Colombia to establish areas for armed groups as part of peace process

FILE PHOTO: Colombia's President Gustavo Petro attends a session during the World Economic Forum (WEF) 2023 in Davos, Switzerland, January 18, 2023. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann

BOGOTA (Reuters) - Colombia will establish areas where members of four armed groups who have agreed to ceasefires can gather, another step in efforts to reach peace or surrender deals, the country's defense minister and military said on Thursday.

President Gustavo Petro, a leftist and former member of a guerilla group, has promised to seek agreements with armed groups to end nearly a six-decade conflict that has killed at least 450,000 people in the Andean nation.