Since last week, the toll of the operation amounts to “eight dead and 17 wounded” in the ranks of the armed organization, explained the commander of the armed forces units in Cauca prefecture
At least eight rebels have been killed in southwestern Colombia, where a large-scale military operation against the main dissident faction of the former FARC began last week, a military source said on Tuesday, days after a mutual ceasefire was suspended by the government.
Since last week, the operation’s toll has amounted to “eight dead and 17 wounded” in the ranks of the armed organization, the commander of the armed forces units in Cauca prefecture, General Federico Mejia, explained to AFP, explaining that these numbers were reported in intercepted communications between insurgents.
The losses of the rebels, General Mejia explained, were recorded in the Canyon del Micai, a mountainous enclosed area of ​​the province, a stronghold of the organization EMC (“Central General Staff”), the main dissident faction of the former FARC (“Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia”). , who reject the 2016 peace deal and have taken up arms again.
Yesterday Tuesday, a calm and orderly situation prevailed in the Mikai Gorge, an AFP team reporting on the ground found.
On Sunday, reporters went to the community of El Plateado, under the control of the EMC, but not far from army positions, a few hundred meters from its borders. And there seemed to be calm, although in recent days there have been reports of sporadic fighting on mountains overlooking the community, according to an EMC officer in the area.
On March 17, the government of President Gustavos Petros announced the suspension of a mutual ceasefire agreement with the group in three counties following a series of bloody incidents, including the killing of an elderly indigenous tribal leader by EMC members . The ceasefire continues to apply in other counties, notably along the border with Venezuela and in the section of the Amazon that runs through Colombia.
And last week, the military announced that it was launching a large-scale offensive, dubbed “Operation Mandus,” aimed at preventing “EMC’s criminal activity in the southwestern part of the country.” As part of the operation, a total of 32,000 military personnel are expected to be deployed in the three neighboring prefectures affected by the ceasefire interruption. All three are wetted by the Pacific and are characterized as zones where large quantities of cocaine are produced.
Source :Skai
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