Army attributes death of four soldiers in Uribe (Meta) to FARC dissidents

The GAO Residual 'Jorge Briceño' would be responsible for the crime of the four soldiers in the rural area of the municipality of La Uribe in the department of Meta, according to information provided by the Colombian Army.

According to General Antonio Beltrán, commander of the Army's Fourth Division, the military personnel were attacked indiscriminately with explosive devices and rifle bursts while carrying out control operations in this area of the department of Meta.

“The facts were brought to the attention of the competent authorities, who will be responsible for carrying out the urgent acts and establishing the responsibilities for this event,” said General Beltrán, who sent a message of condolence to the families of the uniformed.

They were identified as Deputy First Sergeant Javier Torres Hoyos and professional soldiers José Joaquín Bonilla Torres, Luber Iván Sánchez Silva and Daniel Eduardo Morales González; in addition, another soldier was injured and transferred to the Military Hospital in the capital of Meta.

For General Beltrán, the events in Uribe (Meta) were “a terrorist act” that constitutes a flagrant violation of human rights and international humanitarian law, and he also stated that this terrorist attack will be denounced to the international community.

He also said he was confident in the speedy recovery of the wounded soldier and indicated that military operations are being carried out in Uribe in order to find those responsible for this criminal act that mourned the National Army.

In this regard, Defense Minister Diego Molano on his Twitter account described the perpetrators of this attack on the military as “cowards” and assured that the authorities will capture the murderers of the four soldiers.

UN envoy calls for thorough investigation into military operation in Putumayo

Carlos Ruiz Massieu, head of the Verification Mission, requested a thorough investigation into the Army operation in Putumayo, which has been questioned for alleged human rights violations, including the deaths of civilians reported as casualties in combat and alleged members of armed organizations.

“The department of Putumayo has been affected by violence in recent weeks. I stress the importance of a thorough investigation by the authorities into the deaths of 11 people, including indigenous people and community leaders in the context of an operation against members of an illegal armed group in Puerto Leguizamo,” Massieu said before the UN Security Council and before the intervention of the President Ivan Duque in that body.

Before discussing the situation in Putumayo, the head of the Verification Mission stated that two weeks ago he visited Arauca. “Region facing a critical situation, more than 100 people were killed and thousands forcibly displaced this year,” and he therefore raised before the Council the call of social organizations to take measures to reduce violence.

“Arauca is an example of the situation of violence in several forgotten regions that have to deal with illegal armed groups, illegal economies and the limited presence of the State,” added Ruiz Massieu, a situation that Putumayo would also experience.

“Violence is also taking a heavy toll on indigenous and Afro-Colombian communities, with forms of murder, displacement and recruitment of minors,” added the head of the Verification Mission.

In this regard, he also urged the implementation of the Peace Agreement, which has a range of interrelated mechanisms, not only to end violence with the FARC, but also deep-rooted factors that generate violence in the country.

“Progress towards achieving rural reforms, which have been needed for so long, and against narcotics, especially through voluntary crop substitution, will strengthen reintegration and security,” said the representative to the UN.

The operation in the Alto Remanso village, in Puerto Leguizamo in Putumayo, was justified by the Minister of Defense, Diego Molano, due to the presence of what he called “narcococaleros”, that is, related to illicit crops.

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