81 operations against organized armed groups, two deaths in the framework of military operations, four minors recovered, 42 arrests, 218 improvised explosive devices destroyed and 33 weapons found so far this year.
111 operations have been conducted in 18 municipalities of Bolívar. The military operation is being reinforced with troops of the First Division of Colombian National Army and the Navy Infantry Brigade No. 1 of the Colombian Navy. Additional 500 men from Rapid Deployment Force No.9 will support these military operations in favor of territorial control.
Alias Omar, alias Ernesto and alias Harold, of the organized armed group, Gao, Eln, and alias Jefferson, alias Bejuco and alias Piña of the GAO Clan del Golfo are the main objectives of the Military Forces in this region of the country and the operation will be maintained until they respond to the authorities for the operations taken against the stability of the inhabitants of the region and the soldiers, sailors and airmen.
The military and police operations are solid in the heart of the South of Bolívar, a region marked by the richness of its natural resources and the greed of armed groups organized outlaw; that is why we maintain the military strategy executed with surgical precision, aiming to dismantle the criminal and terrorist networks that illegally explore mining and seek to expand drug trafficking, the main drivers of the violence that seeks to damage the communities of this strategic region.
There is an unprecedented deployment of the military operation of Colombian National Army, the Colombian Navy and the Colombian Aerospace Force, within the framework of the Ayacucho Joint Strategic Campaign Plan to combat illicit activities in inter-institutional coordination with the National Police.
Troops of the Nineteenth Brigade, attached to the First Division of Colombian National Army supported by the Navy Infantry River Battalion No. 17, from the Navy Infantry Brigade No. 1 of the Colombian Navy, have taken control of strategic routes in municipalities such as Santa Rosa del Sur, Montecristo, Morales, Achí and Norosí and, 500 more men of the Rapid Deployment Force No. 9 will bolster military operations.
This deployment, which includes ground operations, river patrols and air support with unmanned aircraft and precision artillery, reflects the commitment of the Colombian State to restore security and protect communities.
On the ground, Colombian National Army units have carried out high-impact maneuvers, deactivating anti-personnel mines and destroying illegal constructions. For its part, the Navy has reinforced river control with combat boats, ensuring that the rivers do not serve as routes for illicit activities. The Colombian Aerospace Force has used cutting-edge technology, with drones and air superiority aircraft, to monitor hard-to-reach areas, where armed groups have wanted to establish clandestine camps and laboratories.
This multidimensional approach has led to simultaneously hitting the illicit activities of the GAO Clan del Golfo and the ELN, weakening their logistical and financial capacity.
In the same way, the National Police, in coordination with the Military Forces, will continue to conduct military, judicial and intelligence operations against drug trafficking, extortion and the illicit exploitation of mining deposits. In fact, so far this year, 21 operations have been conducted in the South of the department of Bolívar, which led to the arrest of 82 members of different criminal structures that commit crimes in the area. In this sense, 56 real estate belonging to members of criminal groups were identified and in coordination with the Attorney General's Office the corresponding expropriation process will be carried out.
About 70 judicial investigators will be kept on the ground to conduct judicial proceedings against the ELN and the GAO Clan del Golfo as a matter of priority.
Illegal mining, which produces up to 150 kilos of gold a week in the mountains, according to military and police intelligence estimates, is the economic pillar and the reason for the confrontation of armed groups in the South of Bolívar. In response, the military forces have intensified their operations against this activity, destroying heavy machinery used by these terrorists.
Drug trafficking, another pillar of illicit activities, has in the same way been a priority target. In several municipalities of the department, the Military Forces and the Police have dismantled cocaine hydrochloride laboratories, solid and liquid precursors that are used as chemical precursors for the creation of the drug.
With the activation of the Magdalena Medio Military Gaula (Anti-Extortion and Anti-Kidnapping Group) on June 1st, there have already been more than 25 arrests, 15 weapons found and 7 operations against this problem that seeks to hit merchants in the region.
In addition, the Military forces have in the same way been carrying out simultaneously a strategic work of comprehensive operation, where more than 60,000 people in the region have been benefited through development support activities and humanitarian assistance programs.
More than 14 tons of humanitarian aid have been distributed to the South of Bolívar and 152 awareness-raising activities with the people have promoted demobilization, voluntary surrender, the prevention of forced recruitment and the contribution to governance and human security.
Unfortunately, this joint effort has resulted in attacks against members of the Military Forces, 27 injured and two killed, victims of cowardly attacks perpetrated by these structures that have no intention of promoting development in the region.
The Colombian Military forces reiterate that every dredger destroyed, every laboratory dismantled and every neutralization of the threat posed by ringleaders are steps towards the recovery of a territory rich in history, culture and resources.
That is why the invitation to the communities, is in the same way to denounce any illegal activity that may put the lives of the inhabitants and the Military Forces at risk, together we will continue conducting in the stabilization of a prosperous territory, with legal use of natural resources, showing that the Military Forces are the bastion of the Nation, and those who do not have any territory forbidden for the fulfillment of duty.
With the Force of Our Forces
Source: Strategic Communications General Command of the military forces
