Hundreds of indigenous Colombians flee Antioquia for fear of landmines left by gangs

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – In the Colombian department of Antioquia, a total of 984 indigenous people from seven villages in the community of Dabeiba have been fleeing the area for the past five days in the direction of the Pueblo Viejo sector, towards the south, for fear of stepping on antipersonnel mines.

This was reported by the director of the Antioquia Victims Unit, Wilson Córdoba, who pointed out that these explosives are installed by armed groups to harm the work of the security forces in the area, but that in the end, it is the indigenous communities who are most affected, as their agricultural work is limited.

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“The antipersonnel mines next to their roads have not allowed them to work the land and their projects, especially because of the threat they have from the illegal armed groups, so they all had to leave”, explained Córdoba to Caracol Radio.

For this reason, from the capital, Bogotá, they have sent up to thirteen tons of humanitarian aid distributed by a total of 25 helicopter flights to meet the needs of the citizens of these ancestral communities. The latter has already warned of food shortages.

The main gangs operating in the area are the Clan del Golfo and the National Liberation Army (ELN), who also fight for control of the area.