Colombia’s military will resume operations against guerrilla group ELN after negotiators failed to secure the extension of a ceasefire, according to defense minister Ivan Velasquez.
The ceasefire that took force in August last year expired months after peace talks between the government and the guerrillas got bogged down.
According to the ELN, the peace talks are in trouble because the government of President Gustavo Petro has failed to comply with agreements made in the talks.
In a statement, the guerrilla negotiators said that the government promised to have the ELN removed from its list of illegal armed groups in June.
The ELN said that it would not attack State security forces until August 23 and meet with government negotiators to try to possibly resume the ceasefire and substantive peace talks.
Until then, “the ELN will use its right to legitimate self-defense if our guerrilla units are attacked or if the State forces proceed to threaten our positions.”
The government’s negotiation team did not immediately respond to the ELN ultimatum.
Talks with the ELN have been difficult since they first started in 2017 and have been on hold since February because of internal tensions in the guerrilla organization that have been welcomed by the government.
Much to the chagrin of the ELN’s central command, the government promoted the separation of a major guerrilla unit in the southwestern Nariño province, the “Comuneros del Sur.”
Guerrillas from southwest Colombia abandon ELN
While talks with the ELN’s main negotiators have been bogged down, Nariño authorities in Nariño have been holding parallel talks with the dissidents.
The end of the ceasefire between the military and the ELN could result in renewed violence in regions that — for the first time in decades — have been able to live in relative peace over the past year.
The resumption of attacks against the ELN comes weeks after the government announced the end of a ceasefire with guerrilla group EMC in the south of the country.