A prominent Colombian senator is shot and wounded at a Bogota campaign rally
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Colombian Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay, a possible candidate in the country's presidential election next year, was shot and wounded at a campaign rally in Bogota on Saturday, authorities said.
His conservative Democratic Center party released a statement calling it an 'an unacceptable act of violence.'
The attack took place in a park in the Fontibon neighborhood when armed assailants shot him from behind, his party said.
Images circulating on social media showed Uribe Turbay covered in blood, apparently with a head wound, being held by several people. So far, no official report has been released on the senator's condition.
The suspected shooter has been captured, Bogotá Mayor Carlos Galán said on the social platform X. But the federal government said it was offering a reward for the capture of those responsible.
Uribe Turbay is a right-wing senator and the son of a journalist who was kidnapped and killed during one of the most violent periods in the country, which has been ravaged by a drug war. He is considered a possible presidential candidate in Colombia's election in May 2026.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Colombia's would-be presidential contender Miguel Uribe shot, wounded
Colombian Senator Miguel Uribe, a possible candidate in the country's presidential election next year, has been shot and wounded in the country's capital, Bogota, according to authorities. The 39-year-old senator, who was shot on Saturday during a campaign event as part of his run for the presidency in 2026, is now 'fighting for his life', his wife, Maria Claudia Tarazona, said on X. Uribe is a member of the opposition conservative Democratic Center party, founded by former Colombian President Alvaro Uribe. The two men are not related. The Democratic Center party released a statement calling the shooting 'an unacceptable act of violence'. It said the senator was hosting a campaign event in a public park in the Fontibon neighbourhood in the capital when 'armed subjects' shot him from behind. It described the attack as serious, but did not disclose further details on Uribe's condition. A medical report from the Santa Fe Foundation hospital said the senator was admitted in critical condition and is undergoing a 'neurosurgical and peripheral vascular procedure'. Videos on social media showed a man, identified as Uribe, being tended to after the shooting. He appeared to be bleeding from his head. Colombia's Attorney General's Office, which is investigating the shooting, said the senator received two gunshot wounds in the attack, which wounded two others. The statement from the office said a 15-year-old boy was arrested at the scene with a firearm. The government said it is offering some $730,000 as a reward for information in the case. Colombia's presidency issued a statement saying the government 'categorically and forcefully' rejected the violent attack, and called for a thorough investigation into the events that took place. Leftist President Gustavo Petro sympathised with the senator's family in a message on X, and said: 'Respect life, that's the red line… My solidarity with the Uribe family and the Turbay family. I don't know how to ease their pain.' In a speech on Saturday night, Petro said that the investigation would focus on finding who had ordered the attack. 'For now, there is nothing more than hypotheses,' Petro said, adding that failures in security protocols would also be looked into. United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement that the US 'condemns in the strongest possible terms the attempted assassination' of Uribe, blaming Petro's 'inflammatory rhetoric' for the violence. Reactions poured in from around Latin America. Chilean President Gabriel Boric said that 'there is no room or justification for violence in a democracy'. And Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa said, 'We condemn all forms of violence and intolerance.' Both presidents offered solidarity to the senator's family. In Colombia, former President Uribe said that 'they attacked the hope of the country, a great husband, father, son, brother, a great colleague'. Uribe, who is not yet an official presidential candidate for his party, is from a prominent family in Colombia. His father was a businessman and union leader. His mother, journalist Diana Turbay, was kidnapped in 1990 by an armed group under the command of the late cartel leader Pablo Escobar. She was killed during a rescue operation in 1991. Colombia has for decades been embroiled in a conflict between leftist rebels, criminal groups descended from right-wing paramilitaries, and the government.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Colombian Presidential Candidate Shot in Bogotá
A Colombian right-wing opposition senator and candidate in next year's presidential election has been shot and wounded in Bogotá, according to several reports. Miguel Uribe Turbay, 39, a leader of the Democratic Centre party, was attending a campaign rally in the nation's capital when he was shot at around 5 p.m. local time. 'Today, in an unacceptable act of violence, Senator and presidential pre-candidate Miguel Uribe Turbay was the victim of an attack in a park,' the Democratic Centre party said in a statement. 'Armed individuals shot him in the back while he was participating in a campaign event.' 'We strongly condemn this attack, which not only endangers the life of a political leader but also threatens democracy and freedom in Colombia. We express our solidarity with his wife Claudia, his son, his family, and his work team.' Turbay was shot at El Golfito Park in Bogotá's Modelia neighborhood. Following the shooting, a gunfight reportedly broke out between the senator's bodyguards and the shooter, with at least one other person reportedly injured. Turbay was rushed to the hospital, though there was no immediate confirmation on his condition. Video footage posted on social media of the event shows the senator being supported by two men who are attempting to stem the bleeding as the audience at the event calls for an ambulance. Carlos Galán, the mayor of Bogotá, told reporters that Uribe is receiving emergency care and is thought to be in a critical condition. The 'entire hospital network' in Bogotá is on alert, Galán added, in case Uribe needs to be transferred. The suspected attacker, a 15-year-old, has been arrested. 'Democracy and peace in Colombia must prevail. We hope that justice is served and that the safety of all political and civilian leaders is guaranteed,' the Democratic Centre party statement concludes.
