Colombia: escalation of violence between fragmented armed groups

A Colombian flag with "Criminal State" written on it during a demonstration against the increase in massacres in Colombia, in Bogota, August 21, 2020. REUTERS / Luisa Gonzalez

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Armed groups have killed at least 17 people in various parts of Colombia in recent days. One of the heaviest reports of violence in this country since the signing of the 2016 peace agreement, authorities said on Saturday.

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In 24 hours, there were three massacres in three different regions. Until Friday, according to the authorities, this death toll was eleven dead in attacks in regions bordering Venezuela and Ecuador. And on Saturday a "  new massacre  " was committed which left "  at least six dead  " and two "  missing  ", said in a video posted on the Internet Jhon Rojas, governor of Nariño (southwest), one of the regions. affected by this violence.

According to the governor, Colombian President Iván Duque is due to attend a meeting with authorities in the southwest of the country to examine the upsurge in violence financed by narco-trafficking.

For Yann Basset, professor of political science at the University of Rosario in Bogota, these killings can be explained by clashes between different armed groups linked to drug trafficking , guerrillas and paramilitaries.

What there is in common are areas where there are several armed bands that clash. Apparently some that were created with demobilized FARC after the peace agreements.

Yann Basset, professor of political science at the University of Rosario in Bogotá

Eliott Brachet

The United Nations had so far identified 33 massacres in 2020 in Colombia in these territories dominated by the underground economy, poverty and "  a limited state presence  ". The UN classifies as "massacre" any assassination of at least three people perpetrated at the same time by the same perpetrator or group of perpetrators.

According to the UN, groups of criminals are responsible for 78% of these murders. The vast majority (80%) are also located in departments where there are “  enclaves of illegal coca production  ”.

► Read also: Armed groups in Colombia

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  • Colombia
  • Criminality
  • Drug

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