Peru: Military base attacked in Junín (VRAEM region) June 11 /update 1

Event

“Narcoterrorists” believed to belong to the Shining Path (Sendero Luminoso) armed group attacked the Nueva Libertad military base located in Mazángaro (Vizcatán district; Junín region) on Monday, June 11. Six soldiers were wounded in the attack, including one who received major injuries.

This was the second such attack to take place in the restive VRAEM region (Valley of the Apurimac, Ene, and Mantaro Rivers) in the span of a week. Four police officers were killed during an ambush carried out by narcoterrorists in the Huancavelica region on June 7. Further attacks, as well as an increase in troop deployment to the VRAEM, are possible in the coming days and weeks.

Context

The VRAEM region - made up of parts of Ayacucho, Huancavelica, Cusco, and Junín - was largely ignored by the Peruvian government until 2006, allowing criminal groups to thrive and poverty rates to remain extremely high. Joint police and army patrols are now regularly carried out in the area. According to the UN, one-third of the cocaine produced worldwide comes from this area, totaling up to 400 tons per year.

The Shining Path remains Peru's largest armed group, although its level of activity has fallen sharply since its peak in the 1980s and 1990s. Today, its members are principally involved in drug trafficking, concentrated in the VRAEM region.

Advice

Due to the presence of armed groups, some Western governments advise against all travel to the VRAEM region, as well to areas along the Colombian border.