Colombian President Gustavo Petro has declared a state of emergency in the Catatumbo region in the north-east of the country due to escalating violence.
Petro made the declaration citing a humanitarian crisis following recent attacks by ELN guerrillas that have left at least 80 people dead and 11,000 displaced.

Condemning the guerrilla attacks, Petro said the ELN had become an armed group that was increasingly involved in drug trafficking and a paramilitary culture.

At the same time, the armed forces continue to work to rescue civilians threatened by the ELN, especially peace signatories and their families in the municipalities of Tiorama, El Tara, Convencion, San Calixto, Hacari and Tibo.

The Ombudsman’s Office called on ELN combatants and FARC dissidents fighting in the area to open humanitarian corridors to allow members of vulnerable communities to leave, and on the authorities to exhume bodies for full identification.