Colombia’s illegal armed groups grew in 2023 – secret security report
Bogota, Colombia Reuters Colombia’s four main illegal armed groups grew during 2023 as they consolidated territorial control financed by drug trafficking and illicit gold extraction, according to a secret security report seen by Reuters. The report focused on leftist guerrilla group the National Liberation Army (ELN), crime gang the Clan del Golfo and two dissident […]
Ecuador President decrees state of emergency in five provinces
Quito, Ecuador Reuters Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa on Tuesday decreed a state of emergency in five coastal provinces because of “internal armed conflict”. The measure marks the second security-based emergency declaration by Noboa, who took office in November on promises to turn around a deteriorating security situation that has led to a spike in violent […]
Some 5,000 people affected by fighting in Colombia’s south-west – government
Bogota, ColombiaReuters Combat between three Colombian armed groups in the country’s southwest has forced some 5,000 people either to flee or take refuge from the fighting, the government’s high peace commission said on Tuesday. The Awa Indigenous group in particular has been severely affected by the fighting between two groups of FARC dissidents – Segunda […]
Essay: Most east African refugees are hosted close to borders – it’s a deliberate war strategy
Researcher KARA ROSS CAMARENA, in an article first published on The Conversation, says locating refugee camps close to borders opens them to exploitation from armed groups…
Searching for the disappeared must be priority at Colombia peace talks -official
Bogota, Colombia Reuters The search for tens of thousands of people who were disappeared during Colombia’s six-decade conflict must be a priority at peace and surrender talks with rebel groups and crime gangs, the top official tasked with finding them said on Wednesday. At least 104,600 people have been forcibly disappeared in connection with Colombia’s […]
Colombian armed groups and gangs have 17,600 members, intelligence reports find
Bogota, Colombia Reuters More than 17,600 people are members of the four major armed groups and 23 gangs with which the Colombian Government hopes to reach peace or surrender deals, two security agency reports seen by Reuters show. The newly updated figures, which have not been reported before, are an effort to understand the current […]
Colombia must speed dismantling of armed groups – United Nations
Bogota. Colombia Reuters Colombia should speed the dismantling of armed groups to reduce violence and human rights violations, and implement the country’s 2016 peace accord with the FARC rebels, the in-country representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said on Friday. Colombia’s nearly six decades of armed conflict between the armed forces, […]
UN warns over Libya threats
Tunis, Tunisia Reuters The United Nations Libya mission said on Tuesday it was deeply concerned by what it called an ongoing mobilisation of forces and threats to use force to resolve the country’s political crisis. Libya has been enmeshed in a stalemate for months after the eastern-based parliament swore in a new prime minister despite […]
Forced displacements soared in Colombia in 2021, UN agency reports
Bogota, ColombiaReuters The forced displacement of communities soared in Colombia last year amid increased attacks against civilians by illegal armed groups and higher levels of violence, a UN agency said in a report on Wednesday. At least 73,974 people were displaced from their homes across the Andean country in 2021, more than double the previous […]
Number of children recruited into conflict grows in West and Central Africa
Dakar, Senegal Reuters West and Central Africa has recorded the highest number of children recruited into conflict of any region in the world, and the number is growing, the UN children’s agency said on Tuesday. Children are used as fighters as well as messengers, spies, cooks, cleaners, guards and porters by armed groups from Mali […]