Colombia: ELN guerrilla leader killed in army operation
Colombian President Ivan Duque announces the death of ELN leader Andres Felipe Vanegas, better known as War Uriel, in Quibdo, October 25, 2020. Courtesy of Colombian Presidency / Handout via REUTERS
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In Colombia, one of the main ELN guerrilla leaders, the National Liberation Army, was killed on Sunday during a military operation.
"It is a particularly important blow (carried to the ELN)", estimated the president Ivan Duque while giving the news, which the Colombian press echoed this Monday.
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Uriel was killed on Sunday in "
an air and ground assault by military forces in the town of Novita
", the department of Choco, in the north-west of the country,
El Espectador
reports
.
El Tiempo
recalls that President Ivan Duque made a “
lightning trip to this department last week, while
the important gathering of indigenous populations
was held in the capital, La Minga
”.
This is to say if this trip to the North "
was not a trip for nothing
", notes the newspaper: "
The police took for granted the capture of Andres Felipe Vanegas, alias Uriel
".
Uriel
was "
one of the men most wanted by the Colombian authorities
", recalls
El Espectador,
responsible according to President Duque "
for kidnappings, assassinations of union officials, harassment of populations and recruitment of minors
".
►
See also: Colombia: Ivan Duque puts an end to the dialogue with the ELN after the attack in Bogota
The various newspapers also recall that he was one of the best known faces of the ELN because of his use of social networks.
The ELN, the last recognized rebellion movement since the disarmament of the FARC, still has, according to
El Espectador,
“
more than 2,300 combatants and an intelligence network, with a presence in 110 municipalities across the country
”.
For this reason Uriel was until now "
difficult to locate, because he moved often
", explains
El Tiempo
: "
No less than 500 million Colombian dollars of reward were offered for any information leading to his capture.
"
►
To read also: Colombia: general strike and demonstrations against the policies of President Duque
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