The death toll rose to 14 as 38 people were injured in a bomb attack in southwestern Colombia, authorities said on Saturday.
An explosive, planted in a culvert on the Pan-American highway in Cajibio in the Cauca region, was detonated as vehicles were passing.
Authorities said the blast occurred during heavy traffic, increasing the scale of casualties and damage.
Security forces were deployed to the area following the blast, which witnesses said occurred during heavy traffic.
A traditional rural bus known as a “chiva” was destroyed in the explosion, which also damaged vehicles and left a large crater on the road.
The force of the explosion also damaged several nearby vehicles, and reports indicated that an explosive device may have been thrown onto a bus before detonating, further intensifying the impact
President Gustavo Petro blamed Ivan Mordisco, leader of the EMC faction of the FARC rebel group, for the attack.
“Those who killed 7 civilians and injured 20 civilians in Cajibio are terrorists, fascists and drug traffickers,” Petro wrote on social media, directing intensified military operations and global tracking of the group.
In a separate statement, Petro reiterated his call for intensified operations and demanded the highest level of international tracking against what he described as a “narco-terrorist group.”
Two people were injured in a bus bombing in a separate incident near a military base in the city of Cali.
Cauca Governor Octavio Guzman described the attack as a tragedy that plunged the local population into deep mourning, confirming the updated toll and the presence of child victims among the dead. – AA