Clashes between armed groups in Colombia kill at least 52

At least 52 guerrilla fighters were killed in clashes between two rival armed groups competing for territorial control of a strategic cocaine production and trafficking region in south-east Colombia. The fighting occurred in the jungles of Guaviare near Barranco Colorado. A Farc dissident faction led by Nestor Gregorio Vera, known as Ivan Mordisco, reported the death toll, while the defence minister and the army confirmed fighting and troop deployment to protect civilians without providing details. The clashes involved Vera’s faction and another led by Alexander Diaz Mendoza, known as Calarca Cordoba. Both factions rejected the 2016 peace agreement that enabled about 13,000 Farc members to disarm. Diaz Mendoza’s group is involved in peace talks with President Gustavo Petro, while Vera’s faction remains in conflict after a 2024 government suspension of a bilateral ceasefire. Other armed groups also announced ceasefires around the election period, while the conflict continues to be driven largely by drug trafficking and illegal mining.

"At least 52 guerrilla fighters have been killed in clashes between two rival armed groups vying for territorial control of a strategic cocaine production and trafficking region in south-east Colombia, a faction of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) involved in the fighting has said."

"The clashes, the most violent in recent months, took place in the jungles of the department of Guaviare, near the village of Barranco Colorado. Pedro Sanchez, the defence minister, confirmed on social media that there had been fighting in the area, as did the army, but neither provided details of the death toll. Sanchez said troops had been deployed to the area to protect civilians."

"The fighting took place between a dissident faction of the Farc led by Nestor Gregorio Vera, better known as Ivan Mordisco, and another led by Alexander Diaz Mendoza, known as Calarca Cordoba. Both rejected a 2016 peace agreement that allowed about 13,000 members of the Farc to lay down their weapons."

"The armed conflict, which has lasted more than six decades and is financed primarily by drug trafficking and illegal mining, has left more than 450,000 people dead and millions displaced."

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