Venezuelan military personnel supervising the arrival of Colombians escaping recent violent clashes between paramilitary drug trafficking groups in Arauca (Colombia). Photo by Twitter/ @vladimirpadrino.
Groups of displaced Colombians from the Arauquita municipality in the department of Arauca, Colombia, received proper care from the Bolivarian National Armed Force (FANB) on the Venezuelan side of the border, reported Venezuela’s Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino.
Minister Padrino released images on Twitter showing the aid operation carried out by the military force. The FANB’s objective is to receive and support people fleeing from the recently heightened violence in the conflict zone in Colombia, sparked by rival drug trafficking gangs fighting for territory.
Civil authorities also participated in the operation, assisting the refugees who fled into Venezuela. The humanitarian repercussions of the conflict have led to calls for help from the international community.
Pobladores de Arauquita, #Colombia, asediada por el terror y la violencia, se desplazan hacia territorio venezolano. Autoridades civiles y militares venezolanas proporcionan asistencia. La comunidad internacional debe observar este conflicto con visión humanitaria. pic.twitter.com/DCqHz6q08N
— Vladimir Padrino L. (@vladimirpadrino) January 4, 2022
The statement by Minister Padrino was accompanied by a message from the Chief of the Strategic Operational Command of the Bolivarian National Armed Force (CEOFANB), Major General Domingo Hernández Larez.
The high command reiterated its commitment “to the needy and oppressed peoples,” those displaced by the inaction of Colombia’s ineffective government, peoples for whom the FANB will always be ready to provide unconditional aid and support.
RELATED CONTENT: Violence in Colombia Near Venezuelan Border Raises Military Alert
La #FANB se encuentra desplegada resguardando la integridad y la soberanía de la patria a lo largo y ancho del territorio nacional.@NicolasMaduro @vladimirpadrino pic.twitter.com/oNhIpjALIt
— GJ. Domingo Hernández Lárez (@dhernandezlarez) January 5, 2022
The war in Colombia
The beginning of 2022 was marked by a new wave of violence in Colombia, caused by paramilitary armed groups associated with Colombian drug trafficking mafias.
The terror sown by the clashes between these gangs caused the death of more than 20 people and the displacement of dozens of families in the municipality of Arauquita, Colombia, on the border with the state of Apure, Venezuela. There, the Bolivarian National Armed Force was deployed to guarantee peace and sovereignty.
Other towns under siege by paramilitary drug-trafficking groups in the same department include Saravena, Forul, Tame, and Botalón. Inhabitants of the conflict zone called for humanitarian corridors to facilitate the evacuation of civilians.
Featured image: Venezuelan military personnel supervise the arrival of Colombians escaping recent violent clashes between paramilitary drug trafficking groups in Arauca, Colombia. Photo by Twitter/@vladimirpadrino.
(RedRadioVE) by José Manuel Blanco Díaz
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SL
José Manuel Blanco Diaz
Vice President of the Radio Miraflores Foundation |radiomiraflores.net.ve | Presenter of | UCV Social Communication | UCV announcer
