Colombian officials say at least 10 soldiers are dead after leftist rebels fired a dynamite- and shrapnel-filled canister into military barracks in southern Colombia.

Authorities say at least seven people suffered serious injuries from the attack Monday in Pitalito, about 350 kilometers southwest of Bogota. Thirty others were slightly injured.

Officials say the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia launched the homemade mortar before dawn from a pickup truck parked about 600 yards from the unit.

Authorities say the device landed in the barracks while the soldiers slept. The explosion set off a fire that caused considerable damage. The attack comes two weeks after 29 soldiers were killed in an explosion while storming a house used by the rebels to store dynamite. It is unclear whether the blast was accidental or intentional.

Colombian authorities have accused the rebel group, known as the FARC, for numerous attacks, kidnappings and killings during the nation's 38-year civil war.

The government has been engaged in a series of negotiations with the guerrilla group. The two sides have set April seventh as a deadline to reach a cease-fire agreement.

Colombia's war involves leftist rebels, paramilitaries and government forces.

Some information for this report provided by AFP and Reuters.

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