BOGOTA: Eight people were killed in a car bombing in Colombia yesterday which was immediately blamed on leftist FARC rebels currently engaged in peace talks with the government.
President Juan Manuel Santos condemned the blast in the small town of Inza as an “insane terrorist attack.”
The victims — two civilians, a police official and five members of the military — died when a vehicle loaded with explosives blew up as locals prepared for a farmer’s market, the army said in an official statement.
Seven soldiers were wounded in the early morning incident but details on their condition were not released.
The army said the bombing was the work of the FARC’s Sixth Front.
It “clearly shows that the FARC continue to systematically commit acts of terrorism against civilians,” the statement said.
Colombia’s police chief, General Rodolfo Palomino, traveled to Inza and told reporters the attack was “further evidence of indiscriminate FARC terrorism.”
In addition to the two civilians, those killed included an army major, two lieutenants, a sergeant, a soldier and a police sergeant, according to the army statement.
“We are in mourning,” tweeted General Juan Pablo Rodriguez, the commander of Colombia’s armed forces.
The blast occurred as Bogota and the leftist Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), established in 1964, attempt to negotiate an agreement to end their near 50-year-old conflict.
AFP
