Comments by the US Secretary of State, Mr Colin Powell, about the so-called "Colombia Three" have been described as "prejudicial" to their legal case by their supporters. On a visit to Bogota, he described the three accused men as "members of the IRA" who had been "sharing experiences, sharing knowledge, doing heaven only knows what".
Responding, Ms Caitríona Ruane of the Bring Them Home Campaign said: "It is worrying when a senior member of the US administration makes comments which are prejudicial to the legal case of the three Irishmen in Colombia. As we have seen last week, the case against these men is farcical. The very day that Colin Powell was visiting Colombia, the Colombian state failed to bring two prosecution witnesses to the court. The right to a fair trial is an international one and should be respected."
Mr Powell told the Chicago Tribune that after the terror attacks of September 11th, 2001, the US administration's policy on Colombia broadened beyond halting the drugs trade to the global war on terrorism.
"But after 9/11, as we looked at terrorist activities around the world - and maybe the [Colombian factions] do not have global reach in the sense that al-Qaeda has global reach - but when you start to see members of the IRA in Colombia sharing experiences, sharing knowledge, doing heaven only knows what, it suggests that these kinds of organisations are committed to destroying democracy in our hemisphere. Should that not be a concern of ours?"
Mr James Monaghan (56), Mr Martin McCauley (40) and Mr Niall Connolly (36) are in Bogota's La Modelo prison, charged with training the FARC rebels in bomb-making and with using false passports. Their trial is set to resume on Febuary 5th next year.