Two soldiers in Colombia have sustained grave injuries after a confrontation during an anti-drug operation in southeastern Colombia, according to reliable sources within the country’s army.
The incident unfolded during an operation aimed at dismantling a cocaine laboratory in a rural region of the northern Putumayo department, bordering Ecuador. Reports indicate that a riot ensued during which a group of civilians, reportedly coerced into action, attacked the uniformed officers with fire to obstruct the operation, resulting in the severe burns inflicted on an officer and a soldier. Both are currently undergoing treatment in a hospital.
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Such hostile actions by civilians against security personnel in remote, guerrilla-controlled territories have seen an increase in recent years in Colombia. This development follows earlier reports that Colombia is currently dealing with its worst security crisis in a decade, a crisis fueled by criminal organizations profiting from drug trafficking, extortion, and illegal mining.
The Colombian army has pledged to take action against the Comandos de Frontera, a renegade faction that rejected the 2016 peace accord between the government and the FARC guerrilla group. They stand accused of orchestrating the attack and pressuring the civilian population in the area.
Defense Minister Pedro Sanchez, in a social media post, firmly stated that the perpetrators “are neither peasants nor communities claiming their rights. They are criminals and narcos who attempted to murder our soldiers.” It is noteworthy that the Border Command group, currently in peace negotiations with the leftist government, operates in both Colombia and Ecuador.
Colombian prosecutors arrested Andres Rojas, also known as Arana, the leader of the Border Command group, during a meeting with government representatives in February. He is facing charges related to recent cocaine shipments to the United States, and his extradition is being sought.
Ecuadoran authorities have implicated this group in the killing of 11 of their soldiers during an operation against illegal mining in May. And in a recent incident in July, a military dog in Colombia was injured after detecting a bomb planted by guerrilla fighters that exploded during a military operation. This attack was blamed on ELN, a group of roughly 6,000 fighters that is fighting Colombia’s government. Peace talks with the group, which the U.S. has designated as a foreign terrorist organization, were suspended in January, when the ELN was blamed for a series of deadly raids near the border with Venezuela.
The Colombian government and its security forces continue to grapple with the ongoing violence and criminal activities linked to drug trafficking and illegal mining, presenting a significant challenge to the country’s stability and peace process.
