Colombia’s Week of Rupture
Monday’s deadly earthquake presents the country’s new president with his first big test.
Colombia faced a week of turmoil as a deadly 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck the country, claiming the lives of at least 273 people and leaving thousands missing. The quake's epicenter was in the Chocó department, a region between Bogotá and the Pacific coast. Despite initial resistance, President Abelardo de la Espriella eventually accepted search and rescue help from Ecuador, El Salvador, Israel, and the United States.
This shift in policy mirrored the new administration's alignment with U.S. interests, as past moves included ending diplomatic ties with Cuba and Nicaragua, and welcoming Israeli sovereignty in the Golan Heights. As the crucial 72-hour window for saving survivors closed, heavy equipment had yet to arrive in remote cities, leaving locals to question why assistance was selectively accepted based on "ideological considerations."
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