When approaching the city of Cúcuta in eastern Colombia, President Iván Duque’s helicopter came under fire. “The helicopter in which we were flying was the target of an attack,” said the head of state after landing in Cúcuta on Friday. Bullet holes can be seen on the helicopter.
Duque was en route from the town of Sardinata in the Norte de Santander department to the city of Cúcuta on the Venezuelan border with Defense Minister Diego Molano and Interior Minister Daniel Palacios when the helicopter was hit by the gunfire. All inmates were initially uninjured.
In a video from the television station RCN, six bullet holes were seen on the helicopter. The Blackhawk-type machine was hit on the fuselage, rotor and stern.
It is still unclear who is behind the attack
It was initially unclear who was behind the attack. Last week, a bomb attack with more than 30 injured people was carried out on a military base in Cúcuta. The Colombian government blamed the guerrilla organization ELN for the attack. The rebels rejected the allegations.
“I have instructed the security forces to pursue those who shot the plane and put other people’s lives at risk,” said President Duque. “The message is that Colombia remains strong in the fight against crime.”
For decades, a bloody conflict between left rebels, right paramilitaries and state security forces raged in Colombia. More than 220,000 people were killed in the civil war and over six million were displaced from their home regions. The largest guerrilla organization, Farc, and the government signed a peace treaty in 2016.
The rebels’ return to civilian life is proving difficult, however, and many fighters have gone underground again. Parts of the South American country are still controlled by armed groups. Colombia is also the largest cocaine producer in the world.