U.N.: 'Shock' rise in Colombia coca growth
Colombia’s coca crop — the basis for cocaine — grew by 27 percent last year, the United Nations reported Wednesday, calling the increase “a surprise and a shock” given major U.S.-funded eradication efforts. Eradication of the crop in Colombia, the world’s No. 1 cocaine-producing nation, has been the cornerstone of a multibillion-dollar U.S. aid package. Full Story