Colombia: Oil pipeline attack in N. de Santander Sep. 27 /update 1

Event

Yet another attack was carried out against the Caño Limón-Coveñas oil pipeline on Wednesday, September 27, this time in the municipality of Toledo (Norte de Santander department). The ELN guerrilla group is the likely culprit. The incident came a day after two other bombings targeted the pipeline in Norte de Santander and Arauca departments. No one was injured in any of the three bombings, but they did result in environmentally-damaging oil spills and oil transportation disruptions.

Context

These were the 44th, 45th, and 46th attacks carried out against the pipeline since the beginning of the year; other attacks occurred in Norte de Santander, Arauca, Boyacá, and Cesar departments. Caño Limón-Coveñas is Colombia’s most important pipeline, with a daily transportation capacity of 210,000 barrels.

These bombings come just a few days before a bilateral ceasefire between the ELN and the government is set to come into effect. The 102-day truce is set to run from October 1, 2017, until January 12, 2018. However, violence remains possible ahead of and during this period. The ELN, the country's last remaining rebel group following the demobilization of the FARC, is present in various areas of the country including Arauca, Boyacá, Norte de Santander, La Guajira, Cesar, Bolívar, Casanare, Santander, Chocó, Cauca, Nariño, and Putumayo departments, particularly in rural zones. The ELN and the Colombian government have been engaged in an armed conflict for 53 years.

Advice

Due to the presence of a number of armed groups - including organized crime groups, drug cartels, right-wing militias, local gangs, and the ELN - some Western governments advise against travel to various parts of the country, including much or all of Norte de Santander and Arauca.