At least 7 dead after wave of explosions hit southwest Colombia, authorities say
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At least 7 dead after series of bomb attacks hit southwest Colombia
Colombia’s national police reported at least 24 ‘terrorist attacks’ including car bombings, firearm attacks and launch of explosive devices. At least seven people were killed, including two police officers while 28 people were left wounded, including 19 civilians. Colombian National Army and police said the country’s police were a ‘direct target’ of the attacks. Estado Mayor Central group has not taken responsibility of the attack and instead accused the Colombian government of not honouring the peace process and going back on it. The attack comes a few days after Colombian presidential candidate and Senator Miguel Uribe was shot in his head during a campaign rally.
The Colombian National Army and police said the country’s police were a “direct target” of the attacks. Colombia’s national police reported at least 24 “terrorist attacks” took place throughout the country including car bombings, firearm attacks and launch of explosive devices.
Army and police spokesperson linked the attack to Estado Mayor Central (EMC)-FARC group, which was formed by former members of Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia who broke away and started their own guerrilla force after the group signed a peace deal with the Colombian government in 2016.
Mantenemos una operación ofensiva en el suroccidente del país contra uno de los cerebros terroristas y reclutador de menores en Cauca. Colombia no se doblega ante el terrorismo. Pendiente ampliar información. — Pedro Arnulfo Sanchez S. Orgullosamente Colombiano (@PedroSanchezCol) June 10, 2025
However, the Estado Mayor Central group has not taken the responsibility of the attacks and instead accused the Colombian government of not honouring the peace process and going back on it, while giving suggestions to the public to avoid crossfire.
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A bus that exploded next to a police station sits on a road in Villa Rica, Cauca, Colombia. (AP Photo/Santiago Saldarriaga) A bus that exploded next to a police station sits on a road in Villa Rica, Cauca, Colombia. (AP Photo/Santiago Saldarriaga)
Colombia’s Defence Ministry described the attack as “a desperate reaction by illegal armed groups to the massive operations of the [military and police], which have devastated their illicit structures and economies,” BBC reported.
Also Read | Colombian presidential candidate Miguel Uribe shot in Bogota, suspect detained
Cali’s Mayor Alejandro Eder, which is Colombia’s third largest city, said that three explosive devices were detonated on Tuesday. Authorities said the rebels placed the bombs in vehicles that were parked near the police stations. Police stations, municipal buildings and civilian targets were hit in the series of bombings as the South American country’s security crisis deepens.
The serial bombing attack near police stations came a few days after Colombia’s presidential candidate and Senator Miguel Uribe was shot in his head during a campaign rally, and he continues to fight for his life. Uribe, 39, was shot in his head on Saturday in the capital Bogota. The hospital treating the conservative presidential candidate said on Tuesday that he is in a critical condition.
Gunman opens fire in Austrian school, killing 10 and throwing country into shock
Austrian police and hospital officials confirm the death toll from an earlier figure of nine. The victims included children between 14 and 18 years old, the interior ministry said. The suspect, a 21-year-old Austrian male, used two weapons, a shotgun and a pistol, to carry out the killing spree. Chancellor Christian Stocker announced three days of national mourning, writing on X: “There are no words for the pain and grief’“I keep thinking about the image of the families, friends and relatives who will never find an answer or explanation – and that’s just tragic,” the Mayor of Graz Elke Kahr told CNN on Tuesday night. “I only know that the perpetrator, who killed himself, called his mother or father. He told them that he had committed a serious offense, I don’t know any more than that.” “The rampage at a school in Graz is a national tragedy that has deeply shaken our entire country,’ Stocker said.
A shooter opened fire at a high school in the Austrian city of Graz on Tuesday, killing 10 people, including teenagers, in one of the worst rampages in the country’s history.
Austrian police and hospital officials confirmed the fatalities, raising the death toll from an earlier figure of nine. The country’s interior ministry told CNN that the victims included children between 14 and 18 years old.
Interior minister Gerhard Karner said at a news conference that six victims were female and three were male. Twelve students were injured in the incident, some of them seriously, Karner added. Graz University Hospital later said one of the seriously injured adults died on Tuesday evening.
