Analysis: Peru’s Shining Path
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Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo said the “remnants of the Sendero Luminoso” were behind the attack. Remote pipeline projects make easy targets When all the hostages were freed unhurt, it was a welcome piece of good news for President Toledo, who has come under severe pressure from strikes in recent weeks. But now a revamped Shining Path could cause more headaches for the president. Takeover fears In its heyday in the 1980s, the Shining Path was the most formidable rebel movement in Latin America, waging a war against the state which left an estimated 30,000 dead. Not only did the rebels win control of large areas of the countryside, but they also struck repeatedly at targets in the capital, Lima, giving rise to fears the group would eventually succeed in taking over the country. After a series of high-profile attacks, the worst single incident came in July 1992, when two car bombs went off in the middle-class district of Miraflores, killing 20 people and injuring more than 250 others. More : news.bbc.co.uk |