Security update
October 16: a grenade at police in Cali, and a 13-year-old killed in Antioquia
Here's what happened since the last update, and what each one means.
1A grenade thrown at police in Cali, 5 officers hurt
At about 8:10 PM on Thursday, October 15, a man threw a fragmentation grenade from a bridge at police officers who were checking people's records in the Ciudad Córdoba neighborhood of Cali. 5 officers were hurt by shrapnel. El Tiempo reports their condition is stable. The police captured a 23-year-old man at the scene. His name and any link to an armed group haven't been released.
What it meansPolice doing routine checks on city streets are now targets. Cali's police are asking residents to call the 123 line with information.
2A 13-year-old boy killed in El Carmen de Viboral
At 8:30 PM on Wednesday, October 14, 2 men on a motorcycle shot and killed Agustín Alzate Marín, 13, in the La Alambra neighborhood of El Carmen de Viboral, Antioquia, after taking his backpack in a struggle. The authorities say the 2 men are reportedly from the Gulf Clan (Clan del Golfo), which is fighting a gang called El Mesa for control of crime money in the area. The mayor, Hugo Jiménez Cuervo, ruled out a robbery. Antioquia's governor, Andrés Julián Rendón, offered a reward of up to 200 million pesos. No one has been arrested.
What it meansEl Colombiano reports the boy had left school 2 weeks earlier and had reportedly been pulled into selling drugs for El Mesa. Investigators believe the backpack held drugs. The gangs use children to sell drugs, and that makes the children targets in their wars.
356 captured in one operation in Barranquilla
On October 16, the president reported that 587 police and soldiers took part in Operation Shield 360 (Operación Blindaje 360) in Barranquilla. As of 4:00 AM, there were 34 raids and 56 people captured: 28 caught in the act and 28 on court orders. The charges: conspiracy (16), theft (13), drug trafficking (9), illegal weapons (8), homicide (3) and other (7). He says leaders of the Gulf Clan, Los Costeños, Los Pepes, Los del Freseo and Los Porteños fell. None of them have been named. He wrote: "We're going to finish off the narco-terrorist and criminal groups in Barranquilla with all the force and strength of the State."
What it meansMost of the 56 arrests are for conspiracy and theft, and 3 are for homicide. Until the leaders are named, it isn't clear how senior they are.
4The president orders a review of bodyguard details
On Thursday, October 15, at the Interior Ministry, the president ordered a review of state protection details and the removal of those that aren't properly justified, as part of his cuts to public spending. The details are run by the National Protection Unit (UNP), which protects people threatened because of their political, social, journalism or human rights work. He said: "I don't accept a single security detail granted without basis, no matter who the beneficiary is." He said people who really need protection will keep it, whatever their politics. No number of details, savings or timeline was given.
What it meansThreatened social leaders and journalists depend on these details. Who decides what counts as justified hasn't been said.
On social media
His most-viewed security post since the last update came at 8:24 PM on October 15: the Army and police GAULA rescued a 63-year-old civil engineer, Sergio Pablo Gutiérrez Mejía, kidnapped in Santa Marta on October 14, and captured 7 adults and 2 minors accused of demanding 50 million pesos. That's his claim; we haven't found it in the news yet. By about 7:20 AM it had 62,000 views, 3,900 likes and 87 replies, almost all with no likes. One asked: "What punishment should the 7 adults who were captured get, and what's going to happen to the 2 minors?" His 6:04 AM post on Barranquilla had 49,700 views, 3,300 likes and 218 replies in its first hour, with supporters far ahead. "Exactly what I voted for." (20 likes) "This one IS a president who cares about his people's security. He works into the early morning." (15 likes) "You can criticize the show, but not the effectiveness." (10 likes) A critic, about the video: "You go and say challenging things to people in handcuffs. Some bravery. If you're so brave, why don't you go out and capture them yourself?" (1 like) By about 7:40 AM, the post had 53,500 views and 230 replies, and a reply about Soledad and Galapa, the towns next to Barranquilla, had risen to 30 likes: "Mr. President, you have to go after Soledad and Galapa, because otherwise we're getting nowhere. Those bandits hide out there." The new theme: his videos as a "show". Supporters say the results count more. As of about 7:20 AM, he hadn't posted about the grenade in Cali or the boy killed in El Carmen de Viboral. This comes from the top replies on X, not a poll.
I support most of this. But it doesn't go far enough. These groups use any space they're given to reset and grow. They need to be crushed, not contained.