At least 11 people were injured when a truck packed with explosives detonated on Saturday next to a police station in the Colombian city of Cucuta, near the border with Venezuela, six days before the inauguration of President-elect Abelardo de la Espriella.
Reporters saw the vehicle in flames, damaged building facades and police, soldiers and residents gathering around the scene of the attack before local security officials confirmed the number of injured.
“At this time, we have eight police officers and three civilians who have been injured… This was an atrocious, violent act… and what happened is regrettable,” George Quintero, security secretary for the department of Norte de Santander, where the attack occurred, told reporters.
The right-wing De la Espriella will take office on August 7 in the city of Cali, succeeding Gustavo Petro, the first leftist president in the country’s history.
With the support of US President Donald Trump’s government, the millionaire lawyer has promised to intensify the fight against drug trafficking organisations fueling the country’s worst wave of violence in a decade.
To achieve his objectives, De la Espriella plans to forge a military alliance with the United States and Israel.
Heavy security deployment
Presidential inaugurations are traditionally held at the Congress building in Bogota, but the president-elect requested that the ceremony be moved to Cali, in the country’s southwest, a region plagued by violence.
