Colombia Road Bomb Kills 20, Injures 36 Amid Pre-Election Attacks | WPN World People News

A bomb attack struck a highway in Cauca Department in southwestern Colombia over the weekend, killing at least 20 people and injuring 36 others. Cauca Governor Octavio Guzman said on April 26 via the social media platform X that the explosion was “the most brutal and ruthless attack against civilians in decades” in the region. The blast left a crater of approximately 200 cubic meters. The victims included 15 women and 5 men, all adults, while several of the injured remain in intensive care.

The explosion occurred on the Pan-American Highway in Cauca, a region long plagued by instability. Multiple buses and vans were severely damaged, and some smaller vehicles were overturned by the blast. The military said the attackers first blocked the road using buses and other vehicles before detonating the explosive, clearly targeting civilian traffic. Armed Forces Commander Hugo Lopez described the incident as a clear act of terrorism, with both local and central authorities blaming armed groups for the attack.

The incident comes just over a month before the presidential election at the end of May, in which voters will choose a successor to incumbent leftist President Gustavo Petro. Petro condemned the perpetrators as terrorists on X and identified top wanted figure Ivan Mordisco as the mastermind behind the attack. In recent days, violence has surged in Cauca and neighboring Valle del Cauca, with 26 attacks reported over the past few days. The Ministry of Defense said it has strengthened military and police deployments to prevent armed groups from using violence to disrupt the democratic process ahead of the election.