BOGOTA, Nov. 10 (Xinhua) -- Nine Colombian troops died and four others were injured in an attack launched by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), the Colombian authorities said Tuesday.

    The attack took place on early Tuesday morning in the southwestern municipality Corinto in Cauca province. It was the third attack in the past two months that occurred in the same province.

    The rebels detonated explosives and the clash is still going on, army official said. About 200 rebels from the sixth front of FARC took part in the fight, and about 30 of them were killed.

    FARC is the largest rebel group in Colombia and has been fighting against the government for years. Colombian President Alvaro Uribe put the elimination of the guerrillas as one of the priorities of his administration.