Colombia’s Foreign Minister Maria Angela Holguin has denied reports of a clash between Colombian and Venezuelan forces in the northern border area Thursday morning.
Unofficial sources claiming that a Venezuelan soldier had been killed after crossing the border illegally were rebuffed by Holguin during a press conference Thursday afternoon. “There was no confrontation between the Venezuelan Guard and the Colombian Army … there were no deaths, no injuries,” she said.
The Venezuelan Guard did cross the border, said Holguin, reportedly chasing Colombian oil smugglers. Shots were fired but when the Venezuelan soldiers came across the Colombian army they realized they had entered Colombia and turned back.
The minister said that she was sent to the area, in the northern Santander department, to investigate and dispel any doubts over the facts.