Word: hermida
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...Hermida concedes, however, that no such proof has surfaced. Though the Bush Administration has supported the actions of Colombian President Alvaro Uribe, a key U.S. ally in the region, Washington denies it directly aided Colombia's military in March. The Manta FOL commander, Lt. Col. Robert Leonard, insists that U.S. aircraft there, including AWACS surveillance planes that fly almost two dozen missions a week, are "only looking for illicit drugs" and drug-ferrying boats in the Pacific, and that their radar systems are activated exclusively over international waters, not on land. Ecuadorian flight control approves Manta's departures and landings...
...time of the Colombian sortie. Only one hour of activities from that nine-hour flight are logged on file - reflecting a longstanding complaint by Ecuadorian officials that Manta's flight logs are only partially open to inspection by the host country. "There is an information vacuum," says Assemblywoman Tania Hermida, a Correa ally and member of the sovereignty committee. "The situation is so delicate that we need to know its activities over 100% of that [Feb. 29-March 1] period." She adds: "Any concrete proof that the Manta base was involved [in the Colombian attack] would be more than enough...
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