International

Colombia accounted for 7.2 million internally displaced people in 2024, 43% more than in 2023

The number of internally displaced people in Colombia as a result of the violence of non-state armed groups reached 7.26 million in 2024, 43% more than in 2023, according to the annual report of the NGO Internal Displacement Observatory (IDMC).

The increase was due in part to violence in departments such as Cauca, Chocó, Nariño, Antioquia or Norte de Santander (especially its Catatumbo region), but also to a change in the criteria by the authorities when classifying vulnerable populations as displaced.

Although different ceasefires reached between the Government of Colombia with armed groups produced fewer clashes in 2024, “not all remained,” and last year there were up to 388,000 movements of displaced people, IDMC said.

“Many of them were on a small scale, individual, in response to threats, intimidation and extortion,” the report explained, which also highlighted the restrictions on movement, curfews and confinements imposed by non-state armed groups on many displaced communities.

The study also stressed that last year there were 91,000 displaced movements in Colombia, a lower figure than in the previous two years, due to natural disasters, mainly floods that affected the Bolivar, Córdoba and Sucre.

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The same departments were affected by droughts that caused another 7,900 displacements, the first recorded in Colombia due to the lack of rain.

Throughout America, the number of internally displaced people at the end of 2024 stood at 9.6 million, of which almost three quarters were concentrated in Colombia, although this is partly due to more systematic data from the authorities of that country compared to others in the region.

It is followed by Haiti with more than one million displaced people – and the largest number of movements in the region last year, 889,000 -, Guatemala, with 573,000 displaced people, Mexico, with 390,000, and Honduras, with 101,000.

International

Armed forces target illegal mines in Northern Ecuador with bombing raids

Ecuador’s Armed Forces carried out an operation on Monday — including airstrikes — against illegal mining in the town of Buenos Aires, in the country’s north, Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo reported.

The mountainous, gold-rich area has been a hotspot for illegal mining since 2017, located in the Andean province of Imbabura.

In 2019, former president Lenín Moreno deployed around 2,400 soldiers to the region in an attempt to curb the illegal activity. “The operation began with mortar fire, followed by gunfire and bombing runs by Supertucano aircraft,” Loffredo said in a video released by the Defense Ministry.

He added that the operation would continue on Tuesday with patrols across the area to locate possible members of “irregular armed groups that may have crossed from the Colombian border.”

The Armed Forces stated on X that the intervention focused on the “complete elimination of multiple illegal mining tunnels” in the areas known as Mina Nueva and Mina Vieja.

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The operation coincided with the deployment of a military and police convoy into Imbabura, which has been the epicenter of protests against President Daniel Noboa since September 22, following his decision to scrap the diesel subsidy.

International

Caracas shuts embassy in Oslo without explanation following Machado’s Nobel win

Venezuela has announced the closure of its embassy in Norway, just days after opposition leader María Corina Machado was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the Venezuelan diplomatic mission provided no explanation for its decision on Monday.

“It is regrettable,” a ministry spokesperson said. “Despite our differences on several issues, Norway wishes to keep the dialogue with Venezuela open and will continue to work in that direction.” The ministry also emphasized that the Nobel Committee operates entirely independently from the Norwegian government.

In its announcement, the Nobel Committee stated that Machado met the criteria established by Alfred Nobel, “embodying the hope for a different future, where the fundamental rights of Venezuelans are heard.”

International

Sheinbaum: Urgent to restore access to towns cut off by heavy rains

Thousands of military personnel and civilians in Mexico worked tirelessly on Tuesday to clear roads blocked by the torrential rains of recent days, which have left more than 300 communities cut off across central and eastern regions of the country. Authorities also launched mass fumigation efforts in several affected areas to prevent the spread of dengue fever.

The official death toll remains at 64, though dozens of people are still missing. President Claudia Sheinbaumacknowledged that the government does not yet know the full situation in many of the isolated villages, which range in population from 500 to 1,000 inhabitants.

“The reopening of roads is one of the greatest urgencies,” Sheinbaum said. “It’s essential to guarantee air bridges, food supplies, clean water, and a proper census of the isolated communities so we can determine the condition of every person living there.”

Private construction companies are also assisting the effort with heavy machinery and technical support to help reopen highways and reconnect rural areas.