The suspect – a 21-year-old Austrian male who had previously attended the school but not graduated – used two weapons, a shotgun and a pistol, to carry out the killing spree, before fatally shooting himself in a bathroom, authorities said at the news conference.
Officials would not give a motive for the gunman, who they say acted alone. Police believe he obtained the weapons he used legally. The weapons were seized at the scene and subject to forensic examinations. Officers are also continuing to conduct interviews as they investigate the circumstances of the incident, police added.
The shooting pitched Austria into a state of shock and disbelief. Chancellor Christian Stocker announced three days of national mourning, writing on X: “There are no words for the pain and grief.”
Police officers in a street close to the school on June 10. Erwin Scheriau/APA/AFP/Getty Images
A police helicopter in the air close where the incident took place. Erwin Scheriau/APA/AFP/Getty Images
Officers first responded to the reports of “several” suspected gunshots at the Bundesoberstufenrealgymnasium Dreierschützengasse school in the northwest of Graz at around 10 a.m. local time (4 a.m. ET).
Several vehicles and a police helicopter were deployed to the site. The school was evacuated and the area was secured, with no further danger expected, the police said on social media. Police said later in a statement that special forces were also deployed to the scene.
Stocker expressed horror at the shooting, saying: “The rampage at a school in Graz is a national tragedy that has deeply shaken our entire country. This inconceivable act suddenly tore young people from the life they still had ahead of them.”
One of the victims was a 17-year-old French high school student, according to French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, who said, “Our thoughts and condolences go out to his family and friends.”
Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, said: “It is difficult to bear when schools become places of death and violence.”
Several vigils for the victims are taking place on Tuesday evening in Graz, including one coordinated by local youth organizations. Hundreds gathered in Graz’s central square, but despite the large crowd of mourners, the Hauptplatz was nearly silent.
“I keep thinking about the image of the families, friends and relatives who will never find an answer or explanation – and that’s just tragic,” the Mayor of Graz Elke Kahr told CNN on Tuesday night.
“There are 350 children at the school. And one cannot fathom they had to wait for so long … the parents who didn’t know whether their child was still alive or not. That’s just awful.”
Asked by CNN’s Fred Pleitgen about whether the suspected attacker had left a note, Kahr said, “I only know that the perpetrator, who killed himself, called his mother or father. He told them that he had committed a serious offense. I don’t know any more than that. I can’t say whether there was a farewell letter.”
On Wednesday morning, at 10 a.m. local time (4 a.m. Eastern) there will be a national minute of silence, timed 24 hours after police received the first calls about shots being fired.
Gun violence is rare in Austria, along with most central European countries. The country’s rate of firearm homicides was just 0.1 per 100,000 people in 2021, according to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, compared to 4.5 per 100,000 people in the United States.
But Austria’s gun ownership is higher than most European Union countries; there are 30 civilian firearms owned for every 100 citizens, according to the Small Arms Survey, a research institute based in Switzerland.
A small number of high-profile violent incidents have taken place there in recent years. Last October, the mayor of a northern Austrian town was shot dead, along with another victim.
In February, a 23-year-old man stabbed five passersby in southern Austria in what police said was a random attack.
This story has been updated with additional developments. CNN’s Fred Pleitgen, Lauren Kent and Saskya Vandoorne contributed to this report.
At least 7 dead after wave of explosions hit southwest Colombia, authorities say
Explosions in Colombia kill at least seven and injure 28, police say. The army says it has intelligence linking the attacks to the FARC. The FARC has not claimed responsibility for the attacks. The attacks come days after a U.S. presidential hopeful was shot in the head in a separate incident.. The president of Colombia, Juan Manuel Santos, says he is “deeply saddened’ by the violence, which he called a “terrorist attack’. The U.N. Security Council is expected to meet on Wednesday to discuss how to respond to the attacks in Cali and elsewhere in the south of the country, a spokesman says. The UN is hosting a biodiversity conference this week in the city of Cali, which was the target of an earlier attack in the country’s capital, Bogota. The conference is the first of its kind in Colombia and is aimed at showcasing the country as a biodiversity hotspot. It is also intended to raise awareness of the need to protect the environment.
