Colombia

27 March 2024; MEMO: Colombian President, Gustavo Petro, warned on Tuesday that Colombia will break diplomatic relations with Israel if it does not comply with the recent resolution of the United Nations Security Council, which demands a ceasefire in Gaza, Anadolu Agency reports.

“If Israel does not comply with the United Nations ceasefire resolution, we will break diplomatic relations with Israel,” Petro published on his X account.

29 February 2024; MEMO: Colombia will suspend “all arms purchases from Israel”, the country’s President, Gustavo Petro, announced on Thursday, Anadolu Agency reports.

“The world must block Netanyahu. Colombia suspends all purchases of weapons from Israel,” Petro said on X.

BOGOTA, Oct. 25 (Xinhua) -- Colombian President Gustavo Francisco Petro Urrego is in Beijing for a state visit this week, as many in Colombia are closely watching his maiden trip there.

"President Petro's visit to China can be deeply transformative for Colombia in a very positive way," said David Castrillon Kerrigan, an international relations academic at the Externado University of Colombia.

BOGOTA, Oct 20 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced late Thursday that his country will open an embassy in Ramallah, Palestine.

Petro issued the statement after meeting with Palestinian Ambassador Raouf Al-Maliki.

“I have expressed my position to achieve an international peace conference that opens the way for two independent and free states,” the President said on X following the meeting.

BOGOTÁ, Oct 16 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Israel, one of the main providers of arms to Colombia’s military, said Sunday it was “halting security exports” to the South American country after taking umbrage at its president’s remarks on the war with Hamas.

Since the militant group’s vicious attack on Israel a week ago, President Gustavo Petro has posted numerous comments on X, formerly Twitter, supporting the people of Gaza.

In one post, Colombia’s first-ever leftist president compared Israel’s retaliatory targeting of Gaza to the Nazi persecution of Jews.

16 October 2023; MEMO: Colombian President Gustavo Petro yesterday announced his intention to send humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, which is suffering from a harsh siege as a result of the Israeli aggression.

Petro denounced “the genocide” carried out by Israeli occupation aircraft in Gaza, demanding the protection of health sector workers. He went on to stress that systematic attacks on civilians and genocide must be stopped and international law adhered to.

BUENAVENTURA, Colombia (AP) — Officers wade through rows of abandoned wooden homes teetering above a mangrove-cloaked river – one of the key channels used by gangs to move drugs and weapons through this long-neglected swath of Colombia’s Pacific coast.

Each step for them is a reminder: Control here remains not with the law, but with those whose names are spoken in whispers in their city. Los Shottas and Los Espartanos.

CHINCHINA (Colombia), Sept 14 (NNN-KBC) — Kenyan Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has appealed to Colombia to partner with Kenya to boost coffee trade in Kenya.

Speaking while attending a Meeting with the Colombian Coffee Growers Federation in Chinchina, Colombia, the DP said that Kenya is on its way to reclaim its glory in the Coffee trade through overseeing reforms in the sector.

BOGOTA, July 6 (NNN-MERCCOPRESS) — Colombia’s main rebel group National Liberation Army (ELN) ordered its forces to stop “offensive military actions” as of July 6.

However, in a message posted on the rebel group’s website, its members were advised to be prepared to “respond to threats or attacks by any armed group against our units or against the civilian population.”

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Four Indigenous children survived an Amazon plane crash that killed three adults and then braved the jungle for 40 days before being found alive by Colombian soldiers, bringing a happy ending to a search-and-rescue saga that captivated a nation but also prompted questions about their extraordinary survival.