Nine soldiers and at least 30 rebels were killed in clashes in the southwestern Colombian province of Cauca, the Colombian Army said Tuesday.

The gun battle started late Monday when about 200 members of the leftist Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) tried to storm the village of Corinto, 300 km southwest of Bogota.

While nine soldiers died in the attack, the military claimed to have killed 30 to 35 rebels.

"It is a strategic place. (The rebels) live off drug trafficking, and that is why they insist in attacking the village," Cauca police chief Luis Malagon told the radio station La Fm.

The attack took place hours after Colombian President Alvaro Uribe met with security officials in Popayan, the capital of Cauca, to discuss frequent rebel attacks in the province in recent weeks.

FARC have been fighting the Colombian state for over 40 years, and while they remain the country's largest guerrilla force and retain substantial power, they have been weakened in recent years.