Thursday, June 25, 2026

Latest News

Petro severs ties with Central Bank after Colombia rate rise

By The City Paper Staff -

President Gustavo Petro has triggered a rare institutional confrontation with the Central Bank  after he ordered to “break relations” following an modest interest rate increase, raising concerns over economic policy independence just two months before the May 31 presidential election. The board of Banco de la República voted on March 31 to raise its benchmark […]

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Petro faces fresh political crisis after leaked audios link officials to alleged smuggler

By The City Paper Staff -

Fresh audio revelations broadcast by Noticias Caracol have triggered a political storm in Colombia, implicating senior government-linked figures in alleged secret contacts with one of the country’s most notorious smugglers, Diego Marín Buitrago. The recordings, aired late on April 5, appear to document meetings between intermediaries connected to President Gustavo Petro and the legal representative […]

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Colombia on brink of outlawing female genital mutilation in landmark vote

By The City Paper Staff -

Colombia is on the verge of banning female genital mutilation (FGM), as lawmakers advance legislation that would outlaw a practice still reported in parts of the country, making it the only nation in Latin America where cases have been documented. In a unanimous decision, the First Commission of the Senate approved the bill in its […]

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FARC dissident ‘Iván Mordisco’ alive but wounded after major military bombardment

By The City Paper Staff -

Colombia’s security forces believe FARC dissident leader Iván Mordisco is alive but seriously wounded following a major aerial bombardment in the remote department of Vaupés, dealing a significant blow to one of the country’s most powerful armed groups. Uncertainty over the fate of Mordisco — whose real name is Néstor Gregorio Vera Fernández — mounted […]

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American Airlines flight attendant missing in Medellín prompts cross-border search

By The City Paper Staff -

The disappearance of a U.S. flight attendant during a brief layover in Medellín has sparked an urgent search involving Colombian authorities, airline officials and U.S. representatives, as questions mount over his final hours in the city. Eric Fernando Gutierrez Molina, 32, an American Airlines crew member based in Dallas-Fort Worth, arrived in Colombia’s second-largest city […]

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U.S. prosecutors probe Colombia’s Petro over alleged narco links, NYT reports

By The City Paper Staff -

U.S. federal prosecutors have opened preliminary criminal investigations into Colombian President Gustavo Petro over alleged links to drug traffickers and possible illicit financing of his 2022 campaign, according to a report by The New York Times. The previously undisclosed probes are being conducted by federal prosecutors in Manhattan and Brooklyn and involve specialists in international […]

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Colombia arrests “mastermind” of Ecuador candidate Villavicencio’s murder

By The City Paper Staff -

Colombian authorities on Wednesday arrested Ángel Esteban Aguilar Morales, alias “Lobo Menor”, an alleged senior figure in the Ecuadorian criminal group Los Lobos and suspected intellectual author behind the 2023 assassination of Ecuadorian presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio. The arrest took place at El Dorado International Airport, where Aguilar Morales arrived on a commercial flight from […]

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Colombia – Ecuador rift widens over cross-border bombings

By The City Paper Staff -

President Gustavo Petro accused Ecuador on Monday of carrying out bombing raids inside Colombian territory, sharply escalating a diplomatic and trade dispute that has been simmering since January. Petro said “27 charred bodies” have been found near the border and suggested the attacks could not have been carried out by illegal armed groups, though he […]

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Colombia bars 10 foreigners in single-day crackdown on suspected sex tourism

By The City Paper Staff -

Colombia’s migration authority Migración Colombia denied entry last week to 10 foreign nationals suspected of seeking sex tourism, marking the largest single-day refusal of its kind at Medellín’s main international gateway, officials said. The individuals — nine from the United States and one from Anguilla — were stopped at José María Córdova International Airport on […]

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Suspected drone attack disrupts high-level visit to Colombia’s Hidroituango

By The City Paper Staff -

Colombia’s security forces alerted late Sunday Medellín Mayor Federico Gutiérrez and Antioquia Governor Andrés Julián Rendón to cancel a planned visit to the Hidroituango hydroelectric complex for Monday, March 2, after intelligence warnings of a possible drone attack and credible terrorist threat. The visit, which included a press conference expected to draw around 100 journalists, […]

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Bogotá to welcome 500,000 Easter visitors with expanded Semana Santa programme

By The City Paper Staff -

Bogotá and the department of Cundinamarca are preparing to receive up to half a million visitors during Semana Santa 2026, as the Mayoralty unveiled an ambitious tourism campaign aimed at positioning the Colombian capital as a leading Easter destination in Latin America. Branded “Paso a Paso, Caminando hacia la Pascua con María” (Step by Step, […]

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Tayrona Park closure highlights security risks on Colombia’s Caribbean coast

By The City Paper Staff -

The Colombian government temporarily closed last week PNN Tayrona National Natural Park following threats against park staff and escalating violence between rival armed groups fighting for control of drug trafficking corridors along the Caribbean coast. The shutdown, announced on Feb. 17 by Parques Nacionales Naturales de Colombia, was described as a preventive measure to protect […]

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Colombia’s Petro Defies Court Suspension of Minimum Wage Hike

By The City Paper Staff -

Colombian President Gustavo Petro on Sunday mounted a forceful defence of his government’s 23.7% minimum wage increase for 2026, pledging to issue a temporary decree to keep the so-called “vital wage” in place after the Council of State provisionally suspended the original measure. Speaking in a televised address on Feb. 15, Petro said that while […]

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Colombia’s Blueberry Boom Is Growing Fast, but Exports Lag

By The City Paper Staff -

Colombia’s goldenberry symbolized the country’s push into high-value fruit exports. Now, it faces a turf war at home from a fruit with far greater global recognition: the blueberry. While blueberry cultivation has expanded rapidly across Colombia over the past decade, producers say the industry remains far from becoming a fully fledged export powerhouse. Colombia currently […]

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Extreme flooding in northern Colombia triggers humanitarian crisis

By The City Paper Staff -

Unseasonal heavy rains and severe flooding across northern Colombia have created a full-blown humanitarian crisis, displacing hundreds of thousands, destroying homes and farmland, and pushing local infrastructure and health systems to breaking point. The disaster has hit hardest in the department of Córdoba, where officials say 156,000 people have been affected and 80% of the […]

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Colombia rules out external factors in SATENA crash as probe opens

By The City Paper Staff -

Colombian authorities said on Thursday they have found no evidence so far of “external factors” contributing to the crash on Wednesday of a SATENA Beechcraft 1900 aircraft on the Cúcuta–Ocaña route , which killed all 15 people on board. The conclusions were presented during a press conference held at Ocaña airport in the northeastern department […]

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