Colombia extradites top rebel commander to U.S.(Chicago Tribune)

Byline: Gary Marx

HAVANA _ Stepping up his battle against insurgents, Colombian President Alvaro Uribe took the unprecedented step Friday of extraditing a top guerrilla commander to the United States to face drug-trafficking and terrorism charges.

Uribe, the United States' closest ally in Latin America, had given the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, until Thursday to free 63 hostages or see Ricardo Palmera, also known by the alias Simon Trinidad, extradited to the United States.

The FARC never responded to the ultimatum, and Palmera was placed aboard a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration plane bound for the United States, where he will stand trial in federal court in Washington.

FBI spokeswoman Judy Orihuela said that Palmera was scheduled to make an initial court appearance Friday evening. "They are opening the court especially for him," said Orihuela, explaining that U.S. federal courts were closed on New Year's Eve.

Although extradition to the U.S. has long been controversial in Colombia _ and once was prohibited by the constitution _ Uribe has sent at least 170 suspected drug traffickers to the United States to stand trial since taking office in 2002, up from 64 during all four years of his predecessor.

Previously the most prominent Colombian extradited by Uribe was Gilberto Rodriguez Orejuela, the 65-year-old founder of the infamous Cali drug cartel, who was flown from Colombia to Miami on Dec. 3.