A wave of explosions rocked southwest Colombia on Tuesday morning, authorities said, killing at least seven people in an attack believed to be targeting the country’s police.
Explosions occurred in the city of Cali and several towns in the departments of Cauca and Valle del Cauca, the Colombian National Army reported on X. It added that the country’s police were a “direct target” of the attacks.
Colombia’s national police reported more than 20 “terrorist attacks” throughout the day, including car bombings, firearm attacks, and the launching of explosive devices.
At least two officers were among those killed, and a mix of civilians, military personnel, and police were among the 28 people injured, police added.
The army said it has intelligence linking the attacks to the leader of the guerrilla group Estado Mayor Central, one of the factions of fighters that remain after the country’s FARC rebels signed a peace agreement with the Colombian government. It did not offer evidence for the claim.
Estado Mayor Central has not claimed responsibility for the attack. In a Tuesday statement, the group accused Colombia’s government of reneging on the peace process and issued tips to civilians on avoiding the crossfire. CNN is reaching out to the group for comment.
In Cali, Colombia’s third-largest city, the city’s mayor Alejandro Eder said three explosive devices were detonated on Tuesday.
Eder said the explosions were recorded in Cali’s Los Mangos area, near the Meléndez police station, and another at the Manuela Beltrán Immediate Attention Center (CAI), a police substation. The situation is now “under control,” Eder said later on Tuesday, adding that he ordered security forces to deploy throughout the city
“They want us to go back to 1989, we won’t allow for it!” Eder said, referencing a period of intense violence in Colombia, including the assassination of presidential candidate Luis Carlos Galán.
Videos of the aftermath in Cali, posted to social media and geolocated by CNN, show exploded vehicles still burning and scorched debris scattered across the street. Crowds of dazed pedestrians are seen gathering around the site as emergency sirens sound in the distance.
The defense ministry said military forces prevented six attacks and captured two people preparing explosives.
Sergio Guzman, the founder of Colombia Risk Analysis, a Bogota-based risk consultancy, told CNN the attacks demonstrate how criminal armed organizations are “trying to pressure the government further to make more agreements or concessions to them.”
Dilian Francisca Toro, the governor of Valle del Cauca, where Cali is located, urged Colombian President Gustavo Petro to convene the country’s Security Council to respond to the “current escalation of terrorism.”
The attacks in downtown Cali were particularly significant, as they impacted the largest urban area in the south of the country and a major tourist and economic hub, International Crisis Group Senior Analyst Elizabeth Dickinson told CNN.
“It indicates also that these organizations have an interest not only in being present in rural areas where they have access to illicit economies, but also to more broadly destabilizing the country and affecting urban security,” Dickinson said.
In October, thousands of delegates from around the world gathered in Cali for a UN-sponsored conference on biodiversity, as Petro’s government sought to present Colombia as a vibrant, biodiverse nation that had left the worst chapters of its violent political history behind.
Colombian Vice-President Francia Márquez Mina condemned the violence.
“I categorically reject the wave of violence that has erupted in Cali and northern Cauca at this time. It’s unacceptable to instill fear in the people and then offer security,” she said on X, “As a National Government, we must redouble our efforts to restore public order and guarantee the security and peace of mind of the Colombian people.”
The blasts come days after prominent Colombian politician and presidential hopeful Miguel Uribe Turbay was shot at a campaign event. Uribe remains in critical condition as of Tuesday morning. A 15-year-old has been charged with attempted murder over the shooting.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro says he has asked US authorities to help investigate the shooting, saying the suspect’s weapon was purchased in Arizona.
CNN’s Avery Schmitz contributed to this report.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
Seven dead as Colombia hit with wave of bombings and gun attacks
Seven dead as Colombia hit with wave of bombings and gun attacks. Attackers struck targets in Cali — the country’s third-largest city — and several nearby towns. Police say assailants — suspected to be a local guerrilla group — had attacked using car bombs, motorcycle bombs, rifle fire and a suspected drone. Attacks come days after a brazen attempted assassination of a presidential candidate in Bogota that has put the country on edge. The attacks come three days after conservative senator Uribe, 39, was shot twice in the head at close range by an alleged hitman while campaigning in the capital. The government believes he was a hired gun, but a 15-year-old suspect pleaded “not guilty” on Tuesday to carrying out the attempted assassination. attacks deepen a security crisis roiling the Andean nation. Many Colombians are now fearful of a return to the violence of the 1980s and 1990s, when cartel attacks and political assassinations were commonplace.
