At least seven dead in Colombia attacks, reports from local media

At least seven people died in a wave of bomb and weapon attacks in southwestern Colombia, according to local media reports.

Two police officers would be one of the dead in the attacks, which focused on Cali, the third largest city in the country and various nearby cities.

Car bombs, motorcycle bombs, gunfire and a suspected drone were reportedly used in the attacks. The Colombian Ministry of Defense said that 19 attacks had taken place.

Local media have linked some attacks to a faction of the Revolutionary forces of Colombia (FARC)A once powerful guerrilla group. The BBC has not been able to verify this independently.

Police stations, municipal buildings and civilian goals were affected if an escalating security crisis grabbing the South -American country.

The police put the toll on seven dead, according to Reuters and Agence France-Presse, while the number of wounded varied from 28 to more than 50.

In a statement on social media, the Colombian Ministry of Defense said that there were 12 attacks in the Cauca region and seven in the Valle del Cauca region, the ministry said.

The Ministry described the violence as “a desperate reaction of illegal armed groups to the massive operations of the [military and police]who have destroyed their illegal structures and economies “.

The mayor of the largest city in the region, Cali, said that the city had returned to 1989, when it was destroyed by the trade in drugs and cartel violence.

The attacks come days after the Attempted murder of presidential candidate Miguel Uribe Turbay In the capital, Bogota, while addressing supporters.

A 15-year-old was arrested on stage at the time. On Tuesday, the office of the attorney general said that the teenager did not accept the accusations against him, including attempted murder and illegal possession of a firearm.

A judge ordered the teenager’s detention, added the office of the attorney general.