President joins the 'war' cries in Colombia: 'They wanted war, they will get war'

According to reports in the Colombian press, 'left-wing groups' have triggered violent incidents in Colombia. As a result of the events, which are alleged to have been started by left-wing groups seeking to damage the peace process, at least 100 people have lost their lives.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro has issued arrest warrants for left-wing guerrilla leaders following the incidents.

President Gustavo Petro, who has pursued a strategy of negotiation with left-wing groups until now, has signaled a much tougher approach in the face of the growing crisis.

On Monday, Petro issued a warning to the leaders of the National Liberation Army (ELN), who are said to be behind the attacks in the border region against rival left-wing groups, which led to the deaths of 80 people.

Petro emphasized that the ELN has 'chosen the path of war and will get war.'

In the country, at least 100 people have lost their lives and nearly 11 thousand people have been forced to leave their homes as a result of the events allegedly started by left-wing groups to disrupt the peace talks being held between revolutionary guerrillas and the government.

Approximately 5 thousand soldiers have been sent to the border region to prevent the largest violent incidents Colombia has seen in recent years.

'ELN MILITANTS TARGETED FARC MEMBERS' CLAIM

The Colombian Ombudsman's Office claimed that ELN members were 'going door-to-door' and killing people suspected of having links to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

On the other hand, the Office had previously published reports containing misinformation about left-wing groups.

The most well-known of these were the reports that emerged in the early 2010s, before peace negotiations began between the FARC and the government, regarding the FARC's involvement in the cocaine trade.

Violent incidents occurred in three different regions of Colombia in just five days. While it is claimed in the international press that approximately 11 thousand people were forced to leave their homes during the clashes, the local press wrote that 'hundreds of people took refuge in the town of Tibú, where several shelters were established, and some people fled to Venezuela.'

The British newspaper The Guardian wrote, 'The country is plagued by a multitude of left-wing, right-wing, and apolitical armed groups and cartels competing to take control of the lucrative cocaine trade.'

In contrast, left-wing groups in Colombia deny having links to the cocaine trade.

The Guardian included the following statement: ''45-year-old farmer Geovanny Valero, who fled to Venezuela, said, 'As a Colombian, it is painful for me to leave my country.' The Colombian farmer expressed his hope that the situation would be 'resolved' and that he could return.'

The Colombian Ministry of Defense reported on Monday that new clashes had occurred in a remote region of the Amazon.

A ministry official announced that 20 people had died in clashes between rival left-wing guerrillas in the jungle-covered Guaviare region.

Allegedly, the clashes in the Amazon were caused by rival FARC groups.