Car bomb attack rattles Colombia after inauguration of hardline president

What the report says

Colombian authorities reported a car bomb attack on a toll plaza along the Pan-American Highway in Cauca, in the southwest of the country, on Saturday, one day after Abelardo de la Espriella was sworn in as president. Al Jazeera reported that the military blamed two armed groups that split from the FARC, the former rebel movement that laid down arms under a 2016 peace deal. Officials said the blast caused minor injuries to two security guards, and a witness described the attacker fleeing the scene after abandoning the vehicle.

The new administration quickly promised a forceful response. Transportation Minister Elsa Noguera said the government would not yield to violence and linked the attack to de la Espriella’s pledge to restore order and crack down on armed groups. De la Espriella, a political newcomer and hardline conservative, campaigned on ending what he called an exhausted dialogue-based approach and replacing it with a more militarized strategy.

Al Jazeera noted that Colombia has faced decades of conflict involving guerrillas, paramilitaries, state forces and criminal networks, alongside longstanding drug-trafficking challenges tied to coca production. The attack underscores the security pressures facing the new president as he begins a four-year term after narrowly winning June’s runoff election. It also comes amid reported support from the United States for Colombia’s security efforts, even as rights groups warn that tougher tactics can increase the risk of abuses.