At least 120 Colombian soldiers have been stranded for two days in a barracks on the border with Venezuela, surrounded by coca growers who oppose the eradication of drug crops, the army said on Monday (May 9th).
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The troops were "
carrying out work to eradicate illicit crops
" in Tibú, in the department of Norte de Santander, when they were surprised by coca leaf growers who forced them to withdraw to the military base, said the high command said in a statement.
A military official told AFP that at least 120 soldiers have been immobilized at the Caño Indio Battalion since May 7.
General Ómar Sepúlveda denounced this action against his men, "
kidnapped by more than 300 coca growers
" armed with "
stones
" and "
sticks
", and whose "
water and electricity supply was cut off
".
Frequent clashes
Tibú is part of the so-called Catatumbo region, the main drug-producing territory in the world, with around 40,000 hectares planted with coca, according to the United Nations.
In October, some 180 soldiers responsible for eradicating drug crops in the region were held by peasants in a school in the city and then released, with the mediation of the national human rights agency.
Guerrilla rebels from the ELN and dissidents from the former FARC guerrillas who did not sign the 2016 peace accord operate in the region, profiting from drug trafficking revenues.
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President Iván Duque has intensified the fight against drug trafficking through the forced eradication of crops, carried out manually by soldiers who frequently clash with cultivators.
With a record production of 1,010 tons in 2020, Colombia remains the world's leading exporter of cocaine, of which the United States is the world's largest consumer.