Colombia: Major blow to ELN drug trafficking

De la Espriella described the operation as a "severe blow against the drug trade" and assigned the production facility to the left-wing rebel group ELN ("National Liberation Army") - the largest still active guerrilla organization in the country.

»We continue to strike against the illegal economies that finance terrorism and violence. The drug trade is the enemy of Colombia and we will fight it relentlessly," said De la Espriella, who calls himself "El tigre" ("The Tiger"). During the election campaign, the right-wing hardliner placed the issue of security and the fight against drug gangs at the center of his campaign. He was supported by US President Donald Trump.

A few days ago, Colombia joined Trump's anti-drug alliance "The Shield of the Americas." According to US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Colombia and the USA also agreed on joint military operations in the fight against the drug cartels. Colombia is considered the world's largest producer of cocaine.

The ELN has always denied any direct connection to the drug trade. Its leader Antonio Garcia said in January that his group collects taxes from cocaine traffickers but does not operate cocaine laboratories or drug trafficking routes. The ELN was founded in the early 1960s and has around 5,000 fighters in Colombia and Venezuela.