With explosive devices, the ELN attacked a police post in Norte de Santander

The Norte de Santander Police reported that, at noon on Monday, April 4, armed men threw explosives at the police post in the municipality of La Playa de Belén. According to the authorities, after the events they would be members of the National Liberation Army (ELN).

According to the commander of the Norte de Santander Police, Colonel Carlos Martínez, “two men arrived at the scene firing, from very close to the security perimeter of the police post, from where they launch an explosive device at the uniformed.”

Apparently, according to the officer, the attack was perpetrated by members of the ELN as a mechanism of retaliation to the operations carried out by the Police and Army in the Catatumbo against drug trafficking.

At the moment, authorities in Norte de Santander do not report any uniformed personnel injured after the attack. However, Colonel Martínez reported that two members of the ELN were injured in the middle of the crossfire with the Army, so at the moment authorities are checking hospitals whether patients with gunshot wounds have been admitted.

For his part, the Secretary of Government, Eduardo Claro June, reported that the explosive wave only left material damage to the homes that were in the vicinity of the police station in the municipality of La Playa.

For now, the authorities are on full alert to threats from various armed groups such as the ELN, FARC dissidents and 'Los Pelusos', as RCN Radio knew.

The attack on the police station in the municipality of La Playa de Belén has not been the only one that occurred in recent weeks. Last Thursday, March 24, the municipal mayor, Ider Humberto Álvarez García, was intercepted by armed men, who shot at the vehicle in which he was mobilizing over the sector known as La Virgen.

According to the authorities, the local president was mobilizing along the road to Ábrego with his security scheme and the secretary of government of the municipality held a meeting in which they would discuss issues related to an early warning issued by the Office of the Ombudsman for the presence of armed groups in the area, when they were attacked.

In total, the vehicle received nine bullet wounds, one of which affected the bodyguard of the mayor of La Playa de Belén, so it had to be transferred to the Emiro Quintero Cañizares regional hospital for medical attention.

On who would be behind the attack, the commander of the Second Division of the National Army, Omar Esteban Sepúlveda Carvajal, said in a dialogue with W Radio that, in a preliminary manner, those accused of the attack against Álvarez García would be members of GAOR 33.

“We know that ELN and GAOR 33 take every opportunity to make their terrorist actions felt,” commander Sepúlveda told the Bogotá radio station.

For its part, the Prosecutor's Office asked to investigate the facts, bearing in mind that the mayor of La Playa de Belén already has a history of threats and extortion since the beginning of his term of office.

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