At least 80 people killed in northeast Colombia as peace talks fail, official says
BOGOTÁ, Colombia — More than 80 people were killed in the country’s northeast over the weekend following the government’s failed attempts to hold peace talks with the National Liberation Army, a Colombian official said.
Twenty others were injured in the violence that has forced thousands to flee as Colombia’s army scrambled to evacuate people on Sunday, according to William Villamizar, governor of North Santander, where many of the killings took place.
Among the victims are community leader Carmelo Guerrero and seven people who sought to sign a peace deal, according to a report that a government ombudsman agency released late Saturday.
Officials said the attacks happened in several towns located in the Catatumbo region near the border with Venezuela, with at least three people who were part of the peace talks being kidnapped.
Thousands of people are fleeing the area, with some hiding in the nearby lush mountains or seeking help at government shelters.
“We were caught in the crossfire,” said Juan Gutiérrez, who fled with his family to a temporary shelter in Tibú after they were forced to leave behind their animals and belongings. “We had no time to grab our things. … I hope the government remembers us. … We are helpless here.”
Colombia’s army rescued dozens of people on Sunday, including a family and their pet dog, whose owner held a pack of cold water against the animal’s chest to keep it cool as they evacuated by helicopter.
Defense Minister Iván Velásquez traveled to the northeast town of Cúcuta on Sunday where he held several security meetings and urged armed groups to demobilize.
“The priority is to save lives and guarantee the security of communities,” he said. “We have deployed our troops throughout the entire region.”
Officials also prepared to send 10 tons of food and hygiene kits for approximately 5,000 people in the communities of Ocaña and Tibú, the majority of them having fled the violence.
“Catatumbo needs help,” Villamizar said in a public address on Saturday. “Boys, girls, young people, teenagers, entire families are showing up with nothing, riding trucks, dump trucks, motorcycles, whatever they can, on foot, to avoid being victims of this confrontation.”
The attack comes after Colombia suspended peace talks with the National Liberation Army, or ELN, on Friday, the second time it has done so in less than a year.
Colombia’s government has demanded that the ELN cease all attacks and allow authorities to enter the region and provide humanitarian aid.
“Displacement is killing us here in the region,” said José Trinidad, a municipal official for the town of Convención, located in the North Santander region. “We’re afraid the crisis will worsen.”
Trinidad called on insurgent groups to sit down and hammer out a new agreement so “us civilians don’t have to suffer the consequences that we’re suffering right now.”
The ELN has been clashing in Catatumbo with former members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, a guerrilla group that disbanded after signing a peace deal in 2016 with Colombia’s government. The two are fighting over control of a strategic border region that has coca leaf plantations.
In a statement Saturday, the ELN said it had warned former FARC members that if they “continued attacking the population … there was no other way out than armed confrontation.” The ELN has accused ex-FARC rebels of several killings in the area, including the Jan. 15 slaying of a couple and their 9-month-old baby.
Army commander Gen. Luis Emilio Cardozo Santamaría said Saturday that authorities were reinforcing a humanitarian corridor between Tibú and Cúcuta for the safe passage of those forced to flee their homes. He said special urban troops also were deployed to municipal capitals “where there are risks and a lot of fear.”
The ELN has tried to negotiate a peace deal with the administration of President Gustavo Petro five times, with talks failing after bouts of violence. ELN demands include that it be recognized as a political rebel organization, which critics have said is risky.
Trump introduces a green card for the rich: the gold card
The new visa program would effectively replace the current EB-5 investor visa program, and the proceeds could be used for deficit reduction.
Federal board orders government to reinstate six workers fired by Trump
The Merit Systems Protection Board, the quasi-judicial agency that hears appeals in federal employee labor disputes, has ordered a stay in the firing of six probationary employees.
Southwest 737 and small business jet have ‘near collision’ at Chicago Midway Airport
Federal authorities are investigating a near-collision at Chicago's Midway airport between a Southwest 737 and a small business jet. The 737 was landing when the business jet entered the runway.
Judge tells Trump administration it has less than 2 days to resume USAID funding
U.S. District Judge Amir H. Ali said officials have provided no evidence of compliance with repeated orders to unfreeze the money.
Diana Taurasi, 6-time Olympic gold medalist and the WNBA’s top scorer, will retire
Taurasi leaves her basketball career as the most decorated woman to ever play, with three WNBA titles, three NCAA titles and six Olympic gold medals to her name.
Rhiannon Giddens is the latest artist to cancel Kennedy Center gig
Folk musician Rhiannon Giddens said on social media that she has moved her May concert – originally scheduled for the Kennedy Center – to a different venue in Washington, D.C.