The end of FARC

The Colombian military’s spectacular rescue of 15 hostages Wednesday, including Franco-Colombian Ingrid Betancourt and three American military contractors, will go down in history as a marvel of military cunning and brilliant execution. Most noteworthy is that the soldiers, disguised as rebels, duped the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia into turning the hostages over without bloodshed.

Colombia rejoiced as did France, where freeing Betancourt -- a former Colombian legislator with dual citizenship -- had become a cause celebre. The faces of the American contractors -- Keith Stansell, Marc Gonsalves and Thomas Howes -- are less well known, but their freedom brings joy to all who prayed for their release during five years of captivity.

The end appears to be near for the FARC, and not a moment too soon. Its founder and leader, Manuel Marulanda, died of a heart attack in March, and top commando Ivan Rios was killed by his own rebel troops, who collected the $2.5-million government bounty on his head. Colombian soldiers killed the group’s No. 2 in March, and now the successful hostage rescue demonstrates how thoroughly the government has infiltrated the group. It may be too much to hope that the guerrillas, who began as the armed wing of the Communist Party in the 1960s and devolved into kidnappers and drug-traffickers, will simply lay down their weapons. But it would be their smartest possible move.

In the afterglow of the raid, it will be tempting for the Colombian government to take a hard-line stance. Although years of negotiations have failed, strong military action has reduced the FARC to a shadow of its former self. Yet the FARC’s weakness gives diplomacy a high chance of success. After the rescue, Colombia’s defense minister wisely reiterated the government’s offer to negotiate a “dignified peace.” Government officials should continue reaching out and offer fair terms to the remaining rebels for the sake of the 700 hostages still in the jungle.

Since President Alvaro Uribe took office in 2002, he has outmuscled the FARC’s rank and file and devastated its command structure. The result is there is finally a chance that, with nowhere else to turn, the rebels will sit down and negotiate in good faith. If so, then it will be remembered that Colombia’s peaceful future began Wednesday, without a single shot.