A woman stands inside a destroyed commercial building after a car exploded in front of the City Hall in Corinto, Cauca department, Colombia, on June 10, 2025. Southwest Colombia was rocked by a string of explosions that left at least one person dead, police said Tuesday, in what appeared to be a coordinated attack. (JOAQUIN SARMIENTO) (JOAQUIN SARMIENTO/AFP/AFP)
Colombia was rocked by a string of 24 coordinated bomb and gun attacks that killed at least seven people across the country’s southwest Tuesday, deepening a security crisis roiling the Andean nation.
Attackers struck targets in Cali — the country’s third-largest city — and several nearby towns, hitting police posts, municipal buildings and civilian targets.
National Police chief Carlos Fernando Triana said assailants — suspected to be a local guerrilla group — had attacked using car bombs, motorcycle bombs, rifle fire and a suspected drone.
“There are two police officers dead, and a number of members of the public are also dead,” he said. Police later put the toll at seven dead and 28 more injured.
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In Cali and the towns of Villa Rica, Guachinte and Corinto, AFP journalists witnessed the tangled wreckage of vehicle bombs surrounded by scorched debris and damaged buildings.
The attacks came days after a brazen attempted assassination of a presidential candidate in Bogota that has put the country on edge.
Many Colombians are now fearful of a return to the violence of the 1980s and 1990s, when cartel attacks, guerrilla violence and political assassinations were commonplace.
Interior Minister Armando Benedetti said the government had received unverified “proof” of possible guerrilla involvement in the attack on Senator Miguel Uribe.
– ‘Well-coordinated offensive’ –
In the town of Corinto, resident Luz Amparo was at home when the blast gutted her bakery Tuesday.
“We thought it was an earthquake,” she told AFP. “My husband said ‘no, they are shooting.'”
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Her phone began to ring off the hook and she went to check on her store. As she rounded the corner, the neighbors began to look in her direction.
“Everything was leveled,” she said.
Police and experts blamed the attacks on a dissident faction of the once-powerful FARC guerrilla group.
Security expert Elizabeth Dickinson of the International Crisis Group said the attacks were likely the work of a group known as the Central General Staff (EMC).
“This is a particularly well-coordinated offensive. It really demonstrates the capacity that the group has built” she told AFP.
“And I think very alarmingly it demonstrates their ability to conduct operations in the metropolitan area of Cali.”
Efforts by President Gustavo Petro to reach a peace deal with the EMC and other armed groups have repeatedly failed.
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Dickinson said the group may be trying to stop an ongoing military operation that is reported to have injured or killed the group’s veteran leader, known as “Ivan Mordisco.”
“They are trying to raise the cost of that military initiative for the government,” said Dickinson.
In a statement on Tuesday, the EMC warned the public to stay away from military and police installations, but stopped short of claiming responsibility.
The attacks come three days after conservative senator Uribe, 39, was shot twice in the head at close range by an alleged hitman while campaigning in the capital.
A 15-year-old suspect pleaded “not guilty” on Tuesday to carrying out the attempted assassination. The government believes he was a hired gun.
That attack has stunned Colombians, prompted speculation about who was responsible and raised questions about the president’s response.
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Petro has taken to social media to speculate that the hit was ordered by an international “mafia” and to claim that Uribe’s security detail was suspiciously reduced the day he was shot.
