{
  "id": 299351,
  "title": "Right-wing lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella sworn in as new Colombian president: All you need to know about him",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/08/right-wing-lawyer-abelardo-de-la-espriella-sworn-in-as-new-colombian",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-08T05:52:37.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Live Mint",
    "slug": "live-mint",
    "url": "https://www.livemint.com/news/world/rightwing-lawyer-abelardo-de-la-espriella-sworn-in-as-new-colombian-president-all-you-need-to-know-about-him-11786167448968.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Abelardo de la Espriella became Colombia's president on Friday, taking office amidst concerns over the country's financial stability and rising violence. He inaugurated his conservative administration outside Bogotá, the capital, for the first time in recent history. In his speech, De la Espriella declared, \"The time for restoring order, authority and freedom has begun\" and vowed to build large prisons, enlist the military against criminal organizations, and eradicate coca crops with herbicides. He also stated that efforts to negotiate with criminal groups were \"exhausted,\" emphasizing that members of such groups would face either cooperation with the law or confrontation from the Colombian state. De la Espriella, a 48-year-old lawyer, is known for representing paramilitaries, businessmen, and politicians accused of corruption and received U.S. support for his administration, which plans to spend $1 billion to combat crime and strengthen the energy sector.",
  "summary": "Abelardo de la Espriella has taken office as Colombia's president, succeeding leftist Gustavo Petro. He has pledged a tough crackdown on crime and insurgency. According to Live Mint, he also secured a $1 billion US financial package to support his administration's crime-fighting efforts.\n\nDe la Espriella's inauguration was attended by a number of right-wing leaders from Latin America, including Argentina's President Javier Milei, Chile's José Antonio Kast, Ecuador's Daniel Noboa, and Honduras' Nasry Asfura, as reported by El Pais. The event was also attended by delegations from the US and Israel.\n\nDe la Espriella has vowed to wage war on drug-running guerrillas and strengthen ties with the US, according to Punch Nigeria and South China Morning Post. He has promised to bomb jungle cocaine labs, build \"mega prisons\", and slash the size of the state. His presidency marks a shift to the right for Colombia.",
  "key_points": [
    "Abelardo de la Espriella sworn in as Colombia's new president",
    "Conservative administration inaugurated outside Bogotá",
    "Plans to combat crime and strengthen energy sector"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}