The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petrosaid Tuesday that there are “active” military among Colombians detained last week in Mexico in an operation deployed after an explosion that killed six Mexican uniformed.
Last Friday, the Mexican army arrested in total 17 people in the state of Michoacán (West), 11 of them were Colombian citizensthe Colombian Foreign Ministry announced in a balance published on Tuesday.
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The operation followed the death of six militarized personnel National guard for the explosion of an artifact in the same state.
The Mexican authorities link the detainees with the Cartel de los Reyes, a structure that is disputed Michoacán With the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).
“The majority (of the detainees) are Colombian ex -military and There are some assets” said Petro in an address broadcast on television on Tuesday.
“We are exporting mercenaries to the mafia”, The leftist president added, whose government promotes a bill to prohibit the participation of Colombian uniformed in armed conflicts abroad.
Colombia has suffered an internal armed conflict of more than half a century, which leaves close to 10 million victims.
For years Colombian mercenaries, mostly military in retirement, have fought in wars such as those of Ukraine, Sudan, Afghanistan, Yemen and Iraq.
In 2023, Colombian gunmen killed the Ecuadorian presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio. In 2021, former Militaries murdered President Haitian Jovenel Moïse.
The presence of Colombians in Mexican cartels It has also increased in recent years.
On Tuesday, the Foreign Ministry of Colombia expressed his “Condolences to the families of the uniformed” Mexicans who died in the explosive attack last week.
Colombian diplomacy called “Strengthen the relationships of Judicial and investigative cooperation” between both nations to face the “Criminal phenomena that have extended their networks between Colombia and Mexico“
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