Death toll from bombing in southwest Colombia rises to 20
AP News • • general
Key Points:
- A bombing on a bus in Cajibio, southwest Colombia, killed 20 people, including 15 women and five men, and injured 36 others, with three in intensive care and five minors expected to recover.
- The attack occurred along the Pan-American Highway and is part of a recent surge in violence, with over two dozen incidents reported in the region in the past three days.
- The area is controlled by illegal armed groups competing over coca cultivation and drug trafficking routes, with authorities blaming dissidents from the former Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, specifically linked to a figure known as "Iván Mordisco" and the Jaime Martínez faction.
- Colombia's Armed Forces labeled the bombing a terrorist act, while the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights condemned the violence and urged investigations to ensure justice for the victims.
- In response, the regional governor declared three days of mourning to honor those killed in the attack.
