Colombia's FARC rebels announced Tuesday that Timoleon Jimenez, better known as Timochenko, was named their new leader earlier this month.
Timochenko replaces former FARC leader Alfonso Cano, who was killed November 4 in a battle with government troops. Cano had led the group since 2008.
FARC rebels have been at war with the Colombian government since the 1960s. Their numbers have dwindled over the years, but some analysts estimate the group has as many as 9,000 fighters.
Most of FARC's funding comes from cocaine trafficking and extortion, but the leftist rebels are believed to be holding an unknown number of people for ransom or political leverage.
FARC has been designated as a terrorist organization by Colombia, the United States and the European Union.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
