Colombia News | Colombia Reports
  • News
    • General
    • Analysis
    • War and peace
    • Elections
    • Economy
    • Culture
    • Sports
    • Science and Tech
  • Travel
    • General
    • Bogota
    • Medellin
    • Cali
    • Cartagena
    • Antioquia
    • Caribbean
    • Pacific
    • Coffee region
    • Amazon
    • Southwest Colombia
    • Northeast Colombia
    • Central Colombia
  • Data
    • Economy
    • Crime and security
    • War and peace
    • Development
    • Cities
    • Regions
    • Provinces
  • Profiles
    • Organized crime
    • Politics
    • Armed conflict
    • Economy
    • Sports
  • Lite
  • Opinion
  • About us
  • Support us
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletter
Colombia News | Colombia Reports
  • News
    • General
    • Analysis
    • War and peace
    • Elections
    • Economy
    • Culture
    • Sports
    • Science and Tech
  • Travel
    • General
    • Bogota
    • Medellin
    • Cali
    • Cartagena
    • Antioquia
    • Caribbean
    • Pacific
    • Coffee region
    • Amazon
    • Southwest Colombia
    • Northeast Colombia
    • Central Colombia
  • Data
    • Economy
    • Crime and security
    • War and peace
    • Development
    • Cities
    • Regions
    • Provinces
  • Profiles
    • Organized crime
    • Politics
    • Armed conflict
    • Economy
    • Sports
  • Lite
  • Opinion
News

Venezuela arrests eight Colombian ‘paramilitaries’

by Adriaan Alsema October 31, 2009

Colombia news - Tachira

Venezuela said on Friday it had arrested eight Colombians and two local residents suspected of paramilitary activities on the border between the two feuding South American neighbors.

The arrests in Venezuela’s western Tachira state were the latest incident in a region where Colombian guerrilla groups, paramilitary militia, drug-traffickers and other criminal gangs all operate and violence is rampant.

Venezuela’s Interior Minister Tarek El Aissami said the eight Colombians included a known paramilitary leader. Two guns of a type used by hitmen were captured with them, he said.

“All these people were intimidating the local population and especially threatening local businessmen,” he told state television. “These people were handing out pamphlets, as the paramilitaries do, saying social cleansing was going to start — that is to say murders and disappearances.”

The arrests came a few days after the discovery of 10 corpses, in the same area, of mainly Colombians shot dead under murky circumstances.

The Venezuelan minister did not directly link that case to Friday’s arrests.

Earlier this week, Caracas said it had arrested three men charged with spying for Bogota in a case that has worsened already dire relations between Venezuela’s socialist President Hugo Chavez and U.S. ally President Alvaro Uribe of Colombia.

paramilitariesVenezuela

Trending

  • Colombia’s hospitals collapsing, COVID-19 vaccination drive in chaos

  • Reported COVID-19 infections in Colombia skyrocket

  • The pandemic’s devastating impact on poverty in Colombia

Related articles

  • ELN goes diplomatic as Colombia and Venezuela bicker over border security

  • Venezuela warns border violence could spark war with Colombia

  • Colombia increases troops on border with Venezuela amid guerrilla violence

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkedin
  • RSS

@2008-2019 - Colombia Reports. All Rights Reserved.
Powered by Digitale Zaken and Parrolabs


Back To Top