Thirteen Colombian National Police officers were killed last week when their Blackhawk helicopter was brought down in Antioquia during an eradication mission. Colombian authorities are describing the incident as a terrorist attack.
According to CNN, the helicopter was attacked by a drone as it supported manual eradication of illicit crops in the region. Antioquia Governor Andrés Julián Rendón posted a video appearing to show the aircraft crashing into a hillside. Colombian Defense Minister Pedro Arnulfo Sánchez attributed the attack to the 36th Front of the Estado Mayor Central (EMC), dissidents of the disbanded Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).
National Police Director Carlos Fernando Triana Beltrán confirmed the deaths of 13 officers and condemned the attack as a “terrorist act.” Military forces responded the following day with artillery strikes aimed at neutralizing the EMC group responsible.
The tragedy came the same day as a separate attack in Cali, where a car bomb exploded near the Marco Fidel Suárez military air base. The blast killed at least six people and injured 78 others. The Colombian Aerospace Force called the incident a “terrorist attack.” Authorities have not confirmed whether the two events were connected.
President Gustavo Petro initially suggested the Gulf Clan criminal syndicate might have been involved in the Antioquia incident, noting it followed the seizure of 1.5 tons of cocaine in the region, but later placed responsibility with the 36th Front of EMC.
Authorities in Cali have since increased security, restricting truck movements and securing the city’s entrances and exits. Mayor Alejandro Eder announced a reward of nearly $100,000 for information about the bombing.
(AI was used in part to facilitate this article.)