into one of the world's most high-profile armed revolutionary organizations.