“Running scared” is a little blithe. Killing hostages when the army or police get too close or attack a camp has been standard procedure for some time. The worst in memory was the killing of the twelve representatives who had been kidnapped in Cali years ago. In the current case a combined army/police group had been closing in for a moth and a half. The cadavers were found wth chains close by and appear to have been unchained after receiving coup de grace shots to the head and one to the back. The CTI (Cuerpo Tecnico De Investigacion) only recently arrived at the site and we’ll have to wait to find out the conditions of their deaths. A fifth police, Sargeant Erazo escaped into the jungle during the firefight. Three FARC came after him launching grenades as they went. He seems to have taken a hit but is out of danger. It will be interesting to see the future interviews with him. If the government can take down or capture the new leader, Timochenko (who is reportedly holing up in Venezuela [Santos and Chavez are scheduled for talks in Caracas tomorrow]) then the FARC may very well start splitting away from their commanders and join the Bacrim, the emerging drug gangs. That will not be a pretty picture.
