logo
Colombian presidential candidate in critical condition following assassination attempt

Colombian presidential candidate in critical condition following assassination attempt

The Hill21 hours ago

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Miguel Uribe, a conservative Colombian presidential hopeful, was in critical condition on Monday after being shot in the head from close range during a rally over the weekend.
In a statement, doctors said the 39-year-old senator had 'barely' responded to medical interventions that included brain surgery following the assassination attempt that has had a chilling effect on the South American nation.
Uribe was shot on Saturday as he addressed a small crowd of people who had gathered in a park in Bogota's Modelia neighborhood.
On Sunday hundreds of people gathered outside the hospital where Uribe is being treated to pray for his recovery. Some carried rosaries in their hands, while others chanted slogans against President Gustavo Petro.
'This is terrible,' said Walter Jimenez, a lawyer who showed up outside the hospital with a sign calling for Petro's removal. 'It feels like we are going back to the 1990's,' he said, referring to a decade during which drug cartels and rebel groups murdered judges, presidential candidates and journalists with impunity.
Petro has condemned the attack and urged his opponents to not use it for political ends. But some Colombians have also asked the president to tone down his rhetoric against opposition leaders.
The assassination attempt stunned the nation, with many politicians describing it as the latest sign of how security has deteriorated in Colombia, where the government is struggling to control violence in rural and urban areas, despite a 2016 peace deal with the nation's largest rebel group.
The attack on Uribe comes amid growing animosity between Petro and the Senate over blocked reforms to the nation's labor laws.
Petro has organized protests in favor of the reforms, where he has delivered fiery speeches referring to opposition leaders as 'oligarchs' and 'enemies of the people.'
'There is no way to argue that the president … who describes his opponents as enemies of the people, paramilitaries and assassins has no responsibility in this,' Andres Mejia, a prominent political analyst, wrote on X.
On Monday, Colombia's Senate said it will suspend sessions for an undetermined number of days to show its solidarity with Uribe. The Senate was expected to vote this week on labor legislation that Colombia's president wants to enact through a referendum.
Also on Monday, in a joint statement nine opposition parties said they will turn to 'international entities' that can provide them with 'conditions of equality that have been denied' to them by Colombia's government. The parties also called on the Inspector General's office to create a commission that will guarantee transparency and security in elections.
The Attorney General's office said a 15-year-old boy was arrested at the scene of the attack against Uribe. Videos captured on social media show a suspect shooting at Uribe from close range.
The suspect was injured in the leg and was recovering at another clinic, authorities said. Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez added that over 100 officers are investigating the attack.
On Monday, Colombia's Attorney General Luz Adriana Camargo said that minors in Colombia face sentences of up to eight years in detention for committing murders.
Camargo acknowledged that lenient sentences have encouraged armed groups to recruit minors to commit crimes. However, she said that Colombian law also considers that minors who are recruited by armed groups are victims, and is trying to protect them.
'As a society we need to reflect on why a minor is getting caught up in a network of assassins, and what we can do to stop this from happening in the future,' she said.
Camargo said officials had not identified any death threats against Uribe prior to Saturday's assassination attempt. But on Monday, Uribe's lawyer said he has sued the director of the National Protection Unit, a government agency that assigns security guards and bullet proof vehicles to politicians and human rights leaders.
Uribe launched his presidential campaign in October. His lawyer, Victor Mosquera, said the National Protection Unit ignored multiple requests by Uribe to have his security detail expanded as he campaigned.
'His security detail had to be improved,' Mosquera said in a press conference. 'We have to investigate whether the attack (on Uribe) was a consequence of negligence.'
In a message on X on Monday, Petro wrote that Uribe's security detail was 'strangely' reduced from seven to three bodyguards on the day of the assassination attempt, and said he asked police to investigate.
Petro said there are still many theories about the motive for the attack.
____
Follow AP's coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Trump says he will ‘liberate' Los Angeles in speech to mark the 250th anniversary of the Army
Trump says he will ‘liberate' Los Angeles in speech to mark the 250th anniversary of the Army

Hamilton Spectator

time30 minutes ago

  • Hamilton Spectator

Trump says he will ‘liberate' Los Angeles in speech to mark the 250th anniversary of the Army

