BOGOTA, Jan 21 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Colombia has vowed “war” against leftwing guerrillas, as security forces rushed to contain a wave of violence that has killed more than 100 people and threatened to derail the country’s troubled peace process.
In just five days, violence has been reported in three different Colombian departments, from the remote Amazon jungle to the rugged border with Venezuela, where fighting has displaced 11,000 people.
President Gustavo Petro, who until now has staked his political fortunes on a strategy of negotiations and engagement, signalled a much tougher approach in the face of the mounting crisis.
On Monday he issued a defiant warning to leaders of the National Liberation Army – or ELN – which is said to have been behind border region attacks on rival leftist groups, killing 80 people.
The ELN, Petro said, had “chosen the path of war, and war they will have”.
Some 5,000 troops were sent to the border area, hoping to contain some of the worst violence Colombia had seen in years.
The country was plagued by an abundance of leftwing, rightwing and apolitical armed groups and cartels that vie for control of the lucrative cocaine trade.
The ombudsman’s office reported ELN rebels going from “house to house”, killing people suspected of ties to dissident units of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc).
Over the weekend, terrified residents carrying backpacks and belongings on overladen motorcycles, boats, or crammed on the backs of open trucks, fled the region.
Hundreds found refuge in the town of Tibú, where several shelters were set up, while others crossed the border to Venezuela – for some a return to a country from where they had fled economic and political upheaval.
“As a Colombian, it is painful for me to leave my country,” said Geovanny Valero, a 45-year-old farmer who fled to Venezuela, saying he hoped the situation would be “sorted out” so he can return.
On Monday, Colombia’s defense ministry reported new clashes in a remote Amazon region.
A ministry official said that 20 people had been killed in fighting between rival leftwing guerrillas in the jungle-clad department of Guaviare.
The Amazon clashes involved rival Farc splinter groups..The violence is a fresh challenge for Colombia’s leftist president Gustavo Petro who has staked his political fortunes on a policy of “total peace”.
In the face of some public opposition, Petro launched negotiations with the various hardline armed groups that still control parts of Colombia after being elected in 2022.
Critics allege that his conciliatory approach has emboldened groups who are often funded by the proceeds of cocaine and other trafficking, and allowed them space to grow in power and influence.
A 2016 peace deal with Farc was hailed as a turning point in the six-decade-long conflict between Colombian security forces, guerrillas, rightwing paramilitaries and drug gangs, which has left nearly half a million people dead.
But dissident factions continue to control territory in several parts of Colombia, the world’s biggest cocaine producer. — NNN-AGENCIES
