At least 18 die in Colombia in two attacks attributed to FARC dissidents

President Petro blamed the attacks on dissident factions of the former Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrilla group that rejected a 2016 peace agreement

Security forces and forensic team members work next to the debris following the explosion of a cargo vehicle near a Colombian Aerospace Force base, in one of two attacks attributed to FARC dissident groups that caused multiple casualties, according to authorities, in Cali, Colombia August 21, 2025. REUTERS

At least 18 people died and more than forty were injured on Thursday after two attacks in Colombia attributed to different dissident factions of the former FARC guerrilla group, authorities reported.

In Cali, the country's third most populated city, a cargo vehicle with explosives detonated near a Colombian Aerospace Force base, in an incident that left six people dead and 71 injuries, according to the mayor's office.

Hours earlier, a National Police Black Hawk UH-60 helicopter participating in a coca leaf crop eradication operation was shot down in the municipality of Amalfi, in the department of Antioquia, leaving 12 officers dead.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro blamed the attacks on dissident factions of the former Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrilla group that rejected a 2016 peace agreement to end a prolonged internal conflict that has left more than 450,000 dead.