Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos has extended a ceasefire with FARC rebels until the end of the year to give more time to save a peace deal. The accord, signed with the leftwing rebel group last month, was narrowly rejected in a national referendum. Santos has spent the past few days meeting those who campaigned for a “No” vote. He will take new proposals to a meeting with FARC leaders in the Cuban capital, Havana. The original ceasefire ended with the referendum and has already been extended until 31 October, BBC reported. Santos was awarded the Nobel Peace prize for reaching the peace agreement, which took more than four years to negotiate. The campaign to reject the deal, led by former President Alvaro Uribe, called for a stronger line to be taken against former rebels. They were angered that FARC guerrillas were offered congressional seats and non-custodial sentences such as clearing landmines in return for ending the conflict. FARC leader, Timoleon Rodriguez, better known as Timochenko, said on Wednesday he was confident the deal could be revived although he said he would be reluctant to renegotiate some elements of the accord.
