– CARLOS VILLALON
MADRID, December 21 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The guerrillas of the National Liberation Army (ELN) announced on Sunday a ceasefire on the occasion of the Christmas and New Year holidays which will be effective between December 24 and January 3.
“The National Liberation Army sends a clear message of peace to the Colombian people by declaring a unilateral ceasefire for the Christmas and New Year holidays,” the armed group released in a statement.
The ELN “instructs all its structures not to carry out offensive military operations against the State Armed Forces” between midnight December 24 and midnight January 3, 2026.
Furthermore, the group emphasizes that “the policy of the ELN is not to carry out military operations that affect the population”, but rather that “it is the state intelligence organs and the mainstream media attached to it that are waging a communications war trying to create this false image based on lies.”
The guerrillas, however, criticize the American military deployment in the Caribbean for “threatening, attacking and pillaging the people and nations of our continent.” “In these times of aggression from the North American Empire, the ELN is ready, alongside the patriots, to defend the sovereignty of Colombia,” he stressed.
This ceasefire announcement comes a few days after the ELN carried out a 72-hour armed strike – between December 15 and 17 – during which there was the installation of explosives on the roads, the placing of organization flags and attacks on military garrisons, including one in Villanueva, La Guajira, which left seven soldiers dead on December 18.
More than 80 events disrupting public order were recorded during this 72-hour armed strike, according to statistics from the Ministry of Defense.
The government of President Gustavo Petro has held negotiations for a peace agreement with the ELN, but these are currently suspended and, after the escalation of violence in the Catatumbo region, there are no signs of resumption.
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