At least 10 police officers were wounded Tuesday in a series of attacks involving drones and explosives in two regions of Colombia, as armed groups continue to employ unmanned aircraft against security forces and the country records a growing number of mass displacement events.
The first attack occurred at the former Tunía toll station in the municipality of Piendamó, Cauca, on the Pan-American Highway between Popayán and Cali.
Preliminary reports indicated that the attack involved gunfire, explosions and drones carrying explosives. At least 10 members of the security forces were reported wounded, although the precise extent of their injuries was still being established as authorities coordinated their evacuation to medical facilities.
Earlier reports had put the number of wounded at six before a subsequent preliminary assessment raised the figure to at least 10.
Authorities attributed the attack initially to FARC dissidents under the command of alias Iván Mordisco, although investigations remain underway to establish the circumstances and those responsible.
The Pan-American Highway was closed between Cali and Popayán following the attack. Traffic was also halted between Santander de Quilichao and Popayán, with authorities directing travellers toward alternative routes while security operations continued in the area.
The closure affects one of southwestern Colombia’s principal transport corridors, linking Cali with northern Cauca and Popayán.
Second drone attack in two days
The attack at Tunía came only two days after another drone attack involving explosives was reported in the same area, underscoring the growing use of remotely operated aircraft by armed groups against the security forces.
The attacks form part of a wider pattern of drone warfare in Colombia. Military figures reported earlier this year that more than 100 attacks involving explosive-laden drones had already been recorded in 2026, while subsequent reporting has documented their continued use by both ELN and FARC dissident structures.
The use of drones allows armed groups to attack police and military installations without having to approach them directly, adding a new dimension to the armed conflict in areas where illegal armed organizations compete for territorial control.
Police station attacked in Condoto
Hours after the attack in Cauca, a second drone attack was reported in Condoto, Chocó.
A drone carrying three grenades targeted the municipality’s police station, according to preliminary reports. An inspector was wounded and initially taken to the San José de Condoto Hospital.
Intelligence reports initially attributed the attack to members of the ELN, which has an established presence in the region. Authorities were continuing to verify the circumstances and responsibility for the attack.
The incident has heightened concern among residents of Condoto, a municipality already affected by the broader humanitarian and security crisis in the San Juan region.
The attack comes less than two months after a magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck western Colombia on August 10, with its epicentre near San José del Palmar in Chocó. The earthquake caused extensive damage across western and central parts of the country, with communities in the region subsequently facing the additional pressure of armed conflict and displacement.
In July, the police station in nearby Tadó was also attacked with explosives carried by drones. Colombian authorities attributed that attack to the ELN; no police officers or civilians were reported injured, although the station suffered structural damage.
Colombia’s highest displacement figure
The attacks come as Colombia’s humanitarian authorities report continued displacement and confinement caused by the armed conflict.
According to the latest report from the Defensoría del Pueblo, 111 mass forced-displacement events were documented between January and August 2026, affecting 23,931 people. In August alone, 11 displacement events affected 5,976 people.
Cauca, where Tuesday’s attack occurred, recorded the country’s largest number of people affected by forced displacement during the first eight months of the year, with more than 6,700 people displaced. It was followed by Norte de Santander, with more than 4,350; Antioquia, with more than 3,150; Nariño, with more than 2,550; and Magdalena, with more than 1,900.
The figures require some context.
While the number of mass-displacement events increased from 83 during January-August 2025 to 111 during the same period this year, the number of people displaced fell sharply. The 2025 figure was exceptionally high because of the humanitarian crisis that erupted in Catatumbo, where tens of thousands of people were forced from their homes.
The Defensoría’s figures therefore point to an increase in the frequency of displacement events, rather than an overall increase in the number of people displaced compared with the same period last year.
More than 80,000 confined
The humanitarian picture becomes considerably larger when confinement is included.
Between January and August, the Defensoría documented 63 mass-confinement events affecting 80,369 people. Unlike displacement, confinement leaves communities in their territories but restricts their ability to move, obtain food and essential goods, access health services or maintain normal economic activity.
Chocó recorded the country’s highest number of people affected by confinement, with 15,641, followed by Cauca with 13,350, Putumayo with 12,646 and Caquetá with 11,651.
Taken together, more than 104,000 people were affected by either forced displacement or confinement during the first eight months of 2026.
The Defensoría says the continuing violence is principally associated with armed groups competing for territorial control. Its assessment identifies FARC dissident structures and the ELN among the groups having the greatest impact on events resulting in forced displacement.
Tuesday’s attacks in Cauca and Chocó illustrate the dual nature of the crisis: while armed groups increasingly use drones and explosives to strike security forces, civilians in the same territories continue to face the consequences through displacement, confinement and restrictions on movement.
For vulnerable communities in Cauca and Chocó, the attacks represent another layer of insecurity in regions already struggling with the consequences of Colombia’s prolonged internal conflict, as the country rceently marked the 10th anniversary of the Final Accord signed with FARC on November 24, 2016.
A decade after the agreement, FARC dissident factions that rejected or later abandoned the accord have gained vast territorial control, while the National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrilla continues to control drig trafficking corridors across the Chocó. The expansion of illegal armed groups, coupled with the increasing use of drones and improvised explosives, underscores the deep security and humanitarian crisis that was exacerbated during the four years of former President Gustavo Petro’s leftwing government.
