Explosive Drones Strike Colombian Army Base, Killing Three Soldiers and Seriously Wounding at Least Eight

Colombia's Army said explosive-laden drones struck a military base in Santa Rosa del Sur, in the northern department of Bolívar, at midday on Saturday, November 7, killing three soldiers and seriously wounding at least eight. The Army did not say who carried out the attack; President Abelardo de la Espriella called it a terrorist attack and vowed to hold those responsible to account.

Three blasts; soldiers took cover in sandbag shelters

The target was the Santa Rosa del Sur military compound, home to the Army's 48th Jungle Battalion. Video circulating on social media showed three explosions in succession and smoke rising from the base as soldiers took cover in shelters built from sandbags. In a statement updated at 2:38 p.m. local time, the Army's First Division confirmed the drones had been fitted with explosive devices, killing three service members and seriously wounding eight, with other personnel also receiving medical care; a final casualty total has not been published. The Associated Press later cited the military as saying at least 16 were wounded; the local mayor put the total injured at 35, and the figures have not been reconciled.

Gold-rich area contested by several armed groups

Santa Rosa del Sur lies in the foothills of the San Lucas mountain range, an area rich in gold mines long fought over by the Gulf Clan, the National Liberation Army (ELN) and smaller factions led by former members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Early reports pointed to possible ELN involvement, but responsibility has not been established and no organisation has publicly claimed the attack.

President vows response; truck bomb reported the same day

President de la Espriella wrote on X on November 7 that those behind the attack "will have nowhere to hide" and ordered intensified operations to capture those responsible, adding that every attack on soldiers only strengthens the resolve to defend Colombia. A truck bomb exploded the same day in Patía, in Cauca department, with details still to be verified. The Associated Press noted the attack was the latest in a series of attacks on security forces as violence rises across rural parts of the country.

(Sources: Colombian Army; Associated Press; El Espectador.)