Car-bomb attack targets southwest Colombia a day after conservative president takes office

A car bomb detonated in southwestern Colombia on Saturday, a day after conservative political newcomer Abelardo de la Espriella was inaugurated as the country's new president. The army attributed the attack to two groups that had left the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) after they rejected the 2016 peace agreement with the government.

The explosion occurred at a toll plaza along the Pan-American Highway, the primary road in Colombia's southwest region. Two security guards sustained minor injuries, with one stating the blast was caused by an abandoned vehicle driven away by a motorcycle. The affected stretch of road links the departments of Cauca and Valle del Cauca, with Cali, the capital of Valle del Cauca, hosting de la Espriella's swearing-in ceremony the previous day.

During his inauguration, de la Espriella outlined his security policy, warning that "illegal groups have two options: comply with the rule of law or face the security forces." The army reported that soldiers were securing the area and utilizing trained sniffer dogs to locate additional explosive devices. Nearby residents, including 57-year-old Elizabeth Zapata, woke up from the blast, with shards of glass embedded in her family members' bodies.

Cauca Governor Jorge Octavio Guzmán accused the attack of aiming to isolate his department to maintain control over vast tracts of land, calling it "systematic." Transportation Minister Elsa Noguera vowed to restore traffic and emphasized that Colombia would not surrender to violence or allow infrastructure destruction. De la Espriella also announced the transfer of 117 prisoners linked to the previous administration's peace talks to maximum-security prisons, citing the need to regain control and prevent organized crime from coordinating illicit activities from within prisons.