An explosive device detonated on a bus traveling the Panamerican Highway in Cajibio, Cauca, on Saturday, killing 13 people and injuring at least 38, authorities said. Cauca governor Octavio Guzmán reported the blast on X, and the region’s health secretary, Carolina Camargo, told Noticias Caracol that five of the injured were children.
Colombia’s military leadership described the attack as a “terrorist act.” Gen. Hugo López, commander of the Armed Forces, blamed a network linked to a man known as “Iván Mordisco” and the Jaime Martínez faction — dissident members of the former Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) who did not join the 2016 peace agreement.
President Gustavo Petro condemned the bombing on X, calling those responsible “terrorists, fascists, and drug traffickers,” and noting Indigenous and other civilians among the dead and wounded in Cajibio.
Officials said the bus explosion was part of a surge of violence in southwestern Colombia. Authorities reported at least 26 blasts and related incidents over two days that affected civilians and public infrastructure. Other incidents included a shooting at a police station in rural Jamundí and an attack on a civil aviation radar facility in El Tambo, where officials intercepted three drones laden with explosives; no injuries were reported in those incidents. On Friday, two vehicles rigged with explosives were detonated near military units in Cali and Palmira, causing material damage.
The renewed violence is concentrated in territory contested by illegal armed groups tied to drug trafficking. Cauca and neighboring Valle del Cauca are strategic because they control river and sea routes to the port of Buenaventura, a key transit point for shipments headed to Central America and Europe.
The escalation prompted a rapid, high-level response. Defence Minister Pedro Sánchez and regional governors were meeting in Palmira when the Cajibio explosion occurred. Sánchez said on X, “These criminals seek to instill fear, but we will respond with firmness.” Valle del Cauca governor Francisca Toro urged immediate national support, reinforcements for security forces, stepped-up intelligence operations and decisive action, calling the situation a “terrorist-level escalation.”
The government has offered a reward of more than $1 million for information leading to the capture of “Marlon,” identified as a leader of the region’s dissident group. Local officials put forward just over USD 14,000 in rewards for information to identify those behind the attacks in Cali and Palmira.
