Colombia's Potential Presidential Contender Shot, Suspect Arrested
Colombian Senator Miguel Uribe, a potential presidential contender, was shot in Bogota on Saturday, according to the government and his party, as his wife said he was fighting for his life in hospital.
The 39-year-old senator, who was shot during a campaign event as part of his run for the presidency in 2026, is a member of the opposition conservative Democratic Center party founded by former Colombian President Alvaro Uribe. The two men are not related.
According to a party statement condemning the attack, the senator was hosting a campaign event in a public park in the Fontibon neighborhood in the capital on Saturday when "armed subjects shot him from behind,' Reuters reported.
The party described the attack as serious, but did not disclose further details on Uribe's condition. Videos on social media showed a man, identified as Uribe, being tended to after the shooting. He appeared to be bleeding from his head.
Uribe's wife Maria Claudia Tarazona wrote on her husband's account on X that he was "fighting for his life."
Colombia's Defense Minister Pedro Sanchez said a suspect had been arrested in the shooting and that authorities were investigating whether others were involved. Sanchez said he had visited the hospital where Uribe was being treated.
The government is offering some $730,000 as a reward for information in the case.
Colombia's presidency issued a statement saying the government "categorically and forcefully" rejected the violent attack, and called for a thorough investigation into the events that took place.
Leftist President Gustavo Petro sympathized with the senator's family in a message on X saying, "I don't know how to ease your pain. It is the pain of a mother lost, and of a homeland."
Petro later said in a speech on Saturday night that the person arrested was a minor and that the investigation would focus on finding who had ordered the attack.
"For now there is nothing more than hypothesis," Petro said, adding that failures in security protocols would also be looked into.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
4 hours ago
- Arab News
Violence against children hit ‘unprecedented levels in 2024'
NEW YORK: Violence against children caught in multiple and escalating conflicts reached 'unprecedented levels' last year, with the highest number of violations in Gaza and the West Bank, Congo, Somalia, Nigeria and Haiti, according to a UN report. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' annual report on Children in Armed Conflict detailed 'a staggering 25 percent surge in grave violations' against children under the age of 18 from 2023, when the number of such violations rose by 21 percent. In 2024, the UN chief said children 'bore the brunt of relentless hostilities and indiscriminate attacks, and were affected by the disregard for ceasefires and peace agreements and by deepening humanitarian crises.' UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he is 'appalled by the intensity of grave violations against children in the occupied Palestinian territories and Israel,' and 'deeply alarmed'by the increase in violations, especially the high number of children killed by Israeli forces. He cited warfare strategies that included attacks on children, the deployment of increasingly destructive and explosive weapons in populated areas, and 'the systematic exploitation of children for combat.' Guterres said the UN verified 41,370 grave violations against children — 36,221 committed in 2024 and 5,149 committed earlier but verified last year. The violations include killing, maiming, recruiting and abducting children, sexual violence against them, attacking schools and hospitals, and denying youngsters access to humanitarian aid. The UN kept Israeli forces on its blacklist of countries that violate children's rights for a second year, citing 7,188 verified grave violations by its military, including the killing of 1,259 Palestinian children and injury to 941 others in Gaza. The Gaza Health Ministry has reported much higher figures, but the UN has strict criteria and said its process of verification is ongoing. Guterres said he is 'appalled by the intensity of grave violations against children in the occupied Palestinian territories and Israel,' and 'deeply alarmed' by the increase in violations, especially the high number of children killed by Israeli forces. He reiterated his calls on Israel to abide by international law requiring special protections for children, protection for schools and hospitals, and compliance with the requirement that attacks distinguish between combatants and civilians and avoid excessive harm to civilians. The UN also kept Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad on the blacklist. Israel's UN Mission did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In Congo, the UN reported 4,043 verified grave violations against 3,418 children last year. In Somalia, it reported 2,568 violations against 1,992 children. In Nigeria, 2,436 grave violations were reported against 1,037 children. And in Haiti, the UN reported 2,269 verified grave violations against 1,373 children. In the ongoing war following Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the UN kept the Russian armed forces and affiliated armed groups on its blacklist for a third year. The secretary-general expressed deep concern at 'the sharp increase in grave violations against children in Ukraine' — 1,914 against 673 children. He expressed alarm at the violations by Russian forces and their affiliates, singling out their verified killing of 94 Ukrainian children, injury to 577 others, and 559 attacks on schools and 303 on hospitals. In Haiti, the UN put a gang, the Viv Ansanm coalition, on the blacklist for the first time. Gangs have grown in power since the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in July 2021. They are estimated to control 85 percent of the capital and have moved into surrounding areas. In May, the US designated the powerful coalition representing more than a dozen gangs, whose name means 'Living Together,' as a foreign terrorist organization. Secretary-General Guterres expressed deep 'alarm' at the surge in violations, especially incidents of gang recruitment and use, sexual violence, abduction, and denial of humanitarian aid. The report said sexual violence jumped by 35 percent in 2024, including a dramatic increase in the number of gang rapes, but stressed that the numbers are vastly underreported. 'Girls were abducted for the purpose of recruitment and use, and for sexual slavery,' the UN chief said. In Haiti, the UN reported sexual violence against 566 children, 523 of them girls, and attributed 411 to the Viv Ansanm gang. In Congo, the UN reported 358 acts of sexual violence against girls — 311 by armed groups and 47 by Congo's armed forces. And in Somalia, 267 children were victims of sexual violence, 120 of them carried out by Al-Shabab extremists. According to the report, violations affected 22,495 children in 2024, with armed groups responsible for almost 50 percent and government forces the main perpetrator of the killing and maiming of children, school attacks, and denial of humanitarian access. The report noted a sharp rise in the number of children subjected to multiple violations — from 2,684 in 2023 to 3,137 in 2024. 'The cries of 22,495 innocent children who should be learning to read or play ball — but instead have been forced to learn how to survive gunfire and bombings — should keep all of us awake at night,' said Virginia Gamba, the UN special representative for children and armed conflict. 'We are at the point of no return,' she said, calling on the international community to protect children and the parties in conflict 'to immediately end the war on children.'
