The Guevarist National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrilla launched a bloody attack on Thursday against rival dissidents from the defunct Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrillas and the civilian population in the mountainous region of Catatumbo (north). east), bordering Venezuela.
In the south, clashes between opposing factions of FARC dissidents – who refused the 2016 peace agreement and took up arms again – which left at least 20 dead on Monday in the Amazonian department of Guaviare.
And in the north, in the department of Bolivar, clashes between the ELN and the Clan del Golfo drug trafficking cartel left at least nine dead.
But it was the situation in the northeast that pushed the Colombian government to declare a state of emergency on Monday and mobilize 5,000 soldiers.
– Show of force –
Special forces deployed conspicuously Tuesday in the town of Tibu, close to the Venezuelan border, advancing in camouflage aboard a convoy of armored personnel carriers and setting up a checkpoint on a road lined with thick vegetation, AFP journalists saw.
The hamlets around Tibu seem completely empty. With messages like “ELN present” or “liberation or death”, the guerrillas make their presence felt through graffiti and posters plastered on the modest wood and sheet metal dwellings.
For many Colombians, the recent clashes, the worst in the country in years, are reminiscent of the civil war that left around 450,000 dead in more than half a century.
In addition to the 20,000 displaced, around thirty people have been kidnapped and a thousand others are holed up in their homes, unable to go out because of the violence, according to the United Nations.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned “the killings of civilians, including former fighters who signed the 2016 peace agreement, human rights defenders and social leaders”, according to his website -speaker Stéphane Dujarric.
He also called “for an immediate end to acts of violence against the civilian population and for unhindered access to humanitarian aid.”
– “Failure of the nation” –
-In this context, Colombian President Gustavo Petro decided to suspend the peace negotiations initiated with the ELN.
“Why is the ELN, which was very weak militarily a few months ago, strong today?” asked the left-wing leader.
Most FARC members laid down their arms as of 2016. But splinter factions continued to thrive in parts of the country, engaging in organized crime and drug trafficking.
The ELN, whose numbers are estimated at 6,000 fighters, has sometimes initiated peace talks before backing down.
Since coming to power in 2022, Mr. Petro has struggled to reach real peace agreements with guerrillas, gangs and drug trafficking groups, which has caused him to be accused by his detractors of softness towards the insurgents.
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