San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Iranian rapper Tataloo once supported a hard-line presidential candidate. Now he faces execution
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The tattoos covering Iranian rapper Tataloo's face stand out against the gray prison uniform the 37-year-old now wears as he awaits execution, his own rise and fall tracing the chaos of the last decade of Iranian politics. Tataloo, whose full name is Amir Hossein Maghsoudloo, faces a death sentence after being convicted on charges of 'insulting Islamic sanctities.' It's a far cry from when he once supported a hard-line Iranian presidential candidate. Tataloo's music became popular among the Islamic Republic's youth, as it challenged Iran's theocracy at a time when opposition to the country's government was splintered and largely leaderless. The rapper's lyrics became increasingly political after the 2022 death of Mahsa Amini and the subsequent wave of nationwide protests. He also appeared in music videos which criticized the authorities. 'When you show your face in a music video, you are saying, 'Hey, I'm here, and I don't care about your restrictions,'' said Ali Hamedani, a former BBC journalist who interviewed the rapper in 2005. 'That was brave.' The Iranian Supreme Court last month upheld his death sentence. 'This ruling has now been confirmed and is ready for execution,' judiciary spokesman Asghar Jahangir told reporters at a press conference last month. Activists have decried his looming execution and expressed concern for his safety after he reportedly tried to kill himself in prison. From a music video on a warship to exile Tataloo began his music career in 2003 as part of an underground genre of Iranian music that combines Western styles of rap, rhythm-and-blues and rock with Farsi lyrics. His first album, released in 2011, polarized audiences, though he never played publicly in Iran, where its Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance controls all concerts. Tataloo appeared in a 2015 music video backing Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard and Tehran's nuclear program, which long has been targeted by the West over fears it could allow the Islamic Republic to develop an atomic bomb. While he never discussed the motivation behind this, it appeared that the rapper had hoped to win favor with the theocracy or perhaps have a travel ban against him lifted. In the video for 'Energy Hasteei," or 'Nuclear Energy,' Tataloo sings a power ballad in front of rifle-wielding guardsmen and later aboard the Iranian frigate Damavand in the Caspian Sea. The ship later sank during a storm in 2018. 'This is our absolute right: To have an armed Persian Gulf,' Tataloo sang. Tataloo even issued an endorsement for hard-liner Ebrahim Raisi in 2017. That year, the two sat for a televised appearance as part of Raisi's failed presidential campaign against the relative moderate Hassan Rouhani. Raisi later won the presidency in 2021, but was killed in a helicopter crash in 2024. Fame in Turkey, prison back in Iran In 2018, Tataloo — who faced legal problems in Iran — was allowed to leave the country for Turkey, where many Persian singers and performers stage lucrative concerts. Tataloo hosted live video sessions as he rose to fame on social media, where he became well-known for his tattoos covering his face and body. Among them are an Iranian flag and an image of his mother next to a key and heart. Instagram deactivated his account in 2020 after he called for underage girls to join his 'team' for sex. He also acknowledged taking drugs. 'Despite being a controversial rapper, Tataloo has quite the fanbase in Iran, known as 'Tatalities,'' said Holly Dagres, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near-East Policy. 'Over the years, they've flooded social media with messages of solidarity for him and even campaigned for the rapper's release in the past when he was detained on separate charges.' Tataloo's rebellious music struck a chord with disenfranchised young people in Iran as they struggled to find work, get married and start their adult lives. He also increasingly challenged Iran's theocracy in his lyrics, particularly after the death of Amini following her arrest over allegedly not wearing the hijab to the liking of authorities. His collaboration 'Enghelab Solh" — 'Peace Revolution' in Farsi — called out Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei by name. 'We don't want tear gas, because there are tears in everyone's eyes,' he rapped. But the music stopped for Tataloo in late 2023. He was deported from Turkey after his passport had expired, and was immediately taken into custody upon arrival to Iran. Death sentence draws protests Tehran's Criminal Court initially handed Tataloo a five-year sentence for blasphemy. Iran's Supreme Court threw out the decision and sent his case to another court, which sentenced him to death in January. The rapper already faced ten years in prison for a string of separate convictions, including promoting prostitution and moral corruption. 'Tataloo is at serious risk of execution,' Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, the director of advocacy group Iran Human Rights, said in a statement. 'The international community, artists and the public must act to stop his execution.' Tataloo earlier expressed remorse at a trial. 'I have certainly made mistakes, and many of my actions were wrong,' he said, according to the state-owned Jam-e Jam daily newspaper. 'I apologize for the mistakes I made.' Tataloo married while on death row, his uncle said. Last month, Tataloo reportedly attempted to kill himself, but survived. His death sentence comes at a politically fraught moment for Iran as the country is at it's 'most isolated,' said Abbas Milani, an Iran expert at Stanford University. The Islamic Republic is 'desperately trying to see whether it can arrive at a deal with the U.S. on its nuclear program and have the sanctions lifted,' he said. Drawing the ire of Tataloo's fans is 'one headache they don't need,' he added. ___