FORT BRAGG, N.C. (AP) — President Donald Trump called protesters in Los Angeles 'animals' and 'a foreign enemy' in a speech at Fort Bragg on Tuesday as he defended deploying the military on demonstrators opposed to his immigration enforcement raids. Trump, in his most aggressive language yet regarding the protests in Los Angeles, used a speech ostensibly supposed to be used to recognize the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army to denounce the demonstrators while repeating his false statements about the 2020 election being rigged and attacking the previous commander-in-chief, former President Joe Biden. The Republican president, who sees the military as a critical tool for domestic goals, has used the recent protests in Los Angeles as an opportunity to deploy the National Guard and U.S. Marines over the objections of California's Democratic governor to quell disturbances that began as protests over immigration raids. While protesters blocked a major freeway and set cars on fire over the weekend in Los Angeles, the demonstrations in the city of 4 million people have largely been centered in several blocks of downtown. 'We will not allow an American city to be invaded and conquered by a foreign enemy. That's what they are,' Trump said Tuesday. Trump's heated rhetoric came has he's left open the possibility of invoking the Insurrection Act, one of the most extreme emergency powers available to the president. It authorizes him to deploy military forces inside the U.S. to suppress rebellion or domestic violence or to enforce the law in certain situations. The president also called Los Angeles 'a trash heap' with 'entire neighborhoods under control' of criminals and said the federal government would 'use every asset at our disposal to quell the violence and restore law and order.' 'We will liberate Los Angeles and make it free, clean, and safe again,' Trump added. Trump also announced his administration was restoring the names of seven military bases that were given the monikers of Confederate leaders until being changed by the Biden administration. Fort Pickett, Fort Hood, Fort Gordon, Fort Rucker, Fort Polk, Fort A.P. Hill and Fort Robert E. Lee will have their names changed back, Trump said. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth already brought back the names of Fort Bragg and Fort Benning in Georgia. 'Can you believe they changed that name in the last administration for a little bit?' Trump said. 'We'll forget all about that.' Before he spoke, Trump watched the U.S. Army demonstrate a missile strike, a helicopter assault and a building raid, a preview of the kind of show of American military might he's expected to display in the nation's capital for a massive military parade this weekend . Fort Bragg, which is located near Fayetteville, North Carolina, serves as headquarters for U.S. Army Special Operations Command. Highly trained units like the Green Berets and the 82nd Airborne are based there. The atmosphere resembled a state fair with military flair. Inflatable slides and attractions for children were set up in a field, with artillery, trucks and helicopters parked on another section of the lawn. Right outside the security checkpoint — but still on the base — two stands were selling Trump political hats, T-shirts and other paraphernalia. Hegseth and Army Secretary Dan Driscoll were also at Tuesday's event, along with service members, veterans and their families. Hegseth, who has said he's ridding the military of 'woke,' told the crowd at Fort Bragg that the U.S. is 'restoring the warrior ethos' to its armed forces. 'We're not a college or a university. We're not interested in your woke garbage and political correctness,' Hegseth said, drawing cheers. Driscoll, who spoke to the crowd earlier in the afternoon, called Trump 'the greatest recruiter in our Army's history.' Trump has promoted the Army's anniversary as a reason to hold a military parade in Washington on Saturday, which is also his 79th birthday. Tanks and other vehicles will roll down city streets in a reminder of how the Republican president is reshaping the armed forces after returning to the White House this year. Trump has authorized the deployment of 4,000 National Guard soldiers to the city over the objections of California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat. About 700 Marines were deployed to the Los Angeles area, but had not yet been sent to respond to the protests. California sued Trump over the deployment, with the state attorney general arguing that the president had 'trampled' the state's sovereignty. California leaders accused Trump of fanning protesters' anger, leading crowds to block off a major freeway and set self-driving cars on fire. ___ Price reported from Washington. Associated Press writer Lolita Baldor in Washington contributed to this report. Follow the AP's coverage of President Donald Trump at . ___ This story has been corrected to reflect that the 82nd Airborne Division, not the U.S. Army Rangers, is based at Fort Bragg. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .

