BOGOTA (Reuters) – National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrillas are targeting community leaders and former members of a separate rebel group in the northeastern region of Catatumbo, Defense Minister Ivan Velasquez said on Sunday, as local authorities said 80 people had been killed in the violence.
The violence – the bloodiest in years – prompted President Gustavo Petar last week to charge the ELN with war crimes and end peace talks with the group.
The ELN has launched an offensive against former members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebels who demobilized under a 2016 peace deal, their families and some community leaders, said Velasquez from the eastern city of Cucuta.
Colombian rebel groups have historically fought against the government, right-wing paramilitaries and each other for control of territory and illicit sources of income such as drug trafficking. Armed groups also often target civilians who oppose their activities.
Velasquez said 8,000 people have been displaced by the fighting. Although he said the death toll was 60, the governor’s office in Norte de Santander province (BME:) and the human rights ombudsman said the death toll was 80.
The ELN said in a statement on Sunday that demobilized FARC rebels had returned under arms and that the victims were not civilians.
