Ejercito Zapatista de Liberacion Nacional (EZLN), which translates in English as Zapatista National Liberation Army.

Mexico, based in the southern state of Chiapas.

The EZLN advocates changes to protect the rights of indigenous people of Mexico through constitutional and land reform. The group opposes the established political and economic system.

The group's Declaration from the Lancondon Jungle demanded "work, land, shelter, food, health, education, independence, freedom, democracy, justice and peace" for everyone, including indigenous peoples.

Estimates of EZLN strength are speculative. The group was believed to have 3,000 armed members in 1994. The latest estimates put its numbers at more than 5,000.

The Zapatista movement is believed to receive support from sympathizers worldwide, as well as from some non-governmental organizations. The EZLN has sought to separate itself from foreign left-wing guerrilla movements. Within Mexico, the group has been linked to several left-wing civic organizations.

The Zapatistas pursue a primarily political agenda, with an armed wing for protection that helps draw attention to its cause. The main violent episodes occurred when the group burst onto the scene in southern Mexico. Since then, EZLN fighters have had sporadic clashes with Mexican military forces and loosely organized right-wing paramilitary groups. An uneasy truce has reduced the instances of military confrontations.

When fighting does occur, the EZLN uses a range of standard guerrilla tactics, usually occupying towns for brief periods.

The EZLN was founded in 1993 by Subcomandante Marcos, who has been identified by the Mexican government as Rafael Sebastian Guillen, a former left-wing activist and philosophy professor at the Mexican Autonomous National University. The group was formed from peasants and the remnants of left-wing groups active in the past. The policies of then-President Carlos Salinas de Gortari, especially his plans to enter the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with the U.S. and Canada, galvanized the group.

Some have suggested, however, that Comandante Ramona was actually the chief executive of the EZLN, behind the group's official voice, Subcomandate Marcos, a claim supported by Marcos himself. Ramona became well-known when she appeared at a National Indigenous Conference in the capital in late 1996 and spoke in front of tens of thousands, despite a government ban.

The EZLN garnered attention for the first time when it occupied six towns in Chiapas during January 1994. The action was timed to correspond with the ratification of NAFTA. It took the Mexican authorities several days to re-establish nominal control of the area. A cease-fire began later that month, followed by peace talks in February. Negotiations lasted for the rest of the decade, interspersed with accusations and sporadic violence among the military, rebels and paramilitary groups.

In recent years, the EZLN has sought to emphasize its political struggle through non-military means. Although a peace agreement has never been reached between the rebels and the government, there have been few episodes of violence in recent years.

The EZLN announced a suspension of military activity in 2005, and Subcomandante Marcos said the group did not plan to return to combat. Instead, he said, the group will pursue its goals through political means. He also hinted the group was considering disarming. The EZLN has emphasized its "Other Campaign" as a means of mobilizing national support. This entails sending EZLN representatives to Mexican states outside traditional EZLN strongholds to build ties and create support for the group.

Subcomandante Marcos was critical of the Party of the Democratic Revolution, and Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, the party's candidate in the 2006 presidential election. Marcos insists mainstream parties are not interested in Mexico's poor or indigenous communities.

Jan. 12: The government declared a cease-fire.

February: Peace talks began with the federal government. Comandante Ramona, a Tzotzil Mayan, served as chief negotiator at the peace talks in San Cristobal.

March 2: EZLN negotiators ended the first round of peace talks and returned to their base to consider government proposals.

June 12: EZLN rejected the government peace proposals.

Oct. 11: The EZLN broke off negotiations with the government, accusing it of a military buildup in Chiapas and various military provocations.

Dec. 19: The EZLN began a "non-violent" military offensive in Chiapas and declared 38 municipalities to be part of rebel territory.

Dec. 27: The Mexican government suspended military operations. ELZN reciprocated and opened its zone of control to civilian traffic.

March 11: The Mexican government passed the Law for Dialogue, Reconciliation and a Just Peace in Chiapas. The law called for a renewal of peace talks, a suspension of military operations against the EZLN, and a moratorium on arrest warrants against its leadership as long as negotiations continued. The law also created the Commission on Concordance and Pacification (COCOPA) to lead the peace discussions with the EZLN.

Dec. 31: The rebels founded the Zapatista National Liberation Front (FZLN) to serve as the EZLN political wing.

June 15: The paramilitary group Paz y Justicia (Peace and Justice) based in northern Chiapas attacked Zapatista communities, burning several villages.

Nov. 29: COCOPA put forth a final proposal on constitutional reforms based on the San Andres Accords. The proposal was accepted with reservations by the EZLN.

December: The federal government backed off the agreement, and submitted a revised proposal, which the EZLN rejected. The Zapatistas announced five conditions that they said must be met for peace talks to resume.

Dec. 22: Around 70 members of a paramilitary group attacked the village of Acteal, killing 45 and injuring 25. The government denounced the attack and denied involvement, although suspicions were widespread that the PRI government was complicit.

June 24: The government pledged not to launch a military offensive against the EZLN, as noted by a presidential spokesman.

July 15: The EZLN ended the "red alert" that it issued the previous month.

July 30: Suspected ELZN militants fired upon a group of civilians in San Cristobal de Las Casas, Chiapas, killing one and wounding five.

Nov. 20: The EZLN Central Committee issued a communique announcing the dissolution of the FZLN.

January: Comandante Ramona died of natural causes, possibly from long-term kidney problems.

May: Subcomandante Marcos appeared in a rare television interview. He condemned police action against rioting peasants and criticized all three candidates competing in July's presidential elections.

Nov. 1: Zapatistas, in support of left-wing protestors in Oaxaca, called for a day of roadblocks across the country.

Sept. 22: The Zapatistas issued a communique advocating their support for the Encounter of Indigenous Peoples of the Americas and the so-called Other Campaign (suspended from October through December 2007). A meeting of Indian people was held Oct. 11-14, in Vicam, Sonora. The campaign attempted to mobilize national support for the EZLN's goals. The communique also backed the demand of the People's Revolutionary Army (EPR) for the release of two EPR members.

December: Subcomandante Marcos announced that he would disappear from the public spotlight, ending two years of public appearances.

Dec. 23: Mexican authorities re-arrested the alleged intellectual author of the 1997 Acteal massacre.

Aug. 2-3: Subcomandante Marcos made his first public appearance in 2008 as he received EZLN sympathizers in La Garrucha, Chiapas.