As Colombia anxiously monitors the critical condition of Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay following an assassination attempt on Saturday, coordinated attacks by FARC dissidents rocked the country’s southwest on Tuesday, leaving at least four dead, dozens injured, and escalating a growing sense of fear among residents in the departments of Cauca, Valle del Cauca, and capital city Cali.
The National Police is attributing the violence to dissident factions of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), who launched an offensive that targeted police installations, municipal buildings, and critical infrastructure in what officials described as a “terrorist escalation.”
Colombia’s Police Chief, General Carlos Fernando Triana, confirmed that at least 16 attacks were carried out across multiple towns. These included car bombs, explosives planted near police stations, and sabotage along major highways. “These are coordinated actions against the institutions of the state, particularly the police,” said Triana during a press briefing. “We are responding with maximum force and coordination.”
Cauca Bears the Brunt
Among the hardest-hit regions were the department of Cauca and towns in the Patía River Valley. In El Bordo, near the municipality of El Patía, a truck bomb exploded in the early morning hours, destroying part of the mayor’s office and a nearby police station. The blast also damaged municipal offices, shops, and homes, injuring at least six civilians.
“It’s heartbreaking to wake up to this destruction,” said a local community leader who asked not to be named for security reasons. “They’ve destroyed the town hall, shops, homes—everything. It’s always the most vulnerable people who pay the price for this war.”
Similar scenes unfolded in Corinto, where a car bomb detonated in the central plaza, damaging over 25 buildings, including the mayor’s office. Mayor Adrián Díaz Hurtado reported no fatalities but said the destruction was significant. “We are assessing the damage and providing support to affected families and business owners,” he said.
Smaller explosions were reported in Buenos Aires, Timbiquí, and Argelia – municipalities where the state has long struggled to maintain territorial control. In Caloto, a 24-year-old police officer, Jair Gonzalo Gurrute, was killed by a sniper while on duty. Another officer lost his life after stepping on an explosive device at a checkpoint near the Villa Rica toll station.
Cali Gripped by Fear
In Valle del Cauca, authorities discovered six gas cylinders marked with FARC insignia along the Cali–Palmira highway near the Estambul toll booth shortly after 4:00 a.m. Road closures followed, temporarily disrupting traffic to Alfonso Bonilla Aragón International Airport. Bomb disposal units were able to clear the area by 6:30 a.m.
In the Pacific port city of Buenaventura, residents were jolted awake by a powerful explosion near the Bolívar Immediate Attention Command (CAI), causing significant damage to the building. While the cause of the blast remains under investigation, witnesses believe it was an intentional attack on security forces.
In Cali, Colombia’s third-largest city, multiple police installations were attacked across neighborhoods including Meléndez, Manuela Beltrán, and Los Mangos. Two civilians were killed, and at least nine others injured, including a five-year-old child and two police officers, according to the city’s emergency responders.
Mayor Alejandro Eder condemned the violence as “a wave of terrorism” and called for calm. “That bombs are being detonated in Cali is a matter of the utmost gravity,” stated Eder. “The military and police must be given the resources and backing necessary to restore public order. There are civilian casualties, and we must act swiftly.”
Cali’s Secretary of Security, Jairo García, announced a reward of up to COP$300 million (approximately USD$80,000) for information leading to those responsible. “We are on red alert around all police installations,” he said. “These cowardly attacks against our communities will not go unanswered.”
General Triana also noted the timing of the attacks coincide with the anniversary of the death of Leider Johany Noscué, alias “Mayimbú,” a notorious FARC dissident commander killed by security forces in 2022.
Uribe Turbay Fights for Life
The violence comes amid heightened political tension following the attempted assassination of Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay, a prominent leader of the conservative Democratic Center party. The 39-year-old senator remains in critical condition at Santa Fe Hospital in Bogotá after being shot at close range by a 15-year-old.
On Monday afternoon, Colombia’s House of Representatives held a solemn mass in his honor, and his seat in the Senate was draped with the colors of the national flag. Outside the hospital, supporters have gathered nightly for candlelight vigils, praying for his recovery.
While there is no direct link between the attack on Uribe Turbay to the violence in the country’s southwest, the back-to-back incidents have fueled public fears that the government cannot defuse this phase of armed escalation and political instability.
Uribe Turbay, and his fellow representatives of the Centro Democrático party, have been staunch critics of Petro’s “Total Peace” agenda, claiming that dissident factions and other illegal armed groups – including the ELN guerrilla – have used Petro’s amnesty policy as a cover to expand territorial control of drug trafficking routes.
As Colombia braces for further violence, President Petro is under intense pressure to respond decisively to the surge in violence and de-escalate his polarizing national discourse.
