Colombia Rebel Commander âJesús Santrichâ Killed, Venezuelan Officials Say
The guerrilla leader, once a supporter of Colombiaâs historic peace deal, then a strong opponent, had become a symbol of the countryâs fraught path to peace.
Seuxis Hernández Solarte, known by the nom de guerre Jesús Santrich, being released from prison in Colombia in 2019.Credit.Juan Barreto/Agence France-Presse â Getty Images
May 18, 2021
BOGOTÃ, Colombia â A prominent former commander of Colombiaâs largest guerrilla group, who was known by the nom de guerre Jesús Santrich, has been killed in Venezuela, according to three senior Venezuela government officials close to the countryâs security forces.
Ex-FARC leader Jesús Santrich killed in Venezuela, says dissident group 2 minutes read
Bogotá, May 18 (EFE).- A former Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) leader, Jesús Santrich, has been killed in Venezuela, his dissident group said Tuesday.
Santrich (birth name Seuxis Paucias Hernández Solarte) once helped lead the FARC, but then became a negotiator for the peace deal struck with the government in 2016, which ended 50 years of war. He later abandoned the deal and returned to arms.
The rebel leader died while traveling in a truck in Venezuela when it was ambushed by Colombian commandos with rifle fire and grenades, the group named Segunda Marquetalia said in a statement, which could not be verified.
Colombia: Concerning reports of disappearances and sexual violence against protesters
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Despite growing national and international condemnation, the militarized response and police repression of mostly peaceful demonstrations continues in different cities across Colombia. Police have used force indiscriminately and disproportionately, and there are alarming reports of sexual violence and disappearances, Amnesty International denounced today. Enforced disappearance and sexual violence perpetrated by authorities are crimes under international law that any state should investigate and prosecute.
“The Colombian authorities must guarantee the right to peaceful assembly and refrain from stigmatizing and repressing the demonstrations that have been taking place across the country since 28 April. Guaranteeing peaceful demonstrators’ right to life and their safety must be central to the authorities’ response, in accordance with international human rights standards,” said Erika
7 May 2021, 13:08 UTC
Despite growing national and international condemnation, the militarized response and police repression of mostly peaceful demonstrations continues in different cities across Colombia. Police have used force indiscriminately and disproportionately, and there are alarming reports of sexual violence and disappearances, Amnesty International denounced today. Enforced disappearance and sexual violence perpetrated by authorities are crimes under international law that any state should investigate and prosecute.
“The Colombian authorities must guarantee the right to peaceful assembly and refrain from stigmatizing and repressing the demonstrations that have been taking place across the country since 28 April. Guaranteeing peaceful demonstrators’ right to life and their safety must be central to the authorities’ response, in accordance with international human rights standards,” said Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas director at Amnesty International.