Clashes between two rebel groups in Colombia, 9 people killed

On September 4, the government of Arauca province in northern Colombia announced that at least 9 people were killed and 5 others were injured in fighting between two rebel groups in this South American country.

According to Arauca Province Governor Wilinton Rodriguéz, fighting between the Estado Mayor Central (EMC) armed group - a dissident group of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) - and the National Liberation Army (ELN) armed group took place in the Puerto Rondon municipality near the border with Venezuela.

The Arauca provincial government did not specify whether the dead and wounded were members of the two armed groups or civilians hit by stray bullets.

The clashes in Arauca province took place as the Colombian government and ELN just concluded the fourth round of peace talks in the Venezuelan capital Caracas.

In a joint statement, representatives of the Colombian government and the ELN affirmed that the two sides agreed to promote humanitarian activities in areas affected by the armed conflict to ensure the implementation of the bilateral ceasefire, while strengthening support mechanisms for political prisoners who are members of the ELN.

The Colombian government's chief negotiator, Otty Patiño, stressed that the agreements just reached will bring the two sides closer to peace.

For his part, the head of the ELN delegation, Pablo Beltrán, also called on the parties to persevere with a political solution to the conflict after 70 years of confrontation.

Meanwhile, the Group of Guarantor States for the Negotiation Process, Norway, Mexico, Cuba, Brazil, Chile and Venezuela, also issued a statement emphasizing that the Colombian government and the ELN have seriously and responsibly implemented the steps in the peace agenda.

Previously, the Government of this South American country and the EMC group also agreed on September 2 to resume a bilateral ceasefire to begin peace negotiations.

Arauca province is one of the "hot spots" for drug trafficking and illegal mining in Colombia.

This locality has for decades been a "battlefield" in the war for territory between armed groups and criminal gangs.