Think tank Indepaz said on Tuesday that Colombia’s police reported five massacres within 24 hours.
The massacres occurred in different parts of the country and cost the lives of 18 people, according to Indepaz.
Indepaz was still verifying reports of a sixth massacre, the think tank’s director Leonardo Gonzalez said on social media platform X.
In three of the cases, local police said that the victims were suspected of being involved in organized crime.
These accusations have not been independently verified.
All massacres took place in regions where illegal armed groups are considered a major threat to public security.
Indepaz, which monitors violence in Colombia, has registered as many as 86 massacres so far this year.
This number is similar to that of last year when the think tank registered 94 massacres that left as many as 300 people dead.