Two Blasts Rock Colombia a Day After New President's Inauguration
Two bombing attacks hit Colombia just one day after Abelardo de la Espriella was sworn in as president, leaving people wounded. The new leader had campaigned on a hard-line, no-leniency stance against violence.
Colombia was struck by two separate bombing attacks only a day after Abelardo de la Espriella took the oath of office as president. During his campaign, he pushed a tough, uncompromising approach to the country's persistent violence, vowing on social media that there would be no leniency for those responsible.
According to the army, one attack took place near the city of Cali, where dissident members of the former FARC guerrilla group used explosives to destroy a highway tollbooth. The second attack occurred roughly 1,000 kilometres away, in the northern department of Cesar, where a police officer was killed.
People were wounded in the blasts, though the exact number of injuries was not specified in the initial reports. The attacks came just as the new president began his term, having promised to crack down on organized crime and armed dissident groups still active in several parts of the country.
De la Espriella's campaign centered on a zero-tolerance message toward the decades-long violence that has plagued Colombia. The twin attacks underscore that the security situation remains volatile, presenting the incoming administration with serious challenges from its very first days in office.
