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“At slightest 27 members of a leftist guerrilla radical in Colombia were killed successful clashes with a rival faction successful a combat over power of a jungle country successful southwestern Colombia,” subject authorities reported connected Sunday (January 18, 2026).
“The clashes, which person been the astir convulsive successful caller months, occurred successful the agrarian country of the municipality of El Retorno, successful the section of Guaviare, 300 kilometres (186 miles) southwest of Bogotá,” a military root said.
“The portion is strategical for cocaine accumulation and trafficking. The clashes took spot betwixt a faction of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) led by Néstor Gregorio Vera, known by his warfare sanction Iván Mordisco, and different led by Alexander Díaz Mendoza, alias Calarcá Córdoba,” a second subject root specified.
Both groups were portion of the alleged Central General Staff but separated successful April 2024 owed to internal disputes. The casualties were each from Vera's group, according to the 2 subject sources, who spoke on information of anonymity. A person from Mendoza's radical besides confirmed the clashes and the 27 deaths to Reuters.
The guerrilla faction led by Díaz Mendoza is presently engaged successful bid talks with President Gustavo Petro, portion Vera's radical continues hostilities aft the authorities suspended a bilateral ceasefire. These now-rival factions had rejected a 2016 bid statement that allowed astir 13,000 FARC members to wantonness armed conflict and reintegrate into nine aft disarming.
Colombia's equipped conflict, spanning implicit six decades and chiefly financed by cause trafficking and amerciable mining, has resulted successful much than 4,50,000 deaths and millions displaced, with Petro's bid efforts presently stalled.
