October 14: a soldier dies from the Catatumbo minefield, and new rules for the protests

1A soldier dies from the minefield at the Catatumbo bombing

Professional soldier José Oswaldo Zapata Cuéllar died in a clinic in Cúcuta. He lost both legs when a minefield went off as troops went in to secure the area after the bombing of a Front 33 camp, which began at 10 PM on October 10. Captain Geovanny Guerrero Montes and soldier Luis Ángel Ceballos Ramírez had minor injuries. The commander of the Military Forces, General Erick Rodríguez, said on X: "Our commando José Oswaldo Zapata Cuéllar was murdered with cruelty by criminals of Structure 33."

What it meansThe same operation killed 4 people, among them a 16-year-old girl the authorities say was forced into the group. After a bombing, troops still have to go in on foot, and the ground around the camp was mined.

2New rules for protests: Decree 1525

On Tuesday afternoon, October 13, the government signed Decree 1525 of 2026, and the president posted it that evening. Police must stay at least 4 meters from a march. They can step in when they see weapons carried or used, people being held, damage to infrastructure, or attacks on people outside the protest, including public servants, police, medical staff and journalists. The rules apply for the first time at the October 14 march. The president: "To citizens who protest peacefully, all guarantees. To the violent, the full weight of the law, with respect for due process." Interior Minister Rodrigo Lara: "Social protest is respected, but blockades are not tolerated."

What it means for usPolice now have a written list of when they can move in. If a march near you turns violent, they will, and anyone close by can get caught in it. Keep your distance from the marches on October 14.

3Drones wound 5 civilians at a police substation in Valle

At about 3:20 PM on Tuesday, October 13, armed men fired on the police substation in El Queremal, a rural village of Dagua, Valle del Cauca, and drones dropped explosives on it. 5 civilians were hurt. No police were hurt, and the substation was damaged. The Valle police blame the "Ricardo Velásquez" mobile column of the Jaime Martínez front of the FARC dissidents. The same day, drones hit the police substation in Potrerito, Jamundí.

What it meansThat's 2 drone attacks on police substations in Valle in 1 day. In El Queremal, the people hurt were civilians.

On social media

His decree post drew 305,000 views, 18,000 likes and 811 replies. The replies back him, with low likes and insults on both sides. The most-liked reply (30 likes) just called him illegitimate. The most-liked support: "Excellent, hard on the criminals. No more abuses from these leftist guerrillas disguised as pacifists." (16 likes) The critics: "A decree that will be struck down very soon. And you all know it, it's unconstitutional." (4 likes) Another posted a picture with the words: "I remind the police officers who abuse force. Governments pass and the investigations stay..." (7 likes) An hour earlier, he posted a video of a blockade on Avenida Circunvalar near a Universidad Distrital campus in Bogotá: "This act of urban terrorism lasted an hour, when the ESMAD arrived, these bandits ran off to hide. We're ready to defend Colombia, by reason or by force." It drew 259,000 views and 12,000 likes. We couldn't find that blockade in the news. One critic answered with the 41 detainees who escaped in Santa Marta: "Abelardo let his buddies go free." (2 likes) He also posted that police, the army and the DEA seized a ton of cocaine of the Conquistadores of the Sierra, buried in 2 drums near Tayrona Park. We haven't found it in the news yet. One reply asked: "2 drums? What kind of drums can hold 500 kilos of the drug each?" (0 likes) As of 6:35 AM, he hadn't posted about the soldier who died or the drone attack in El Queremal. The new themes: the decree is unconstitutional, and warnings to police about abuse of force. This comes from the top replies on X, not a poll.