Arauquita, temporary refuge for thousands of Venezuelans

1The operations of the Venezuelan military against alleged dissident groups of the FARC began on March 20 in the town of La Victoria and have led to the mass departure of the inhabitants of the region.

FERNANDO VERGARA AP

2 "They have told me the situations typical of the emergency situation, they have been displaced, they have left their relatives, where they have left their place of residence, their houses have been cremated," said Carlos Camargo, ombudsman for the people of Arauquita.

In the image, Venezuelans cross the Arauca River, the natural border between Venezuela and Colombia, to take refuge in Arauquita.

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3The president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, announced the deployment of the Bolivarian Shield operation to protect the border.

In the image, Colombian soldiers patrol near the Arauca River.

DANIEL MARTÍNEZ CERVERA AFP

4 Close to 4,000 people have fled to Colombia due to armed clashes in Venezuela.

In the image, Venezuelans get off a boat on the Arauca River.

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5The Arauquita community center has become a refuge for thousands of Venezuelan families who fled the violence in their country.

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6 So far, Venezuelan families remain in eight shelters, according to the Colombian immigration authorities.

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7The NGOs working in the area documented that the military operation included air strikes and that one of the Venezuelan officers was killed by the effects of an antipersonnel mine.

In the image, special forces of the Colombian Army search men in a pool hall in Arauquita.

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8Venezuelans rest under a soccer goal in a shelter set up in a community center in Arauquita.

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9 "The greatest weight is going to fall on the civilian population and that is why we see displacements, because retaliation and retaliation between all sides are typical of these phenomena," says Rocío San Miguel from the Venezuelan Observatory for Security and Defense. .

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10The humanitarian crisis that has increased the migration of Venezuelans, the expansion of illegal economies and the increase in the presence of illegal armed groups are the cause of the deepening of violence on the border of both countries.

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11According to the director of Migration Colombia, Juan Francisco Espinosa, 3,961 people have arrived in Arauquita in the last hours, including 2,563 Venezuelans.

DANIEL MARTÍNEZ CERVERA AFP