The National Liberation Army ordered the confinement of civilians while it carried out military exercises in the face of US “threats of intervention”. The group is also present in Venezuela and controls cocaine production. The Colombian guerrilla of the National Liberation Army (ELN) established a curfew this Friday (12/12) so that civilians living in the regions under its control can carry out military exercises in response to “threats of intervention” from the President of the United States, Donald Trump. According to a press release published by the group, the population must be confined for 72 hours from the early hours of Sunday.
“Civilians must not mix with the military to avoid accidents,” says the text broadcast on rebel propaganda networks, in which it asks communities not to travel on roads or rivers.
The guerrilla group, which controls key regions for drug production, said it would fight in the “defense” of Colombia, the world’s largest producer of cocaine, according to the UN.
In a context of tensions linked to the military offensive led by Washington in the Caribbean and the Pacific, Trump does not rule out attacking drug trafficking bases on Colombian soil. The Marxist guerrillas accuse the American president of having a “neocolonial plan” with which they “intend to intensify the plunder of Colombia’s natural resources.”
Extensive territory control
The ELN held peace talks with Gustavo Petro’s government for two years, but the Colombian president’s “total peace” policy was halted in January as rebel attacks persisted.
The group did not, however, specify whether the armed group would affect all regions where it has a presence and control capacity. The ELN occupies more than 20% of Colombia’s 1,100 municipalities, according to the crime study center Insight Crime. One of his strongholds is the Catatumbo region, where he controls cocaine production.
In addition, several studies highlight the presence of guerrillas in eight states of Venezuela, where they operate in alliance with the military forces of the Nicolas Maduro regime.
In curfews like this, the ELN typically restricts the mobility of civilians and orders businesses to close, in addition to carrying out attacks and threatening anyone who does not respect the restrictions. The guerrillas, however, assured that their units “will respect civilians and their property”.
Tensions between the United States and Colombia increase
In November, the guerrillas also questioned the attacks by American military forces against ships allegedly transporting drugs and which have left more than 80 dead so far, denouncing that these actions aim at “intimidation and blackmail to impose their logic of looting”.
In the press release published Friday, the ELN defends the need for “decisions concerning the country to be taken in Colombia and not in Washington.”
Faced with Trump’s threats, the Colombian president also demanded last week that the Americans not threaten Colombia’s sovereignty. Social media clashes between Petro and Trump have led Bogota and Washington to face the worst diplomatic crisis in decades.
gq (AFP, EFE, DW)
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