Colombia: five young people killed in a new massacre

At least five young people, including a minor, died and two other people were injured in a new massacre perpetrated in Colombia during the night of Saturday January 24 to Sunday January 25, according to the latest report announced by the authorities.

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The attack, carried out by hired killers, took place on a farm in the town of Buga, in the Valle del Cauca department, where the gunmen first asked to see the family's son and then shot. those present, according to the police report.

Three young people aged 18 and another 17 were killed in the shooting, which also left three people injured, one of whom later died in hospital.

In a first assessment, the authorities had reported at least four dead and three injured.

“Unfortunately, we have to confirm

(...)

,

Buga Municipality Health Secretary Mauricio Soto told AFP, adding that the two others injured were in

.

Police and military units specializing in the fight against kidnappings and extortion, as well as officials from the prosecution, went there

said the army commander. , Eduardo Zapateiro, in a video.

Authorities did not provide further details on the motives for the attack or its perpetrators.

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This is the sixth massacre - the simultaneous assassination of at least three people according to the UN definition - listed since the beginning of this year in Colombia by the independent observatory Indepaz.

Several armed groups and gangs are vying for control of drug trafficking, coca plantations, the raw material for cocaine, and marijuana, as well as racketeering in the Valle del Cauca.

The year 2020 was marked by the worst wave of violence since the signing of peace with the former Farc guerrillas, with 91 massacres, which left 381 dead in the country, according to Indepaz.

Despite the 2016 pact with the former Marxist rebellion, Colombia still faces an armed conflict spanning nearly six decades, which has claimed more than nine million lives (dead, missing and displaced).