Colombian President Gustavo Petro ordered the nation’s military commanders to investigate whether explosives used in a weekend roadside bombing that killed 20 civilians in southwestern Cauca department originated in neighboring Ecuador.
The attack, which the Colombian Army has attributed to the dissident FARC rebels, targeted civilians along a major roadway. Petro argued that drug trafficking organizations are deliberately shifting their tactics to sabotage the upcoming presidential election, whose first round is scheduled for May 31.
“They want to sabotage the election so the far-right wins through fear, and they are using their drug-trafficking fronts,” Petro said. “It’s a hypothesis that needs confirmation, but it’s becoming increasingly tight.”
The president further asserted that dissident groups such as the Central General Staff (EMC, in Spanish) and Segunda Marquetalia now operate under the command of a “drug trafficking junta” whose objective is to install far-right governments in both Colombia and Ecuador.
“It does not surprise me that the Cauca groups are trying to sabotage the election. What does the drug trafficking junta want? For the far-right to govern Colombia just as it does in Ecuador,” he reiterated.
Petro’s order comes amid a rapidly deteriorating diplomatic relationship with Ecuador. The crisis began when Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa imposed tariffs on Colombian goods, accusing Colombia of failing to combat drug trafficking and cross-border crime. Tensions escalated after Petro called former Ecuadorian Vice President Jorge Glas a “political prisoner” and accused Noboa’s government of letting him “starve to death”.
Both countries recalled their ambassadors last month. The rift widened further when Noboa alleged in an interview that Petro, during a May 2025 visit to the coastal city of Manta, met with individuals linked to notorious drug lord José Adolfo Macías, alias “Fito.” Petro responded by announcing a criminal defamation lawsuit against Noboa.
Author: Victor Miranda
Source: agencies
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