Colombian President Postpones Peace Talks With Rebel Groups

JAKARTA - Colombian President Gustavo Petro has postponed peace talks with the left-handed National Liberation Army (ELN). Petro accused the group of war crimes in the Cataumbo region.

"The dialogue process with this group has stalled, ELN has no desire to make peace," Petro told X.

On Thursday, ELN fighters killed five members of the demobilized former FARC rebels who were part of a 2016 peace agreement.

The group also launched an attack on members of the Estado Major Central (EMC), a FARC dissident faction involved in separate peace talks with the government.

The violence led to the evacuation of civilians and condemnation from the United Nations.

Peaceful negotiations between ELN and the government, which restarted in 2022, were marked by setbacks. In September, the government delayed negotiations a day after the ELN explosive attack killed two soldiers and injured 29 people near Venezuela's border.

Negotiations also stalled when the government opened separate negotiations with the ELN splinter group in the southwest, while ELN again carried out kidnappings, bombings of oil pipelines, and attacks on security forces.