A new armed strike declared by the illegal armed group the National Liberation Army (ELN) in the department of Choco once again highlights the fragility of security in this region of Colombia’s Pacific coast.
Since March 17, entire communities, especially in remote areas, have remained confined, facing severe restrictions on movement, access to food, and basic services, amid pressure from an armed group that imposes its orders through intimidation.
An armed strike is a territorial control strategy that combines threats, violence, and restrictions on daily life, forcing the civilian population to halt its activities under the risk of reprisals.
In Choco, this practice has been repeated systematically in recent years: at least 14 similar episodes have affected the region over the past three years, consolidating a pattern of confinement and humanitarian crisis that mainly impacts rural, Indigenous, and Afro-descendant communities.
In this context, Colombia One spoke with Pedro Sanchez, Colombia’s Minister of Defense, about how the government is confronting this new challenge from an armed group with which dialogue was not possible, despite having led the first in a series of talks under the framework of the so-called Total Peace, the Petro government’s negotiation policy.
Colombia’s Defense minister vows to confront the ELN’s new armed strike in Choco
The Choco region is completing its first week under the self-declared indefinite “armed strike” ordered by the illegal armed group ELN. This strategy of social coercion, which affects the armed forces but above all the population in rural areas of Colombia’s poorest department, is being met by the government with “renewed military pressure” and a reward offer for those who help capture those responsible for the criminal act.
In this regard, Defense Minister Pedro Sanchez announced this Saturday that the government is placing a price on the capture of ELN members leading this armed strike in Choco. “We will not tolerate these acts. For this reason, we are offering a reward of up to one billion pesos (approximately US$270,000). Part of the strategy is to neutralize those who are leading this criminal strike,” Sanchez told this outlet.
The minister, who was present at the summit of heads of state and government of CELAC, held this past Saturday in Bogota, sought to downplay the impact of the criminal act while emphasizing the government’s determination to pursue criminals with whom it unsuccessfully attempted to negotiate until last year.
In this sense, the head of Colombia’s Armed Forces indicated that military operations will not cease and that all necessary efforts will continue to confront illegal groups that spread fear in this part of the country.
“In response to this threat, we have deployed military forces focused especially on controlling the rivers in Bajo Baudo. Our brave soldiers are there, including Marines from Marine Infantry Brigade No. 2, working in coordination with Army Brigade No. 15 and the Colombian Aerospace Force,” he said.
‘The ELN does not defend the people, it attacks them’
The minister rejected and condemned the ELN’s armed strike strategy, which intimidates the population and forces it into indefinite confinement. “Attacking the civilian population, confining them, threatening them is a war crime, but when it is done systematically, as they have done, it is a crime against humanity. The ELN cartel does not defend the people, it attacks them. The ELN cartel does not fight for the people, it tries to annihilate them,” he added.
Sanchez announced that “alias Santiago, the main leader of that Western War Front of the ELN operating there, was neutralized at the beginning of January this year. The same will happen to this criminal known as alias Genaro,” who currently leads the front of this criminal group imposing the armed strike in Choco.
For a week now, the armed strike has kept more than 6,000 people confined and dozens of communities under severe restrictions, affecting not only their daily lives but even their basic needs. On this, the department’s governor, Nubia Cordoba, warned that many residents in remote areas do not have access to drinking water and, unable to leave their homes, face serious problems of thirst.
On this issue, Minister Sanchez described a scenario in which the civilian population is trapped between violence and fear, unable to move freely or guarantee their basic subsistence.
“We are facing a criminal strike that seeks to subjugate the population and demonstrate territorial control,” he said, insisting that such actions not only affect security but also constitute a direct violation of fundamental rights. His account aligns with that of the governor, describing families without food, isolated communities, and a completely paralyzed local economy.
El cartel del ELN ha alcanzado uno de sus niveles más críticos de degradación. Su desesperación lo está llevando a atacar a la población civil, confinándola y desplazándola, como ocurre hoy en el Bajo Baudó.
Reafirmamos que el Chocó no está solo. Nuestra Fuerza Pública tiene la… pic.twitter.com/KXIrWeRq5E
— Pedro Arnulfo Sanchez S. Orgullosamente Colombiano (@PedroSanchezCol) March 22, 2026
An invitation to demobilize
Sanchez stated that all government actions are part of a broader effort to “neutralize those responsible” and regain control of the territory. “The instruction is clear: we are going to intensify military operations until normality is restored,” he added, emphasizing that the presence of the Public Force will be maintained and reinforced in critical areas.
But beyond the military deployment, Sanchez delivered a direct message to ELN leaders in the area. “The invitation is for them to demobilize. Otherwise, they will be captured, or we will confront the situation with the full legitimate force of the State,” he said, drawing a hard line against what he considers an “intolerable” deliberate action against the civilian population.
“The State has the obligation to protect its citizens, and that is what we are doing,” Sanchez concluded, in a statement that summarizes the official stance in the face of a crisis that once again highlights the persistence of armed conflict in historically neglected regions.
Meanwhile, in Bajo Baudó and other areas of the Choco department, the silence imposed by the armed strike continues to shape daily life, as people wait for promises of security to become a tangible reality for thousands who remain indefinitely confined in a new challenge against a State that, despite everything, still struggles to assert its constitutional legitimacy in Colombia’s most remote regions.