Colombia's Petro breaks off talks with ELN rebels | Conflict news

The move comes in response to ELN attacks in the country's northeast, which President Gustavo Petro has described as war crimes.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced the suspension of peace talks with the rebels of the National Liberation Army (ELN), accusing the group for committing war crimes in the Catatumbo area on Colombia's border with Venezuela.

“The dialogue process with this group has been suspended; The ELN has no will for peace,” Petro said in a social media post on Friday.

ELN fighters killed at least five members of the demobilized Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebel group on Thursday, Reuters reported.

The ELN has also launched attacks against a dissident FARC faction known as the Estado Mayor Central (EMC), which is engaged in separate peace talks with the government.

Carlos Ruiz Maciu, UN chief Antonio Guterres' representative in Colombia, condemned the attacks and called for civilians to be protected.

“I call on the armed groups to stop the violence,” Masiu said in an X post on Thursday. “The true will for dialogue requires respect for the lives of those who have chosen peace.

Last year Petro's government reached a a six-month truce and began a peace process with the ELN that was due to expire in February.

But clashes repeatedly marred the talks, which were suspended in September after a deadly ELN attack on government forces. Negotiations resumed later in 2024.

Colombia has endured a decades-long war with left-wing rebel groups, some linked to the drug trade.

The country reached a landmark agreement in 2016 that ended fighting with FARC and forced members of the group to lay down their weapons. But violence with the breakaway factions ELN and FARC, which did not recognize the 2016 pact, continues.

When the leftist Petro took office in 2022 he promised “total peace” in the country and tried to push for a ceasefire with armed groups.

“We will work tirelessly to bring peace and tranquility to every corner of Colombia. This is the government of life, of peace, and that's how it will be remembered,” Petro said in his inauguration speech.

Although his strategy has reduced violence, infighting between the rebels and clashes with the Colombian army continue.

“Armed groups continue to commit serious abuses against civilians and expand their presence throughout the country,” Human Rights Watch said in a recent report.

“Security forces and the judiciary often fail to effectively protect the public, provide victims with access to justice and meaningfully investigate and dismantle criminal groups.”

this week Guterres repeated his call for an end to the fighting.

“I call on the parties to establish a new ceasefire as soon as possible, with a robust monitoring and verification mechanism and a scope wide enough to improve the security of communities affected by the conflict,” the UN secretary-general said in a statement.