A trapped truck, explosive drones, shots: the results of two attacks on Thursday, August 21 by armed groups took at least 18 dead and dozens of injured, showing a spectacular intensification of violence in Colombia.
This outbreak comes a year from the presidential elections, and was marked in particular by death on August 11 of the favorite of the right, Miguel Uribe, after an attack.
On Thursday afternoon, a trapped truck exploded near an air base in Cali (Southwest), the third city of the country, killing at least six people and 60 wounds, according to the authorities. Mayor Alejandro Eder denounced a “narcoterrorist attack” and requested a “militarization” of the city.
The images on social networks have shown several people in the field, treated by emergency services after the explosion, as well as a flame truck, several damaged vehicles and many exploited windows.
An “loose” attack against civilians
The Minister of Defense, Pedro Sánchez, appointed the EMC armed group, a dissident FARC group, as responsible, denouncing an “unjustifiable terrorist attack against the civilian population of Cali.”
“This loose attack against civilians is a desperate reaction against the loss of drug trafficking control,” in the region, he said.
Héctor Fabio Bolans, 65, witness, told AFP that he had heard “a great explosion noise near the air base,” and saw many people injured on the ground.
“There were dead among the people who went along the avenue,” according to another witness, Alexis Atizabal, 40, who saw the windows of his workshop to make flights flying in the explosion.
Several buildings and a nearby school have been evacuated. The mayor announced the prohibition of truck traffic in the city and offered the $ 10,000 prize for any information.
“Terrorism will not defeat us,” said Regional Governor Dilian Francisca Toro.
A police helicopter attacked
In the morning, about 150 kilometers from Medellin, clashes and a drone attack against a helicopter aimed at police anti -drug operations also made many victims. The results of these attacks were brought from eight to twelve police officers killed by Andrés Julián Rendón, the governor of the Antioquia region (Northwest) on Thursday night.
A police officer explained that the attackers had “harassed” the police supervising a group responsible for eradicating coca plantations. The images shared on social networks have shown the helicopter flying over the region, followed by the detonation and its fall. This attack was granted to the Guerericilleros Calarca group. This guerrilla war, which bears the name of its leader’s war, comes from an EMC division.
In power since 2022 and himself, a former guerilla, leftist president Gustavo Petro tried to revive peace conversations with most of the armed groups operating in Colombia, six years after the historical agreement concluding with the FARC. But most of them failed or stand.
In 2023, the EMC had supported such conversations, but its leader, Ivan Bite, had left the negotiating table a year later. In June, a series of attacks had killed five civilians and two police officers in the southwest of the country. It had been claimed by EMC.
Source: BFM TV
