Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos stands behind the army and its generals after Human Rights Watch published a report with evidence suggesting that several high-ranking army officers in Colombia were aware of the extrajudicial killings of civilians.

The 95-page report released by HRW informs that numerous generals and colonels knew or should have known about so-called “false positive” killings which occurred between 2002 and 2008.

However, President Santos has said he will not allow the good name of the army to be "tarnished," according to El Colombiano. The president gave his speech in front of troops alongside the defense minister, Luis Carlos Villegas. 

"They are worried about their good name and it is only logical. They will ask the prosecutor and the attorney general a history of their record, which will show there is not a single investigation against them," President Santos said. Minister Villegas has also said he stands by the army officers. 

Prosecutors are investigating at least 3,000 cases in which Colombian troops, that were under pressure to boost body counts numbers in their war against armed guerrilla forces, killed civilians and then listed them as combat fatalities.

As reported by than BBC, 800 members of the Colombian army have been jailed so far in the "false positive" scandal.

José Miguel Vivanco, executive Americas director at Human Rights Watch, said, “False positive killings amount to one of the worst episodes of mass atrocity in the Western Hemisphere in recent years, and there is mounting evidence that many senior army officers bear responsibility.”

Despite the heinousness and wide spread knowledge of the phenomena, Vivanco said, “army officials in charge at the time of the killings have escaped justice and even ascended to the top of the military command, including the current heads of the army and armed forces.”

So far the majority of the soldiers that have been convicted in connection with the scandal happen to be of low rank. The new report now asserts that such important Colombian military figures as Gen Gonzalez Pena, the former head of the Joint Caribbean Command, as well as the former army commander, Gen Mario Montoya, knew or should have known about the “false positive” killings.

"It has been a long time since Colombia has been accused of human rights violations," Minister Villegas told the troops.