Colombian Military Bombs FARC Dissident '33rd Front' Position: Officials Report 4 Dead and 6 Captured as President Signs a Bomb
Colombia's army and aerospace force carried out Operation Noah in the early hours of November 9, bombing camps of the FARC dissident '33rd Front' outside Tibú, in Norte de Santander department, in the Catatumbo region near the Venezuelan border. The official balance given by Colombian authorities was four dead and six captured, including Jorge Luis Galvis Rodríguez, alias 'Barba Chivo,' described as a trusted lieutenant of the front's top commander, Andrey Avendaño. The military said it also seized seven rifles and 15 grenades adapted for drone delivery and destroyed three camps with capacity for about 35 people. Those figures are the government's account and have not been independently verified.
The strike was authorised by President Abelardo de la Espriella, his seventh bombing since taking office and the third in Norte de Santander. The 33rd Front belongs to the dissident faction of the commander known as Calarcá, and Avendaño is its senior commander.
In footage circulated before the operation, President de la Espriella himself, accompanied by air force personnel, wrote 'Bienvenidos a la Patria Milagro' ('Welcome to the Miracle Homeland') in marker on a roughly 460-kilogram bomb, signed it and blessed it. Colombian outlets differ on whether that specific bomb was the one dropped on Tibú: some reporting says it was, while Caracol Radio said it would be used in the next bombing, and GSM presents the two accounts separately.
(Source: Colombian Army)
Source: Colombian Army
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：哥伦比亚陆军士兵与军用直升机（资料图）。照片为本站存档开放授权图。 / Photo: Colombian Army soldiers with a military helicopter (file photo). Archived open-license image.
