Colombia’s National Liberation Army imposes a curfew in Colombian territories in response to Trump’s ‘threats’
Colombia’s National Liberation Army (ELN), which controls cocaine-producing areas, has imposed a three-day curfew on residents starting Sunday, citing threats of imperialist intervention from US President Donald Trump.
The US president has warned that cocaine-producing countries in Latin America could be attacked, specifically targeting Colombia, which he said, “manufactures cocaine and sells it to us”.
Trump has also deployed large military forces in the Caribbean Sea, off the coast of Venezuela, a country headed by Nicolás Maduro whom Trump accuses of involvement in drug trafficking.
In Colombia, the National Liberation Army (ELN) announced on Friday evening that it would conduct military exercises to defend the country, and would impose restrictions on the movement of residents from 11:00 GMT on Sunday until the same hour on Wednesday.
This is aimed at preventing accidents between civilians and the military.
Inspired by Argentine revolutionary leader Ernesto “Che” Guevara, the far-left armed group said, “We, the Colombian People’s Forces, oppose the threats of imperialist intervention in our country, a new phase of Trump’s neo-colonial plan” that “aims to intensify the plunder” of “natural resources”.
The armed group, which has about 5,800 members, is active in more than 20% of Colombia’s more than 1,100 municipalities, according to the Insight Crime think tank.
From his part, the leftist Colombian President Gustavo Petro derided the ELN’s statement.
“Protesting against anyone isn’t by killing villagers and depriving them of their freedom,” he wrote on X, adding, “Gentlemen of the National Liberation Army, you are calling for an armed strike not against Trump, but in service of the drug dealers who control you”.
His defense minister, Pedro Sánchez, also denounced the move as a criminal coercion and warned that Colombian security forces will be present everywhere, on every mountain, in every forest, on every river.
Catatumbo, on the border with Venezuela, is one of the strongholds of the National Liberation Army (ELN), which controls cocaine production in the region, which has the world’s largest coca leaf crop.
Several reports indicate the presence of elements of this armed group on the other side of the border, where they are cooperating with the Venezuelan military forces.
However, the Venezuelan president categorically denies these accusations.
His Colombian counterpart, Petro, called on Donald Trump in early December to respect his country’s sovereignty, writing on X: “Attacking our sovereignty is like a declaration of war, so don’t destroy two centuries of diplomatic relations”.
The ELN is the latest Colombian armed group since the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) disarmed and turned into a political party following the 2016 peace agreement.
Other FARC splinter groups, which haven’t signed the peace agreement, continue to exert influence in the vast country.
The ELN negotiated with Petro’s government for two years, but the talks broke down in January due to the fighting, an attack on a rival faction of the former FARC killed more than 100 people, and Bogotá reissued arrest warrants for senior ELN commanders.
The armed group finances itself through cocaine smuggling, illegal mining activities, oil theft, and kidnappings for the purpose of financial extortion.
