Security update
October 17: a bomb hits police in rural Cali, and 27 rifles found in Santa Marta
Here's what happened since the last update, and what each one means.
1SignificantA bomb hits police in rural Cali
At about 8:10 AM on Saturday, October 17, an explosive device went off as police were traveling on the road to Tres Cruces, in the Guacas sector of Montebello, in rural western Cali. 3 police officers were hurt by shrapnel and taken to hospitals in the city. Their condition hasn't been released. Semana reports that early accounts said 2 were hurt in a first blast and the third in a second explosion, as bomb-squad police arrived. The police say "unidentified people criminally set off an explosive device." No group has been named and no one has been arrested.
What it meansCali's Personería (the city's rights office) says it's the second explosives attack on the security forces and civilians in the city in less than a week, after the grenade thrown at police on October 15. If the early accounts are right, the second blast hit the police who came to deal with the first one.
2SignificantA bus burned on the Málaga–Cerrito road in Santander
On the morning of Saturday, October 17, a public bus on the road between Málaga and Cerrito, in Santander, was set on fire after its passengers were forced off. The authorities say no one was hurt. Douglas Arenas, Santander's director of security, said the bus "is set on fire by 2 men with a handgun," and that it was apparently the ELN. The road crosses the Almorzadero páramo, on the border with Arauca and Norte de Santander. Semana reports another bus was burned near Cerrito in May, also blamed on presumed ELN members.
What it means for us2 men with a handgun were enough to stop and burn a bus. It's the second bus burned near Cerrito this year. Anyone traveling by bus on the mountain roads between Santander and Arauca is on that route.
3Significant27 rifles found in a cache in Santa Marta
On October 17, the president announced that police in Santa Marta seized a cache of the Libardo Vergel Front of the Sierra Nevada Conquistadores (Autodefensas Conquistadoras de la Sierra Nevada, ACSN): 27 rifles, a grenade launcher, 19 magazines and 728 rounds. Semana reports the operation was coordinated with the DEA, and the police say the weapons were meant for attacks on the security forces. No arrests were mentioned. The weapons were handed to the Fiscalía.
What it meansThese are rifles of the group that shut Santa Marta down for 4 days in September. The police say they were meant for attacks on the security forces.
4SignificantA Jaime Martínez cell taken apart in Cali and Jamundí
Semana reported on October 17 that the Army, the police and the Fiscalía's investigators (CTI) took apart an urban cell of the Jaime Martínez front, part of Iván Mordisco's FARC dissidents, after more than 2 months of intelligence work. Raids in Cali and Jamundí led to 2 captures on warrants, and a minor was recovered. Alias "Barbas" is accused of leading the urban militias of the Ricardo Velásquez column and of gathering intelligence for the April 24, 2026 attacks on the Pichincha military base in Cali and the Codazzi battalion in Palmira. Alias "Ashley" is accused of handling logistics and moving material used in attacks on police posts in Cali's Los Mangos and Meléndez neighborhoods. Both are charged with aggravated conspiracy, terrorism and weapons crimes.
What it meansThe dissidents have people living inside Cali who scout targets and move material for attacks on the city's bases and police posts. A minor was part of this cell.
5Significant3,688 kilos of cocaine at sea, and an ELN cocaine complex destroyed
On the afternoon of October 17, the Navy, with Air Force support and in coordination with the Attorney General's Office (Fiscalía), intercepted a Go Fast boat 129 nautical miles west of Cartagena. 5 people were captured and 3,688 kilos of cocaine were seized. The president put its value at nearly US$170 million. Separately, El Tiempo reported on October 17 that the Army and the police's anti-narcotics unit destroyed a cocaine complex of 4 buildings in rural Sardinata, Norte de Santander, which it attributes to the ELN's Juan Fernando Porras Martínez front. They seized 859 kilos of cocaine and 160 kilos of coca base. Military intelligence says the complex could produce up to 3 tons of cocaine a month.
What it meansIf military intelligence is right, the ELN was making cocaine by the ton in Norte de Santander. These seizures hit the money the armed groups run on.
6NotableRewards of up to 150 million pesos in the Jamundí attack
Valle's governor, Dilian Francisca Toro, offered a reward of up to 100 million pesos for information on the people who attacked former Jamundí mayor Andrés Felipe Ramírez on October 16 and killed his bodyguard from the National Protection Unit (UNP), Felipe López. Jamundí's city hall added up to 50 million pesos. The governor asked the Fiscalía and the police investigators (Sijín) for a high-level special team, and the city hall says investigators have some videos and relevant information. Interior Minister Rodrigo Lara said the UNP director told him Ramírez's protection had already been strengthened. No one has been arrested.
What it meansThe investigators have video, and the money on offer is meant to get someone to talk. Who sent the gunmen, and why, is still unknown.
On social media
His most-seen security post since the last update was at 8:15 AM, on Jamundí: "I categorically reject the attack against Andrés Felipe Ramírez... I deeply regret the murder of Felipe López, a member of the UNP." He said he ordered the police to find the people who carried it out and the people who ordered it: "This crime will not go unpunished." By about 6:25 PM it had 130,300 views, 4,200 likes and 93 replies. Supporters were far ahead in the replies. The top reply (72 likes): "Petro NEVER condemned the attack on Miguel Uribe. Today at last we have a president." Another (38 likes): "A high-mountain battalion would be an excellent option, Mr. President." Another (30 likes): "Jamundí has been taken over by narco-criminals for a long time, it's a bandits' stronghold, they have to be finished off, urban and rural areas." A critic (1 like): "It's been 3 months and still nothing bites them... Your warmongering talk only brought back much more violence than there already was." His 2:27 PM post on the 27 rifles in Santa Marta had 49,500 views and 3,700 likes; the top reply (20 likes): "Santa Marta was a stronghold of crime, thank you President for restoring order." His 4:23 PM post on the cocaine at sea had 21,700 views and 1,300 likes, with few replies. At 5:48 PM he posted an Army operation in Puerto Rico, Meta, against Calarcá's dissidents: 1 killed and 3 captured, among them alias "Junior Rojas," whom he calls the front's second-in-command. That's his claim; no news report was found yet, and one reply said the report was a month old. The new theme: calls for a high-mountain battalion in Jamundí. As of about 6:30 PM, he hadn't posted about the bomb in rural Cali or the bus burned in Santander. 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.