Four peoplebetween them two policemenwere killed in attacks by dissidents from the former FARC rebel group in two prefectures of the southwest Colombiathe authorities announced yesterday Monday.
Fighters from the group that rejects the 2016 peace deal initially attacked a bank branch and a police station in the Morales community, Cauca department, yesterday morning.
Two policemen were killed, as were two prisoners in the police station, Defense Minister Ivan Velasquez said during a press conference, condemning the “terrorist” act.
Three other police officers were injured, however, it is considered to be “out of danger”, always according to the minister.
Clashes ended following noon when the army regained control of the community, an AFP photojournalist found.
Military and police then launched an operation to ensure the roads were safe, as they were concerned the attackers had planted explosives before retreating.
The AFP photojournalist saw the attacked police station partially destroyed, riddled with bullet marks, images reminiscent of FARC attacks in the 1990s, when the group was at the height of its power.
“We lived two hours of agony,” a resident of Morales told AFP, asking not to be named.
Minister Velaskes spoke of “harassment” operations by rebels in at least three other communities of the prefecture.
In the neighboring province of Valle del Cauca, a motorcycle rigged with explosives detonated in Hamudi, injuring three people, including three minors.
President Gustavos Petros described the situation in Cauca as “unacceptable”. “We will not tolerate the continued terrorizing of the population,” the president said via X.
Cauca and Valle del Cauca departments are known as strongholds of the EMC (“Central General Staff”), the largest dissident organization of the former FARC.
In October 2023, peace negotiations began with this now splintered faction, with the smaller faction continuing talks with the government while the military faces off once morest the larger, which has resumed hostilities.
Source: RES-MPE
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