Al Arabiya
2 days ago
- Al Arabiya
Lawmakers on edge as statehouse security tightens after Minnesota shootings
Anxious lawmakers convened Wednesday under heightened security in Wisconsin's state Capitol – one of the most publicly accessible statehouses in the country – days after a legislator and her husband in neighboring Minnesota were shot and killed at their home and others were targeted. The tension playing out in Wisconsin and other states after the Minnesota killings pits those who want to keep state capitols as open and accessible as possible against those concerned about increasing threats and acts of violence against officeholders. Other states took action. Numerous states took action this week to protect personal information of lawmakers after the targeted shootings of two Minnesota state lawmakers. The second legislator and his wife sustained serious injuries in the shootings early Saturday. A suspect, Vance Boelter, surrendered to police on Sunday. Prosecutors say Boelter had dozens of additional potential targets. They included state and federal officeholders in Wisconsin. Legislatures in most states are done meeting for the year, but those like Wisconsin that are still in session are taking emergency action to bolster security. The police chief at the North Carolina General Assembly said Monday in an email to legislators that 'we are working on enhanced security plans and are doing our best to keep everyone safe.' But further details haven't been released, and there's been no significant change seen in security on the surface. In Arizona, more state troopers were assigned to the state Senate building, said Senate GOP spokesperson Kim Quintero. Security bolstered in Wisconsin. Security changes for Wednesday's meeting of the Wisconsin Legislature were mostly out of sight. Visitors to the Capitol could still enter the building without going through a metal detector, but anyone wanting to watch in the Senate's public gallery had to go through an additional security check. Those wishing to watch the Assembly session from the gallery could do so, but they were encouraged to instead view it from another room. In a more visible sign of force, there were state patrol officers in the building and around both legislative chambers in addition to the usual Capitol Police. There were new security screenings for reporters attending a news conference in the Senate parlor, and the Democratic Assembly leader's door that is typically open was locked with a sign saying anyone with an appointment could knock to gain entry. 'I feel safe in our Capitol building,' Democratic Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein said before session began Wednesday. Not everyone felt the same way. 'We need to have a higher level of security,' Republican Sen. Chris Kapenga told WISN-TV. He supports adding metal detectors and banning guns for anyone in the building except for lawmakers. He said he always carries a gun in the Capitol. 'We should not be worried about our lives walking into that building,' Kapenga said. Prior security concerns. Wisconsin is a presidential battleground state used to high-stakes political fights and frequent large protests both inside and outside of the Capitol. Two years ago, a man armed with a loaded handgun came into the Wisconsin Capitol looking for Gov. Tony Evers, who was not there at the time. Wisconsin is one of seven states where concealed weapons are allowed in the Capitol, according to a 2021 report by the Council of State Governments. Thirty-six states ban concealed weapons in their capitol buildings. There have been some visible security increases at the Wisconsin Capitol in recent months. Anyone attending oral arguments of the state Supreme Court, which meets in a room just around the corner from the legislative chambers, must go through a metal detector. That was added after a retired judge was shot and killed in a targeted attack at his home in 2022 and amid increasing threats to members of the judiciary. Evers and other lawmakers were also on a list that gunman had. No metal detectors. The Wisconsin Capitol has its own police force housed in the basement, but the building is not protected by metal detectors, screening checkpoints, or X-rays. Anyone can walk in off the street between 8:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. during the week and go straight to the offices of state lawmakers and others. The Wisconsin Capitol is one of 11 state capitols that does not have metal detectors, a state audit found last year. It is one of 19 states without X-ray machines to scan items people bring into the building, the audit found. Metal detectors were installed at the Capitol in late February 2011 at the height of protests over then-Gov. Scott Walker's proposal, later signed into law, that effectively ended collective bargaining for most public workers. They were removed four months later under an agreement reached between Walker's administration and the state employees' union, which sued to get the Capitol reopened without metal detectors. State Capitol security concerns were raised again after the riot at the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. But at the time the Wisconsin Capitol was closed to the general public due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Wisconsin Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said Wednesday that it was important to take a breath and not have a knee-jerk reaction to the Minnesota shootings. 'Trying to make the Capitol into a fortress is not the answer,' he said. 'The thing that's most scary is this didn't occur in a Capitol,' Vos said. 'It occurred in someone's home.'
Al Arabiya
3 days ago
- Al Arabiya
EU Summons Russia Envoy Over Attack of a Diplomat in Vladivostok
The European Union has summoned Russia's envoy to Brussels for an explanation after one of the bloc's officials was attacked in the eastern city of Vladivostok last month, an EU spokesperson said Wednesday. The diplomat was attacked on May 26. Their name, nationality, and medical condition weren't provided. German news outlet Der Spiegel reported that the official was a Romanian woman who had traveled to the city on official business. Der Spiegel said that the woman was attacked after leaving her hotel for an early morning walk. It said a car pulled up alongside her and that two men got out. She was threatened and then beaten up. The men were believed to work for Russian security authorities, the news magazine said, citing EU diplomatic sources. 'We condemn any violence against EU diplomats. They must be able to carry out their duties free from fear and intimidation,' EU spokesperson Anitta Hipper said. 'The safety of our staff is paramount, and we will continue to review the protection of our diplomatic staff.' Russia's representative in Brussels was summoned for clarifications. No further details were provided.
