BOGOTA, Feb 11 (NNN-TELESUR) — Two people died and five others were injured due to a car bomb attack against the Colombian Army 21st Infantry Battalion in the Meta department.
The fatal victims are a motorcyclist who was passing by and Yover Rojas, a soldier who tried to prevent the entrance of the bomb car to the battalion’s facilities in the Wednesday attack.
“Attackers intended to enter the vehicle undercover as a food transporter,” Fourth Army Division Commander Major General Antonio Beltran stated, adding that Sergeant Adolfo Medina, Corporal Juan Rizo, and soldier Alejandro Rivas were wounded when the car exploited.
In the Meta department, the paramilitary group Colombia’s United Self-Defense Forces (AUC) operates along with the “Jorge Briceño” Front, which is an armed group that did not join the 2016 Peace accord signed between the Colombian State and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).
These groups usually extort officers and the civilian population to gain new territories for drug trafficking and illegal mining activities. “We are here with a clear and categorical message to these terrorists: we will not rest a minute until we capture them and ensure that peace of mind is restored in our department,” Meta Governor Juan Zuluaga stated.
On Jan 20, another car bomb exploded in Saravena municipality in the department of Arauca killing one person. On Sunday, a similar attack in the police station of Padilla town in the Cauca department left three citizens injured.
“We must redouble security efforts to prevent that our country continues to be bathed in blood,” Beltran stated, stressing that armed violence can only be counteracted with a comprehensive strategy.