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At least 7 dead after wave of explosions hit southwest Colombia, authorities say
Colombia’s national police reported more than 20 “terrorist attacks” throughout the day. At least two officers were among those killed, and a mix of civilians, military personnel, and police were among the 28 people injured. The army said it has intelligence linking the attacks to the leader of the guerrilla group Estado Mayor Central, one of the factions of fighters that remain after the country’s FARC rebels signed a peace agreement with the Colombian government. The group has not claimed responsibility for the attack, which occurred in the departments of Cauca and Valle delCauca. The blasts come days after prominent Colombian politician and presidential hopeful Miguel Turbay Uribe was shot at a campaign event. The situation is now “under control,” Cali mayor Alejandro Eder said later on Tuesday, adding that he ordered security forces to deploy throughout the city. The attacks in downtown Cali were particularly significant, as they impacted the largest urban area in the south of the country and a major tourist and economic hub.
A wave of explosions rocked southwest Colombia on Tuesday morning, authorities said, killing at least seven people in an attack believed to be targeting the country’s police.
Explosions occurred in the city of Cali and several towns in the departments of Cauca and Valle del Cauca, the Colombian National Army reported on X. It added that the country’s police were a “direct target” of the attacks.
Colombia’s national police reported more than 20 “terrorist attacks” throughout the day, including car bombings, firearm attacks, and the launching of explosive devices.
At least two officers were among those killed, and a mix of civilians, military personnel, and police were among the 28 people injured, police added.
The army said it has intelligence linking the attacks to the leader of the guerrilla group Estado Mayor Central, one of the factions of fighters that remain after the country’s FARC rebels signed a peace agreement with the Colombian government. It did not offer evidence for the claim.
Estado Mayor Central has not claimed responsibility for the attack. In a Tuesday statement, the group accused Colombia’s government of reneging on the peace process and issued tips to civilians on avoiding the crossfire. CNN is reaching out to the group for comment.
In Cali, Colombia’s third-largest city, the city’s mayor Alejandro Eder said three explosive devices were detonated on Tuesday.
Eder said the explosions were recorded in Cali’s Los Mangos area, near the Meléndez police station, and another at the Manuela Beltrán Immediate Attention Center (CAI), a police substation. The situation is now “under control,” Eder said later on Tuesday, adding that he ordered security forces to deploy throughout the city
“They want us to go back to 1989, we won’t allow for it!” Eder said, referencing a period of intense violence in Colombia, including the assassination of presidential candidate Luis Carlos Galán.
Videos of the aftermath in Cali, posted to social media and geolocated by CNN, show exploded vehicles still burning and scorched debris scattered across the street. Crowds of dazed pedestrians are seen gathering around the site as emergency sirens sound in the distance.
The defense ministry said military forces prevented six attacks and captured two people preparing explosives.
Sergio Guzman, the founder of Colombia Risk Analysis, a Bogota-based risk consultancy, told CNN the attacks demonstrate how criminal armed organizations are “trying to pressure the government further to make more agreements or concessions to them.”
Dilian Francisca Toro, the governor of Valle del Cauca, where Cali is located, urged Colombian President Gustavo Petro to convene the country’s Security Council to respond to the “current escalation of terrorism.”
The attacks in downtown Cali were particularly significant, as they impacted the largest urban area in the south of the country and a major tourist and economic hub, International Crisis Group Senior Analyst Elizabeth Dickinson told CNN.
“It indicates also that these organizations have an interest not only in being present in rural areas where they have access to illicit economies, but also to more broadly destabilizing the country and affecting urban security,” Dickinson said.
In October, thousands of delegates from around the world gathered in Cali for a UN-sponsored conference on biodiversity, as Petro’s government sought to present Colombia as a vibrant, biodiverse nation that had left the worst chapters of its violent political history behind.
Colombian Vice-President Francia Márquez Mina condemned the violence.
“I categorically reject the wave of violence that has erupted in Cali and northern Cauca at this time. It’s unacceptable to instill fear in the people and then offer security,” she said on X, “As a National Government, we must redouble our efforts to restore public order and guarantee the security and peace of mind of the Colombian people.”
The blasts come days after prominent Colombian politician and presidential hopeful Miguel Uribe Turbay was shot at a campaign event. Uribe remains in critical condition as of Tuesday morning. A 15-year-old has been charged with attempted murder over the shooting.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro says he has asked US authorities to help investigate the shooting, saying the suspect’s weapon was purchased in Arizona.
CNN’s Avery Schmitz contributed to this report.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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