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🇨🇴 Colombia /Conflict & Security

Drone terrorism shakes Cauca as coordinated attacks in Cajibío, Patía and Inzá injure four security personnel

From El Tiempo · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • Coordinated attacks struck several areas of Colombia’s Cauca department, including an assault using about 25 explosive devices dropped by drones on a police substation in rural Cajibío.
  • Three officers were injured by shrapnel and taken to a hospital in Popayán, with medical reports indicating that their wounds were not serious.
  • Colombia’s Ombudsman’s Office said it had repeatedly warned of deteriorating security conditions and called for measures to protect civilians.

A police substation in rural Cajibío came under attack at dawn after drones dropped about 25 explosive devices, injuring three officers and deepening concern over renewed violence in Colombia’s Cauca department.

The assault took place around 6:08 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 6, in the El Carmelo district. The devices appeared to be aimed directly at the police facility. Jhan Fredis Muñoz Ariza, Lehabin Joset Suárez Gneco and Camilo Andrés Valdez suffered shrapnel wounds and were evacuated to San José University Hospital in Popayán. Medical reports indicated that their injuries were not serious.

Social leaders in Cajibío described explosions and gunfire from early in the morning and said several drones had been used to attack the station. “The community is worried about what may happen,” they said as the confrontation unfolded.

The community is worried about what may happen.

· Social leaders in CajibíoThe leaders described explosions and gunfire during the attack on the El Carmelo police substation.

The Ombudsman’s Office condemned the attack and expressed solidarity with the injured officers. It recalled that the risks in Cajibío had already been identified in Early Warnings 007 and 036 of 2023, as well as in a 2026 follow-up report on the earlier warning. Those reports pointed to worsening security conditions and the effects of armed groups’ activities on civilians, including attacks against security forces and the use of explosives launched by drones.

“The risk situation in Cajibío has been repeatedly warned about by the Ombudsman’s Office,” the institution said, urging authorities to adopt preventive and protective measures. It also called on illegal armed groups to stop actions that could endanger civilians and to respect international humanitarian law.

The risk situation in Cajibío has been repeatedly warned about by the Ombudsman’s Office.

· Colombia’s Ombudsman’s OfficeThe institution cited earlier warnings about deteriorating security conditions in the municipality.
About this summary

Originally published by El Tiempo in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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