Associated Press seeks full appeals court hearing on access to Trump administration events
Associated Press seeks full appeals court hearing on access to Trump administration events

Yahoo

time32 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Associated Press seeks full appeals court hearing on access to Trump administration events

The Associated Press on Tuesday asked for a hearing before the full U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, seeking to overturn a three-judge panel's ruling that allowed the Trump administration to continue blocking AP access to some presidential events — a four-month case that has raised questions about what level of journalistic access to the presidency the First Amendment permits. Three judges of that court on Friday, in a 2-1 decision, said it was OK for Trump to continue keeping AP journalists out of Oval Office or other small events out in retaliation over the news outlet's decision not to follow his lead in changing the Gulf of Mexico's name. He had sought a pause of a lower court's ruling in AP's favor in April that the administration was improperly punishing the news organization for the content of its speech. 'The decision of the appellate panel to pause the district court's order allows the White House to discriminate and retaliate over words it does not like, a violation of the First Amendment,' AP spokesman Patrick Maks said. 'We are seeking a rehearing of this decision by the full appellate court because an essential American principle is at stake.' A hearing before the full court would change the landscape — and possibly the outcome as well. The two judges who ruled in Trump's favor on Friday had been appointed to the bench by him. The full court consists of nine members appointed by Democratic presidents, and six by Republicans. The news outlet's access to events in the Oval Office and Air Force One was cut back starting in February after the AP said it would continue referring to the Gulf of Mexico in its copy, while noting Trump's wishes that it instead be renamed the Gulf of America. For decades, a reporter and photographer for the AP — a 179-year-old wire service whose material is sent to thousands of news outlets across the world and carried on its own website, reaching billions of people — had been part of a small-group 'pool' that covers a president in places where space is limited. Now, an AP photographer routinely gets access to these events, while text reporters rarely do. ___ David Bauder writes about media for the AP. Follow him at and

Mexico's security chief says drug cartels are recruiting former Colombian soldiers
Mexico's security chief says drug cartels are recruiting former Colombian soldiers

Associated Press

time33 minutes ago

  • Associated Press

Mexico's security chief says drug cartels are recruiting former Colombian soldiers

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico's most powerful drug cartels are recruiting former Colombian soldiers, leading Mexico to turn away dozens of Colombians trying to enter the country in recent weeks, Mexico's security chief said Tuesday. Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch's comments followed the arrest last week of 12 Colombians in the western state of Michoacan in connection with a mine attack that killed eight Mexican soldiers. Through contact with Colombian authorities, García Harfuch said that nine of the 12 individuals were former soldiers and the remaining three were civilians with weapons training. Close underworld ties have long existed between organized crime groups in Mexico and Colombia. For many years, Colombian drug traffickers produced cocaine and heroin and moved it themselves by boat or plane to the United States. Later, as U.S. authorities cracked down on trafficking in the Caribbean, Mexican cartels' power grew as they moved Colombian drugs over land and via small plane to the U.S. border and smuggled them across. Decades of internal conflict in Colombia have produced tens of thousands of former soldiers, paramilitaries and guerrillas with weapons training and combat experience. Colombians have been hired guns in the 2021 assassination of Haiti President Jovenel Moïse and in the ongoing war in Ukraine. In recent weeks, Mexican immigration authorities rejected 69 Colombians trying to enter Mexico, some of whom in interviews said 'they had been coopted by some criminal group.' García Harfuch said Tuesday that both the Sinaloa and Jalisco New Generation cartels were recruiting Colombians. Colombia's ambassador to Mexico, Fernando García, said last week that he feared the arrests would negatively impact ongoing negotiations with Mexico to reduce the number of Colombians prevented from entering the country at Mexican airports. In March, the Colombian government had said that talks with Mexico were progressing with mechanisms for Mexico and Colombia to verify information about those seeking to enter Mexico. In October 2023, Mexican authorities arrested eight Colombians also in Michoacan state, who allegedly were helping to make explosives dropped by cartel drones. Former soldiers from other countries have worked with Mexican cartels too. More than a decade ago, the fearsome Zetas, whose leaders came from Mexico's military, recruited former members of Guatemala's special forces Kaibiles in their ranks. ____ Follow AP's coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store