The conservative senator Miguel Uibe, claiming the presidency of Colombia for the May 2026 elections, is in a “critical” state after receiving a shot in the head on Saturday, June 7 in Bogotá, in what the government described as “attack.” A video posted on social networks shows the 39 -year -old politician in the process of speaking a speech during a campaign meeting in the west of the capital when the shots.
The elected right of the right touched twice in the head and once in the knee, the paramedics said they took care of it. Hellicported to the health clinic of the capital of the capital, it is “in critical condition” and is the object of a neurosurgical operation, the establishment said.
“He is fighting for his life at this time,” said his wife in X elected.
According to the police, the alleged author is a minor, who opened fire around 5.30 pm locals. Injured in one leg, he was dominated by Miguel Uibe’s bodyguards, said police chief Carlos Fernando Triana, to the press. Two other people, a man and a woman, were also injured and found a gun, police said.
The reasons of the attack were not determined immediately. The Ministry of Defense said the security services were doing everything possible to shed light.
An act of violence “against democracy”
Miguel Uibe is a member of the Democratic Center party, the main formation of the Colombian right. This is led by the influential Alvaro Uibe, head of state between 2002 and 2010. The former president spoke of an attack on “a hope for the homeland.” The two Uribe have no relationship.
The government of the left president Gustavo Petro, meanwhile, denounced “categorically and strongly the attack.” “This act of violence is an attack not only against the physical integrity of the senator, but also against democracy, freedom of thought and the legitimate exercise of politics in Colombia,” the presidency said in his press release.
“Respecting life is the red line. Colombia should not kill their children,” Gustavo Petro wrote in the social network X.
In a speech delivered on Saturday night, President Petro spoke of a “day of pain” for Colombia and promised in deep investigations to find the culprits. “The most important thing today is that all Colombians are concentrating with all their hearts, all their desire to live (…) about the survival of Dr. Miguel Uibe,” he added.
Senator Uibe announced in October aspired to be elected president in 2026 to succeed Gustavo Petro, of which he is an enthusiastic detractor. Although the official campaign for May 2026 has not yet been opened, several contestants have already begun to defend their declared requests.
A $ 725,000 reward
The defense minister, Pedro Sánchez, condemned the attack and announced on the social network X that the authorities offered an award of around $ 725,000 for any information to capture those responsible. The leader of the United States diplomacy, Marco Rubio, blamed the “violent leftist rhetoric” after this attack, calling Gustavo Petro to “moderate” his words and “protect Colombian public representatives.”
The UN office in Colombia has “firmly” the attack. “We are convinced that the authorities will shed light on the facts and punish” the authors “, reacted on X. The president of Ecuador neighboring, Daniel Nnovoa, as well as the opposition chef Venezuela, Maria Corina Machado, brought his support to the senator’s family.
Miguel Uibe is the grandson of Julio César Turbay, president between 1978 and 1982, and son of Diana Turbay, a journalist who had been kidnapped by former drugs Baro Escobar, before being killed during a military rescue operation in 1991. Senator since 2022, Miguel Uribe had been secretary of the government of the government of Captain Bogota. He also tried to conquer the City Council in 2019, without success.
Source: BFM TV
