The Inter Press Service reports declassified US documents show that the CIA and former US ambassadors were fully aware, as far back as 1990, that the military in Colombia were committing extrajudicial killings as part of “death squad tactics” and of connections between the Colombian security forces and right-wing drug-running paramilitary groups. The US officials also knew that senior Colombian officers encouraged a “body count” mentality to demonstrate progress in the fight against FARC guerrillas. Colombia is the third largest recipient of US aid after Israel and Egypt. The declassified documents were published by the National Security Archives.