An employee of the Piendamó fire department reported that even more victims were expected
A bomb attack this Saturday (25) left ten dead and 12 seriously injured in a region with a strong presence of guerrillas in Colombia, amid a series of attacks and just over a month before the presidential elections, the local fire department reported.
The explosion was recorded on a road in the department of Cauca and hit more than ten vehicles. Authorities attribute the attack to dissidents from the extinct FARC guerrilla who did not adhere to the 2016 peace agreement and spread terror across the country.
“So far, there are 10 dead and 12 seriously injured. But it is expected that there will be many more”, said, in a call with AFP, an employee of the Piendamó fire department.
A police source told AFP that there are missing people that rescue teams are trying to locate.
Octavio Guzmán, governor of the department of Cauca, published a video on the social network X that shows victims on the ground and vehicles overturned and destroyed after the attack.
Other videos shared on social media show severe damage and holes in the road, with witnesses reporting being thrown several meters by the force of the impact.
Terrorists
“Those who attacked and killed […] they are terrorists, fascists and drug traffickers”, wrote President Gustavo Petro on the social network X.
“I want the best soldiers to face them,” he added.
The left-wing president named Iván Mordisco, the country’s most wanted criminal, who he compares to cocaine baron Pablo Escobar, as responsible.
After coming to power in 2022, Petro unsuccessfully tried to negotiate peace with the main armed organizations, which have strengthened their ranks in recent years.
On Friday, an attack on a military base in Cali, the country’s third largest city, left two injured and began a series of attacks in the departments of Valle del Cauca and Cauca. In the last two days, 26 attacks have been recorded in these departments, according to Hugo López, commander of the military forces.
In 2025, violent attacks against public forces in the same region left civilians dead and marked the worst wave of violence in the country in the last decade.
Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez assured this Saturday that the military and police presence had been reinforced in the area to combat the attacks.
Elections
The offensive increases the climate of tension as the May 31 presidential election approaches, in which security is one of the central themes, following the assassination of right-wing pre-candidate Miguel Uribe, shot during a rally in June 2025.
The political heir of left-wing president Gustavo Petro, senator Iván Cepeda, is the favorite for the election, followed by right-wing conservatives Abelardo de la Espriella and Paloma Valencia, according to polls.
The three reported that they received death threats and have strong security arrangements.
In Colombia, it is common for armed groups, which finance themselves through illicit activities such as drug trafficking, illegal mining and extortion, to try to exert violent pressure on the presidential election.
