President Abelardo de la Espriella Orders Prison Transfers After Car Bomb

A car bomb exploded Saturday at a toll plaza on the Pan-American Highway in southwestern Colombia, occurring one day after Abelardo de la Espriella was sworn in as president. The blast injured two security guards and damaged nearby homes. The Military Forces of Colombia attributed the attack to two dissident factions of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia that rejected the 2016 peace agreement.

President de la Espriella responded by announcing the transfer of 117 prisoners linked to previous peace talks to maximum-security prisons to disrupt criminal coordination. This action follows his inaugural address in Cali, where he warned illegal groups that they must either submit to the rule of law or confront security forces.

Government officials characterized the bombing as a strategic assault on the state. Governor Jorge Octavio Guzmán described the event as a systematic effort to isolate the Cauca department. Minister of Transportation Elsa Noguera condemned the attack, stating that the country would not allow the destruction of infrastructure connecting its regions.