Colombia announces death of top FARC dissident commander

President Gustavo Petro of Colombia announced Saturday the death of 'Alias Marlon,' identified as the second-in-command to Iván Mordisco, the leader of the largest FARC dissident faction that rejected the 2016 peace accords. The State General Staff (EMC), which Mordisco leads, is among the most significant illegal armed actors in Colombia, a country grappling with its worst violence crisis in a decade.

Petro stated on the social media platform X that "Alias Marlon, second to alias Iván Mordisco, has fallen in combat." Marlon was reportedly the head of the EMC dissidents in the southwestern Cauca department and was responsible for an April explosives attack that killed approximately twenty civilians in the region. The leftist president added, "It is the hardest blow to the mafia's armed structures that we have dealt in western Colombia," where he claimed "this organization has been defeated."

“

Alias Marlon, second to alias Iván Mordisco, has fallen in combat.

Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez confirmed Marlon's death, stating in a video that military and police forces "killed in combat... alias Marlon, the most dangerous assassin, terrorist, and recruiter of minors in the southwest of the country." The minister noted that the guerrilla leader was among the world's most wanted criminals and was sought by the United States for drug trafficking and his role in coordinating cocaine and arms trafficking with Mexican cartels.

Marlon's death was announced the day before Colombians head to the polls for a runoff election to choose Petro's successor. The two remaining candidates are leftist Senator Iván Cepeda and far-right candidate Abelardo de la Espriella.

“

It is the hardest blow to the mafia's armed structures that we have dealt in western Colombia, where this organization has been defeated.