In a stunning move that threatens to unravel a historic peace accord, a faction of former FARC fighters has declared a new armed campaign against the Colombian state. The announcement marks a dramatic and violent return for the group, which had formally disarmed following a 2016 peace deal.
The declaration was made in a 32-minute video, reportedly filmed in the remote, jungle-covered mountains of the Colombian Caribbean. The group's notorious leader, Ivan Marquez—a former chief negotiator of the peace deal who vanished last year—appeared in military fatigues to read the statement flanked by armed combatants.
A Return to Arms
Marquez, now branded a traitor by the government, stated the new offensive is a necessary response to the state's failure to uphold its end of the peace bargain. He accused President Ivan Duque's administration of betraying the agreement and presiding over the systematic assassination of hundreds of former guerrillas and social leaders.
This new faction is calling itself the 'Second Marquetalia,' a direct reference to the 1960s leftist commune that was the birthplace of the original FARC insurgency. The announcement signals a formal and violent split from the majority of ex-rebels who have remained committed to the peace process and formed a political party.
Government and International Response
The Colombian government has swiftly condemned the move. Defence Minister Guillermo Botero dismissed the group as a band of 'narco-criminals' and assured the public that the military was prepared to confront this new threat. The announcement has sent shockwaves through the international community, which had widely praised the 2016 deal for ending half a century of conflict that claimed over 260,000 lives.
Security analysts are deeply concerned that this new armed group could forge alliances with other criminal organisations and neo-paramilitary forces, further destabilising vast rural areas of the country and jeopardising the fragile peace achieved just three years ago.
